A1 INSULATION SERVICES (EASTERN) LTD

💤Zombieactive
07739753 · ltd · incorporated 2011-08-15
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.
Why now
Window opening · high confidence
More negotiable than before — 4 signals weakening over the last 30 days.
  • · Hygiene score: 90 → 50
  • · Bankability: 75 → 55
  • · Deal-killer verdict: workable → complicated
  • · Opportunity score: 78 → 68
Opportunity decay
softening · 6-months
Softening — cumulative signals suggest this becomes more negotiable over the next 3–6 months.
  • · 4 recent signals weakening vs 0 strengthening
What changed my view
Last 30 days

Picture worsened over the last 30 days — 4 negative signals vs 0 positive.

  • Deal-killer verdict: workablecomplicated
  • Opportunity score: 7868
  • Hygiene score: 9050
  • Bankability: 7555
  • ·Distress / opportunity: avoidspeculative
Last 90 days

No snapshot from 90 days ago — start tracking from today.

Last 180 days

No snapshot from 180 days ago — start tracking from today.

🔒Estimated value
Upgrade to see
Turnover
year to Aug 2024
Net worth
book net assets
Opportunity
68/100
Strong
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What this business does
Primary activity: Other construction installation
Sector: Construction
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)
Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.

Opportunity 68/100 (strong), bankability 55/100. Strong seller-intent signal (63/100, director aged 74). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: File overdue accounts. Clears statutory overdue flag — immediate bankability uplift for refinance conversations. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (53/100).

Data confidence

Overall: medium (78/100)

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
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
2 officers (1 active, 2 linked, 2 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
32 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
68/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

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

Business quality
55
Adequate — check latest filings for context.
Acquirability
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
67
Some moderate concerns — review flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
Net Worth
Current Assets
Current Liabilities
£0£0£0£0£0£0Aug 2023Aug 2024

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2024-08-312023-08-31
Average employees100200

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 (19 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-05-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-07-12
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  3. 2023-05-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  4. 2022-08-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  5. 2021-05-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  6. 2020-05-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  7. 2020-01-09
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  8. 2020-01-01
    RIVETT, Kevin resigned
    director
  9. 2019-08-19
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  10. 2019-04-12
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  11. 2019-03-01
    RIVETT, Kevin appointed
    director
  12. 2019-01-07
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  13. 2017-12-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  14. 2017-09-15
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  15. 2017-02-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  16. 2016-05-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  17. 2015-08-18
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  18. 2011-08-15
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As A1 INSULATION SERVICES (EASTERN) LTD
  19. 2011-08-15
    BARNES, Paul appointed
    director

Owner dependency

90/100
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
  • +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 74 — succession pressure is live.

Succession & seller-readiness

83/100
Likely off-market candidate

Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 74 years old. Natural succession window is now.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 15 years.

Red flags

1 high ·
Accounts overdue
high

Statutory accounts have not been filed by their due date. Can indicate admin breakdown, cash preservation, or deliberate delay.

Evidence: Next due: 2026-05-31

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Paul Barnes
Individual · British · DOB 06/1952 · age 74
75100%
75-100% shares06/04/2016
1 historic (ceased) PSC
  • Mr Paul Barnesceased 06/04/2016· significant influence

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

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Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions

10 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
Incorporated2011-08-15
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC43290 — Other construction installation

Registered office

101 Lone Barn Road
Norwich
NR7 8HY

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-05-31OVERDUE
Last made up to: 2024-08-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-08-29
Last: 2025-08-15

Officers (1 active · 1 resigned)

BARNES, Paul
director · ~74y · appointed 2011-08-15
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
RIVETT, Kevin
director · ~66y · appointed 2019-03-01 · resigned 2020-01-01
Resigned

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

Recent filings (32 total)

confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-08-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-05-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-08-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-07-12
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-08-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-05-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-08-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-08-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-08-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-05-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-08-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-05-19
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2020-01-09
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2019-08-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-08-19