1ST STEPS PRE-SCHOOL LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
08730369 · ltd · incorporated 2013-10-14
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
£18.7k
book net assets
Opportunity
74/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Pre-primary education
Sector: Education
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
1 live charge · oldest 9.5y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 9.5 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
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
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 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
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
37 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 · FRS 102Positive net assets
Net assets £18,704
Cash YoY
-17%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£9k
↓ 17% YoY
Net Worth
£19k
↑ 338% YoY
Current Assets
£22k
↑ 76% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2024-08-31 | 2023-08-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £23.4k | £2.0k |
| Current assets | £21.6k | £12.3k |
| Cash | £9.0k | £10.9k |
| Debtors | £12.6k | £625 |
| Net assets | £18.7k | £-7.9k |
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
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (19 events)Click to expand
- 2025-09-01📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2025-09-01📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2025-05-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-06-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-05-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-05-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-05-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-08-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-05-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-08-01📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2018-07-31📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2018-07-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-04-30📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-extendedaccounts · AA01
- 2018-02-05📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2018-02-05📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2017-05-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-11-10🔒Charge registered #1Lender: National Westminster Bank PLC
- 2013-10-14🏢Company incorporatedAs 1ST STEPS PRE-SCHOOL LIMITED
- 2013-10-14➕ARNFIELD, Suzannah Louise 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mrs Suzannah Louise Arnfield Individual · British · DOB 04/1984 · age 42 | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 04/08/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Education & training · HD postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 365 GROUP LTD→ 09458855 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| 5SPORT IN THE COMMUNITY CIC→ 13870084 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| A BIT MORE INK CIC→ 12317440 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| ACES GROUP HOLDINGS LIMITED→ 16248389 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ACTION FRAUD LIMITED→ 12307578 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| ACTIVE COMMUNITY EDUCATION IN SPORT LTD→ 09467538 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| ACTIVE RAINBOW LTD→ 13155678 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| ACUTE MEDICAL EDUCATION LTD→ 14450774 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| AD ASTRA TRAINING LTD→ 15015440 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ADAM MICKIEWICZ POLISH SATURDAY SCHOOL IN HUDDERSFIELD→ 10917042 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| ADDVENTURE AWARDS LIMITED→ 06507170 · est 2008 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 18y | — | — |
| ADVANCED FLIGHT TRAINING LIMITED→ 06846187 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 17y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2013-10-14
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC85100 — Pre-primary education
Registered office
Rjm Accountants
24 Rayner Drive
Brighouse
HD6 2DG
United Kingdom
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-05-31
Last made up to: 2024-08-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-09-01
Last: 2025-08-18
Officers (1 active · 0 resigned)
ARNFIELD, Suzannah Louise→
Activedirector · ~42y · appointed 2013-10-14
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
1
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | National Westminster Bank National Westminster Bank PLC | A registered charge | — | 10/11/2016 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (37 total)
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-09-08
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-09-01
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2025-09-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-05-23
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-09-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-06-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-09-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-05-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-09-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-05-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-09-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-05-29
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-08-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-08-07
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-09-02