ACADEMY RECRUITMENT LTD
💤Zombieactive
08636228 · ltd · incorporated 2013-08-02
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 Aug 2024
Net worth
£-5.9k
book net assets
Opportunity
75/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Other activities of employment placement agencies
Sector: Administrative & support services
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.
Opportunity 75/100 (strong), bankability 85/100. 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 11.9y
30/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 11.9 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
- · 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
3 officers (1 active, 3 linked, 3 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
40 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 105 (micro)Negative net assets
Liabilities exceed assets by £5,893
Net assets shrinking
Down £6,037 YoY
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
-£6k
↓ 4192% YoY
Current Assets
£292k
↑ 4.4% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 105 (micro)| Metric | 2024-08-31 | 2023-08-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £42.1k | £79.9k |
| Current assets | £291.6k | £279.2k |
| Net assets | £-5.9k | £144 |
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
1
filing
- • 1 mortgage
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (25 events)Click to expand
- 2026-01-15📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2026-01-15🔓Charge satisfied #2
- 2025-06-03📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2025-05-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-05-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-05-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-05-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-05-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-05-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-03-23📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2019-08-08📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2019-05-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-03-05📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-03-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2017-02-09📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2016-05-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-02-22➖VAUGHAN, John Horace resigneddirector
- 2016-02-21➖SPARROWHAWK, Terence John resigneddirector
- 2016-01-20➕BACCHUS, Mark Wayne appointeddirector
- 2015-09-26🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2015-09-23🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Bibby Financial Services Limited (As Security Trustee)
- 2014-07-15🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Close Brothers LTD (The "Security Trustee")
- 2013-10-10➕SPARROWHAWK, Terence John appointeddirector
- 2013-08-02🏢Company incorporatedAs ACADEMY RECRUITMENT LTD
- 2013-08-02➕VAUGHAN, John Horace 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
50/100
Moderate signalSome succession indicators present. Worth watching; approach if sector/strategy fits.
SIGNALS
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- 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 Mark Wayne Bacchus Individual · British · DOB 04/1977 · age 49 | 75–100% | 75–100% | 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting | 06/04/2016 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Mrs Lisa Bacchusceased 03/06/2025· 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 · Professional services · HP postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 GARDEN DESIGN LIMITED→ 10329769 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| 1505 ENGINEERING LTD→ 12137436 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| 313 RESOURCING LTD→ 15657857 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| A5 BUSINESS CONSULTANCY LTD→ 16897393 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AB MANAGEMENT CONSULTING LTD→ 13923326 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| ABACUS ASSOCIATES (UK) LIMITED→ 05663934 · est 2005 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 20y | — | — |
| ABH8 CONSULTING LIMITED→ 15221368 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ABIKAD LTD→ 15637479 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ABOUT THAT GROWTH LTD→ 15925501 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ABRI BERRY CONSEIL LTD→ 17039042 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ABROAD ASPIRATIONS LIMITED→ 13530098 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| ACBL CONSULTANCY LIMITED→ 15043494 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2013-08-02
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC78109 — Other activities of employment placement agencies
Registered office
Cube Tax Accountants
Chalfont Station Road
Amersham
HP7 9PN
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-05-31
Last made up to: 2024-08-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-06-17
Last: 2025-06-03
Officers (1 active · 2 resigned)
BACCHUS, Mark Wayne→
Activedirector · ~49y · appointed 2016-01-20
View their other companies + combined net worth →
SPARROWHAWK, Terence John→
Resigneddirector · ~44y · appointed 2013-10-10 · resigned 2016-02-21
VAUGHAN, John Horace→
Resigneddirector · ~81y · appointed 2013-08-02 · resigned 2016-02-22
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
2
Total charges
0
Outstanding
0
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | Bibby Financial Services Bibby Financial Services Limited (As Security Trustee) | A registered charge | — | 23/09/2015 | 15/01/2026 | |
| satisfied | Close Brothers Close Brothers LTD (The "Security Trustee") | A registered charge | — | 15/07/2014 | 26/09/2015 |
Recent filings (40 total)
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2026-01-15
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-06-03
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2025-06-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-05-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-09-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-05-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-08-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-05-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-08-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-05-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-08-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-05-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-08-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-05-21
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2020-03-23