1 FOUR 1 RECRUITMENT LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
06620391 · ltd · incorporated 2008-06-16
Investment thesis
Well-run mature business — low negotiation leverage; premium likely.
Why interesting: Textbook target; clean filings, stable trading.
Why risky: No pressure on seller; any deal likely at full price.
Opportunity decay
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
  • · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Jun 2025
Net worth
£508.9k
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
🔔
Follow this company (free)
Email alerts on filings, charges, director changes, gazette notices. No account needed.

Unsubscribe any time from any email. GDPR-respectful.

🔒Generate AI memo →🔒Outreach pack →🔒Corporate story →📑 Reports →Sign in to watch
What this business does
Primary activity: Temporary employment agency activities
Sector: Administrative & support services
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company. Family succession underway — not a classic acquisition target.

Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 67/100. Same-surname younger director in place — likely family handover, not open to sale. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Consolidate lender relationships. 3 distinct lenders creates friction — refinance into single-lender structure for cleaner diligence. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

3 live charges · 3 lenders · oldest 17.7y

35/100
too messy

Refinance path is blocked by complexity. Rethink structure or expect bespoke, expensive terms.

  • · Oldest live charge is 17.7 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · 3 lenders named — inter-creditor friction likely.
  • · Legal-friction score 25/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.

Data confidence

Overall: medium (79/100)

Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.

Company profile
address, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
3 charges (3/3 with lender, 3/3 with type)
90
Directors & officers
6 officers (3 active, 6 linked, 4 with DOB)
83
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
2 connected companies via shared directors
51
Filing history
67 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
79/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
77
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £508,873
Net assets shrinking
Down £195,639 YoY

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
£509k
↓ 28% YoY
Current Assets
£881k
↑ 3.3% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£176k£352k£528k£704k£881kJun 2024Jun 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-06-302024-06-30
Total assets—£704.5k
Current assets£880.6k£852.6k
Cash—£280.0k
Debtors—£572.6k
Net assets£508.9k£704.5k

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

🔒Filing-note intelligence

1 signal detected in this company's narrative notes — going-concern language, audit opinion, contingent liabilities, related-party transactions.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

Recent activity

Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (31 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-02-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-04-07
    ➖
    CLAY, Audley Keith Donovan resigned
    director
  3. 2025-04-07
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  4. 2025-03-06
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2024-03-14
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2023-03-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2022-07-27
    📄
    second-filing-of-director-appointment-with-name
    officers · RP04AP01
  8. 2021-11-05
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2021-06-01
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  10. 2021-05-29
    ➕
    CLAY, Dominic George Frederick appointed
    director
  11. 2021-03-05
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2019-10-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2019-03-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  14. 2018-11-08
    📄
    mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
    mortgage · MR01
  15. 2018-11-08
    🔒
    Charge registered #3
    Lender: Hsbc Invoice Finance (UK) LTD
  16. 2018-11-02
    📄
    mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
    mortgage · MR04
  17. 2018-11-02
    📄
    mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
    mortgage · MR04
  18. 2018-11-02
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #2
  19. 2018-11-02
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #1
  20. 2018-01-05
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  21. 2017-03-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  22. 2011-03-30
    ➕
    CLAY, Gillian appointed
    secretary
  23. 2011-03-30
    ➕
    CLAY, Gillian appointed
    director
  24. 2008-09-29
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: Bibby Financial Services Limited as Security Trustee
  25. 2008-08-27
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Bibby Financial Services Limited (Security Trustee)
  26. 2008-07-02
    ➖
    CLAY, Audley Keith Donovan resigned
    secretary
  27. 2008-06-25
    ➖
    SMALLING, Leslie Barrington resigned
    director
  28. 2008-06-16
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As 1 FOUR 1 RECRUITMENT LIMITED
  29. 2008-06-16
    ➕
    CLAY, Audley Keith Donovan appointed
    secretary
  30. 2008-06-16
    ➕
    CLAY, Audley Keith Donovan appointed
    director
  31. 2008-06-16
    ➕
    SMALLING, Leslie Barrington appointed
    director

Owner dependency

91/100
Critical — business is the founder

The business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.

FACTORS
  • +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 15 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 65 — succession pressure is live.
  • +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.

Succession & seller-readiness

39/100
Weak signal

Limited succession signal. Not a near-term off-market candidate.

SIGNALS
  • primaryFamily succession underway: Not a takeover target — CLAY, Dominic George Frederick (same surname) appointed 2021-05-29. Pattern consistent with intra-family handover.
  • primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 65. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 15 years.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 18 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
  • supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.

Red flags

1 med ·
Charge satisfaction-then-recreation pattern
medium

Multiple instances where a charge was satisfied and a new charge created within 6 months. Suggests active refinancing cycle.

Shareholders & ownership

2 active beneficial owners
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Audley Keith Donovan Clay
Individual · British · DOB 07/1957 · age 69
50–75%
50–75%50-75% shares · 50-75% voting30/06/2016
Mrs Gillian Clay
Individual · British · DOB 11/1961 · age 65
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting30/06/2016

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

🔒Co-director network graph

Radial SVG graph showing every company connected via shared directors, colour-coded by status.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

Similar companies

Active · Professional services · RH postcode area
CompanyEst. valueTurnoverNet worthStaffAgeOppDirector
1 FOUR 1 CARE LTD→
10034165 · est 2016 · no financials extracted
————10y——
10C CONSULTING LTD→
17039055 · est 2026 · no financials extracted
———————
1AFFORDABLECALL LTD.→
07736612 · est 2011 · no financials extracted
————14y——
1ST CONSULTANTS LIMITED→
03708039 · est 1999 · no financials extracted
————27y——
2070PARTNERS LTD→
11543277 · est 2018 · no financials extracted
————7y——
2BUL LIMITED→
13722980 · est 2021 · no financials extracted
————4y——
2POINT0 GROUP LIMITED→
16837513 · est 2025 · no financials extracted
———————
2SCALE LTD→
05926053 · est 2006 · no financials extracted
————19y——
300 RISK LIMITED→
17050202 · est 2026 · no financials extracted
———————
360 DEGREES STRATEGIC FINANCE LIMITED→
07654984 · est 2011 · no financials extracted
————14y——
3NITE LIMITED→
14634046 · est 2023 · no financials extracted
————3y——
3XPC LTD→
17078188 · est 2026 · no financials extracted
———————
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions

7 specific questions generated from this company's actual signals — liquidity, leverage, director age, charge count, red flags, age-of-company.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →
🔒Advanced scoring suite

Exit-route ranking, improvement thesis, quiet-distress detector, covenant-pressure proxy, extraction monitor, approaching triggers, ownership drift, local cluster, value trap, debt capacity, archetype classification — 48+ scoring modules.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

Company details

Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2008-06-16
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC78200 — Temporary employment agency activities

Registered office

10 Tilgate Parade
Crawley
West Sussex
RH10 5EQ

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-03-31
Last made up to: 2025-06-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-06-30
Last: 2025-06-16

Officers (3 active · 3 resigned)

CLAY, Gillian→
secretary · appointed 2011-03-30
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
CLAY, Dominic George Frederick→
director · ~40y · appointed 2021-05-29
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
CLAY, Gillian→
director · ~65y · appointed 2011-03-30
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
CLAY, Audley Keith Donovan→
secretary · appointed 2008-06-16 · resigned 2008-07-02
Resigned
CLAY, Audley Keith Donovan→
director · ~69y · appointed 2008-06-16 · resigned 2025-04-07
Resigned
SMALLING, Leslie Barrington→
director · ~64y · appointed 2008-06-16 · resigned 2008-06-25
Resigned

Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.

Mortgages & charges

3
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:3 of 3 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
HSBC
Hsbc Invoice Finance (UK) LTD
A registered charge—08/11/2018—
satisfied
Bibby Financial Services
Bibby Financial Services Limited as Security Trustee
Debenture1 property29/09/200802/11/2018
satisfied
Bibby Financial Services
Bibby Financial Services Limited (Security Trustee)
Debenture1 property27/08/200802/11/2018
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (67 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2026-02-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-06-16
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2025-04-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-03-06
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-06-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-03-14
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-06-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-03-28
second-filing-of-director-appointment-with-name
officers · RP04AP01
2022-07-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-06-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-11-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-06-28
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2021-06-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-03-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-06-16