ABILITIES DEVELOPMENT LTD
💤Zombieactive
07388118 · ltd · incorporated 2010-09-27
Investment thesis
Zombie company — trading but stalled; unlikely mover.
Why interesting: Quiet, steady; could be a succession or carve-out candidate with the right conversation.
Why risky: No growth signal; thin margin for error on price.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Sept 2024
Net worth
£176.9k
book net assets
Opportunity
75/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Other education n.e.c.
Sector: Education
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
- 87200Residential care activities for learning difficulties, mental health and substance abuse
- 87300Residential care activities for the elderly and disabled
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: asset-holding vehicle with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 75/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Cash flow review and working-capital discipline. Cash down -91% YoY — forensic review of receivables, stock turns, and creditor days. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (58/100).
Data confidence
Overall: high (80/100)Strong data coverage across all sections. AI outputs should be trusted with minimal caveats.
Company profile
address, 3 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
1 officers (1 active, 1 linked, 1 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
2 connected companies via shared directors
51
Filing history
38 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
75/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
60
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102Positive net assets
Net assets £176,931
Net assets shrinking
Down £13,033 YoY
Cash draining
Cash down 91% YoY
Cash YoY
-91%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£14k
↓ 91% YoY
Net Worth
£177k
↓ 6.9% YoY
Current Assets
£303k
↓ 45% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2024-09-30 | 2023-09-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £198.1k | £220.9k |
| Current assets | £303.1k | £546.4k |
| Cash | £14.4k | £163.6k |
| Debtors | £288.7k | £382.8k |
| Net assets | £176.9k | £190.0k |
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
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (18 events)Click to expand
- 2025-10-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-03-17📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2024-12-11📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2024-12-10📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2024-12-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-06-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-09-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-06-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-09-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-16📄accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AAMD
- 2019-06-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-06-25📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2018-10-18📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2018-06-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-06-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2017-01-25📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2010-09-27🏢Company incorporatedAs ABILITIES DEVELOPMENT LTD
- 2010-09-27➕MAY, Karen Nadine appointeddirector
Owner dependency
90/100
Critical — business is the founderThe business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.
FACTORS
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 16 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +No director turnover: Company is 16 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
68/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 16 years.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 16 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
cleanNo red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)
Shareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Dr Karen Nadine May Individual · British · DOB 04/1971 · age 55 | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 09/10/2016 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Mr Earle Ronald Mayceased 13/12/2024· 25-50% shares
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 · Education & training · HA postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3LANCE EDUCATION YEAR 5 LTD→ 16203220 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 3LANCE EDUCATION YEAR 7 LTD→ 16203212 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| 3LANCE EDUCATION YEAR 9 LTD→ 16205554 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| A.C.E MULTI CIC→ 15514084 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| A2B BACHATA ACADEMY LTD→ 15215047 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| AADHAR→ 12573513 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| ABC TUTORS LTD→ 10187118 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| ABCONSULTANCY ETC LTD→ 14993691 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ABRACADABRA NURSERY LIMITED→ 11323226 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ABRACADABRA PRESCHOOL ACADEMY LIMITED→ 08032896 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| ABRACADABRA PRESCHOOL LIMITED→ 15411875 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ABRAHAM ACCORDS (UK)→ 13425037 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2010-09-27
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC85590 — Other education n.e.c.
Registered office
340 Preston Road
Harrow
HA3 0QH
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-06-30
Last made up to: 2024-09-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-07-07
Last: 2025-06-23
Officers (1 active · 0 resigned)
MAY, Karen Nadine→
Activedirector · ~55y · appointed 2010-09-27
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (38 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-10-08
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-07-05
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2025-03-17
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2024-12-11
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2024-12-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-07
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-06-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-07-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-06-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-09-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-07-06
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-06-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-06-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-09-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-07-04