ACORN ENGINEERING HAVANT LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
08567112 · ltd · incorporated 2013-06-12
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 Jul 2025
Net worth
£408.3k
book net assets
Opportunity
74/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Engineering design activities for industrial process and production
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 74/100 (strong), bankability 80/100. 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: share sale to pe / searcher (58/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · oldest 5.2y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 5.2 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: high (80/100)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
1 officers (1 active, 1 linked, 1 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
32 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
74/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
50
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £408,265
Net assets shrinking
Down £9,733 YoY
Cash YoY
+24%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£90k
↑ 24% YoY
Net Worth
£408k
↓ 2.3% YoY
Current Assets
£305k
↓ 23% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-07-31 | 2024-07-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £558.6k | £568.7k |
| Current assets | £305.0k | £395.6k |
| Cash | £90.3k | £72.8k |
| Debtors | £30.1k | £45.4k |
| Net assets | £408.3k | £418.0k |
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
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 90 days
2
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 accounts
Last 180 days
2
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (19 events)Click to expand
- 2026-04-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-03-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-01-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-11-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-12-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-07-09📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2021-07-06🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Barclays Security Trustee Limited
- 2021-06-30📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2021-04-22📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2021-04-20🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Barclays Security Trustee Limited
- 2020-12-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-11-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-11-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-09-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-11-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-06-13📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-09-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2013-06-12🏢Company incorporatedAs ACORN ENGINEERING HAVANT LIMITED
- 2013-06-12➕VAN DER LUGT, Peter Nicholas appointeddirector
Owner dependency
80/100
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.
- +No director turnover: Company is 13 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
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 13 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 Peter Nicholas Van Der Lugt Individual · British · DOB 05/1977 · age 49 | 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 · Professional services · PO postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A.E. BROWN (HOLDINGS) LIMITED→ 13236315 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| ACCOUNTART TAX SERVICES LTD→ 05204964 · est 2004 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 21y | — | — |
| AD LEARNING CONSULTANCY LTD→ 09696389 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| ADAM FRAMPTON PLANT HIRE LIMITED→ 04878706 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 22y | — | — |
| ADAMSON INTERNATIONAL LTD→ 14585081 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ADAPTATION CONSULTANCY AND TRAINING LIMITED→ 14903739 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ADAPTIVE ENGINEERING SOLUTIONS LTD→ 07971281 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| ADEPT MEDICARE LIMITED→ 05798839 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| ADEPT PROJECTS LIMITED→ 14880998 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ADEY BIOGAS CONSULTING LIMITED→ 10055094 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| ADH CONSULTANT LTD→ 14819477 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ADKP SERVICES LIMITED→ 03388278 · est 1997 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 28y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2013-06-12
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC71121 — Engineering design activities for industrial process and production
Registered office
Unit 6 Kingscroft Court
Ridgway
Havant
PO9 1LS
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-04-30
Last made up to: 2025-07-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-06-21
Last: 2026-06-07
Officers (1 active · 0 resigned)
VAN DER LUGT, Peter Nicholas→
Activedirector · ~49y · appointed 2013-06-12
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
2
Total charges
2
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Barclays Barclays Security Trustee Limited | A registered charge | 1 property | 06/07/2021 | — | |
| outstanding | Barclays Barclays Security Trustee Limited | A registered charge | — | 20/04/2021 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (32 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-06-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-04-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-06-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-03-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-06-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-01-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-06-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-11-16
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-06-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-12-08
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2021-07-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-06-30
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2021-06-30
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2021-04-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-12-08