1856 HOLDINGS LTD
💤Zombieactive
08198940 · ltd · incorporated 2012-09-03
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 Mar 2025
Net worth
£-192.7k
book net assets
Opportunity
75/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Combined office administrative service activities
Sector: Administrative & support services
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.
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: Broaden director team. Sole director creates succession risk and reduces buyer comfort. Appoint a second director or strong #2. Most likely exit: distressed disposal / insolvency (65/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 13.6y
30/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 13.6 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: high (82/100)Strong data coverage across all sections. AI outputs should be trusted with minimal caveats.
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
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
3 officers (1 active, 3 linked, 3 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
7 connected companies via shared directors
66
Filing history
43 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
55
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102Negative net assets
Liabilities exceed assets by £192,680
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
-£193k
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £-192.7k | — |
| Net assets | £-192.7k | — |
| Average employees | — | 0 |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
2 signals 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
1
filing
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (24 events)Click to expand
- 2025-12-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-12-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-03-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-08-18📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2022-08-18🔓Charge satisfied #2
- 2022-01-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-07-06📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-04-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-11-03📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2019-12-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-02-15📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2019-02-14🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Seneca Capital Limited
- 2018-12-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-12-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-12-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-03-15📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2012-10-05➕POLLARD, Simon John appointeddirector
- 2012-10-05➖RATCLIFFE, Simon Timothy James resigneddirector
- 2012-10-05➖WALMSLEY, Neil Roderick resigneddirector
- 2012-10-05🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Trustees of Jc Robinson 2008 Discretionary Trust Barry Rencher Robinson Gemma Jane Brennan Katie Belinda Wiehahn
- 2012-09-03🏢Company incorporatedAs 1856 HOLDINGS LTD
- 2012-09-03➕RATCLIFFE, Simon Timothy James appointeddirector
- 2012-09-03➕WALMSLEY, Neil Roderick appointeddirector
Owner dependency
75/100
High — earn-out structure requiredMaterial founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.
FACTORS
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
Succession & seller-readiness
58/100
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 14 years.
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Simon John Pollard Individual · British · DOB 04/1980 · age 46 | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 06/04/2016 |
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 · Trade services · CB postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 ATM LIMITED→ 16598040 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1 SWIFT STREET LIMITED→ 04516651 · est 2002 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 23y | — | — |
| 1066 HOLDINGS LTD→ 09912763 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| 17 LOGISTICS LIMITED→ 08432775 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 13y | — | — |
| 1953 INVESTMENTS LTD→ 14850348 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| 1ST CHOICE PRO CLEANING SERVICES LTD→ 16526702 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1ST NATIONAL PROPERTY SERVICES LIMITED→ 02930571 · est 1994 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 31y | — | — |
| 24SEVEN COMPANIES LTD→ 07709176 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| 25 ROTHSAY ROAD MANAGEMENT COMPANY LIMITED→ 02867410 · est 1993 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 32y | — | — |
| 2G LIMITED→ 04207886 · est 2001 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 24y | — | — |
| 3D AND 3RS LTD→ 15072592 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| 4DEVZ LTD→ 16406142 · est 2025 · 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
Incorporated2012-09-03
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC82110 — Combined office administrative service activities
Registered office
14 Sussex Street
Cambridge
CB1 1PW
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-09-17
Last: 2025-09-03
Officers (1 active · 2 resigned)
POLLARD, Simon John→
Activedirector · ~46y · appointed 2012-10-05
View their other companies + combined net worth →
RATCLIFFE, Simon Timothy James→
Resigneddirector · ~54y · appointed 2012-09-03 · resigned 2012-10-05
WALMSLEY, Neil Roderick→
Resigneddirector · ~60y · appointed 2012-09-03 · resigned 2012-10-05
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
2
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | Seneca Capital Seneca Capital Limited | A registered charge | 4 properties | 14/02/2019 | 18/08/2022 | |
| outstanding | Trustees of Jc Robinson 2008 Discretionary Trust Barry Rencher Robinson Gemma Jane Brennan Katie Belinda Wiehahn | Debenture | 1 property | 05/10/2012 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (43 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-12-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-09-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-09-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-09-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-03-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-09-06
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2022-08-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-01-04
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-09-07
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2021-07-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-04-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-11-03
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2020-11-03