DREELAN SERVICES LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
SC180550 · ltd · incorporated 1997-11-12
Investment thesis
Well-run mature business — low negotiation leverage; premium likely.
Why interesting: Textbook target; clean filings, stable trading.
Why risky: No pressure on seller; any deal likely at full price.
Opportunity decay
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
  • · Oldest live charge 21.4y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Dec 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Other service activities n.e.c.
Sector: Other service activities
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 70-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 85/100. Strong seller-intent signal (73/100, director aged 70). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

2 live charges · oldest 21.4y

85/100
ready

Refinance conversation should be productive — structure clean and timing right.

  • · Oldest live charge is 21.4 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
  • · Legal-friction score 15/100 — clean.

Data confidence

Overall: medium (79/100)

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
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
8 officers (3 active, 8 linked, 4 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
3 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
3 connected companies via shared directors
54
Filing history
93 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
82/100Exceptional
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Strong composite across quality, acquirability, and risk. High-priority target — progress to serious diligence.

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
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£0Dec 2023Dec 2024

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2024-12-312023-12-31

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 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (35 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-09-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-05-14
    📄
    mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
    mortgage · MR04
  3. 2025-05-14
    📄
    mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
    mortgage · MR04
  4. 2025-05-14
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #2
  5. 2025-05-14
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #1
  6. 2024-09-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  7. 2024-03-20
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  8. 2024-03-11
    ➖
    DENTONS SECRETARIES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-secretary
  9. 2024-02-27
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  10. 2023-09-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2022-08-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2021-08-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2020-11-09
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  14. 2020-07-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2019-07-10
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  16. 2018-12-21
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  17. 2018-12-21
    📄
    appoint-corporate-secretary-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP04
  18. 2018-12-17
    ➕
    DENTONS SECRETARIES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-secretary
  19. 2018-12-12
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  20. 2018-12-11
    ➖
    BONDLAW SECRETARIES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-secretary
  21. 2018-05-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  22. 2018-02-16
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  23. 2014-01-15
    ➕
    BONDLAW SECRETARIES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-secretary
  24. 2014-01-15
    ➖
    MACLAY MURRAY & SPENS LLP resigned
    corporate-secretary
  25. 2007-11-15
    ➖
    IAIN SMITH AND COMPANY resigned
    corporate-secretary
  26. 2007-11-15
    ➕
    MACLAY MURRAY & SPENS LLP appointed
    corporate-secretary
  27. 2006-10-23
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
  28. 2004-11-23
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
  29. 1998-01-23
    ➕
    DREELAN, Michael appointed
    director
  30. 1998-01-23
    ➕
    DREELAN, Sean Oliver appointed
    director
  31. 1998-01-23
    ➕
    DREELAN, Thomas Francis appointed
    director
  32. 1998-01-23
    ➖
    ROXBURGH, Roy resigned
    nominee-director
  33. 1997-11-12
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As DREELAN SERVICES LIMITED
  34. 1997-11-12
    ➕
    IAIN SMITH AND COMPANY appointed
    corporate-secretary
  35. 1997-11-12
    ➕
    ROXBURGH, Roy appointed
    nominee-director

Owner dependency

98/100
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
  • +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "DREELAN" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 28 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 70 — succession pressure is live.
  • +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.

Succession & seller-readiness

90/100
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 70 years old. Natural succession window is now.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 28 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 28 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
  • supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.

Red flags

clean
No red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)

Shareholders & ownership

3 active beneficial owners
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Thomas Francis Dreelan
Individual · Irish, · DOB 10/1956 · age 70
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting15/07/2016
Sean Oliver Dreelan
Individual · Irish, · DOB 07/1958 · age 68
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting15/07/2016
Michael Dreelan
Individual · Irish · DOB 04/1963 · age 63
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting15/07/2016

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 →

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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
Incorporated1997-11-12
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC96090 — Other service activities n.e.c.

Registered office

9 Haymarket Square
Edinburgh
EH3 8FY
United Kingdom

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-11-14
Last: 2025-10-31

Officers (3 active · 5 resigned)

DREELAN, Michael→
director · ~63y · appointed 1998-01-23
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
DREELAN, Sean Oliver→
director · ~68y · appointed 1998-01-23
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
DREELAN, Thomas Francis→
director · ~70y · appointed 1998-01-23
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BONDLAW SECRETARIES LIMITED→
corporate-secretary · appointed 2014-01-15 · resigned 2018-12-11
Resigned
DENTONS SECRETARIES LIMITED→
corporate-secretary · appointed 2018-12-17 · resigned 2024-03-11
Resigned
IAIN SMITH AND COMPANY→
corporate-secretary · appointed 1997-11-12 · resigned 2007-11-15
Resigned
MACLAY MURRAY & SPENS LLP→
corporate-secretary · appointed 2007-11-15 · resigned 2014-01-15
Resigned
ROXBURGH, Roy→
nominee-director · ~76y · appointed 1997-11-12 · resigned 1998-01-23
Resigned

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
TypeProperties
satisfied
Lloyds Banking Group
The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
Standard security1 property23/10/200614/05/2025
satisfied
Lloyds Banking Group
The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
Bond & floating charge1 property23/11/200414/05/2025

Recent filings (93 total)

confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-12-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2025-09-30
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2025-05-14
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2025-05-14
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-11-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2024-09-30
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2024-03-20
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2024-02-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-11-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-09-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-11-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-08-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-11-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-08-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-11-11