SHEPHERD & WEDDERBURN SECRETARIES LIMITED

🌳Matureactive

SC209868 · ltd · incorporated 2000-08-10

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.

Why now

Window opening · medium confidence

More negotiable than before — 1 signals weakening over the last 30 days.

· Hygiene score: 90 → 85

Opportunity decay

hardening · 12-months

Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.

· Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage

What changed my view

Last 30 days

Picture worsened over the last 30 days — 1 negative signal vs 0 positive.

↓Hygiene score: 90 → 85

Last 90 days

No snapshot from 90 days ago — start tracking from today.

Last 180 days

No snapshot from 180 days ago — start tracking from today.

🔒Estimated value

—

Upgrade to see

Turnover

—

year to Aug 2025

Net worth

—

book net assets

Opportunity

80/100

Exceptional

🔒Generate AI memo →🔒Outreach pack →🔒Corporate story →📑 Reports →Sign in to watch

What this business does

Primary activity: Solicitors

Sector: Professional, scientific & technical

Investor take

Pursue

Strong opportunity: active trading company with exceptional profile and bankable structure.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).

Data confidence

Overall: high (89/100)

Strong data coverage across all sections. AI outputs should be trusted with minimal caveats.

Company profile

address, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date

100

Financials

3 years of iXBRL accounts extracted + narrative notes parsed

Lenders & charges

Confirmed no charges registered

Directors & officers

17 officers (5 active, 17 linked, 15 with DOB)

Ownership & PSC

1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared

Director network

23 connected companies via shared directors

Filing history

90 filings on record

Gazette notices

No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)

Opportunity Score

80/100Exceptional

PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional

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

Business quality

Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.

Acquirability

Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.

Risk profile

Few red flags.

Signal strength

Good data coverage for analysis.

Key financials

3 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts

Cash

—

Net Worth

—

Current Assets

—

Current Liabilities

—

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102

Metric	2025-08-31	2024-08-31	2023-08-31

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

Recent activity

Last 30 days

filings

• 2 officers

Last 90 days

filings

• 2 officers
• 1 accounts

Last 180 days

filings

• 2 officers
• 1 accounts

Counts from Companies House filing history.

Corporate timeline (48 events)Click to expand

2026-05-13
📄
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2026-05-13
📄
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2026-05-01
➕
HALL, Andrew William appointed
director
2026-04-30
➖
BLAIN, Andrew John resigned
director
2026-04-27
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2025-06-09
📄
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2025-04-28
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2024-05-06
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2023-07-19
📍
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2023-05-05
📍
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2023-04-20
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2022-05-17
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2021-07-02
📄
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2021-06-30
➖
ANDERSON, Michael William resigned
director
2021-05-24
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2020-11-16
📄
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2020-11-16
📄
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2020-11-03
➕
CARTY, Gillian Anne appointed
director
2020-11-03
➖
HALLY, Paul William resigned
director
2020-05-25
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2019-05-24
📄
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2019-05-01
➕
BLAIN, Andrew John appointed
director
2019-05-01
📄
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2019-05-01
📄
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2019-04-30
➖
GIBB, Stephen John resigned
director
2017-01-01
➕
RUST, Malcolm Hamilton appointed
director
2017-01-01
➕
GIBB, Stephen John appointed
director
2017-01-01
➕
HALLY, Paul William appointed
director
2016-12-31
➖
EVANS, Frances Bridget Geraldine resigned
director
2016-12-31
➖
RAZZAK, Syed Maaruf resigned
director
2016-06-08
➖
SANDISON, Charles John resigned
director
2015-04-01
➕
RAZZAK, Syed Maaruf appointed
director
2015-03-31
➖
MCLENNAN, Ian Fleming resigned
director
2014-04-06
➕
EVANS, Frances Bridget Geraldine appointed
director
2012-08-31
➖
MITCHELL, Fiona Janet resigned
director
2010-04-01
➕
SANDISON, Charles John appointed
director
2009-08-28
➖
O'NEILL, Anne Margaret resigned
director
2007-04-01
➕
MITCHELL, Fiona Janet appointed
director
2007-04-01
➕
O'NEILL, Anne Margaret appointed
director
2001-08-31
➕
WILLOX, Keir appointed
secretary
2001-08-31
➕
WILLOX, Keir appointed
director
2001-08-31
➖
MILLER, Innes Richard resigned
secretary
2001-08-31
➖
MILLER, Innes Richard resigned
director
2000-08-10
🏢
Company incorporated
As SHEPHERD & WEDDERBURN SECRETARIES LIMITED
2000-08-10
➕
MILLER, Innes Richard appointed
secretary
2000-08-10
➕
ANDERSON, Michael William appointed
director
2000-08-10
➕
MCLENNAN, Ian Fleming appointed
director
2000-08-10
➕
MILLER, Innes Richard appointed
director

Owner dependency

58/100

Moderate — manageable with handover

Some founder dependency, but not acute. A structured handover period should cover most risk.

FACTORS

-4 active directors: Broader management team in place — suggests transferable governance.
+Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 25 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
+Senior director age: Director aged approximately 59 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

60/100

Strong succession signal

Multiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.

SIGNALS

secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 59. Early succession window.
primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 25 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
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.)

Group structure

Shepherd & Wedderburn (Nominees) Limited is the ultimate parent — holding 75%+ shares. This company sits inside their group.

🏛️

Shepherd & Wedderburn (Nominees) Limited

Corporate parent · holds 75-100% shares · board control

ultimate parent

⬇

SHEPHERD & WEDDERBURN SECRETARIES LIMITED

This company · SC209868

Parent relationships inferred from Persons with Significant Control filings. Full subsidiary tree requires reverse-lookup (coming).

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%

Name	Shares	Voting rights	Nature of control	Notified
Shepherd & Wedderburn (Nominees) Limited Corporate entity	75–100%	75–100%	board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control · firm interest	13/07/2017

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 · EH postcode area

Company	Est. value	Turnover	Net worth	Staff	Age	Opp	Director
CHARLES RIVER LABORATORIES EDINBURGH LIMITED→ SC091725 · est 1985	£131.60M £96.97M–£166.24M	£135.39M	—	135900	41y	85	67y
ROBERTSON EDUCATION (ABERDEENSHIRE) HOLDINGS LIMITED→ SC209010 · est 2000	£5.47M £4.03M–£6.91M	—	—	0	25y	85	60y
DSF (2003) LIMITED→ SC144009 · est 1993	£4.70M £3.46M–£5.93M	—	—	7	33y	87	61y
FCC (EAST AYRSHIRE) HOLDINGS LIMITED→ SC300470 · est 2006	£3.99M £2.94M–£5.03M	—	—	0	20y	87	60y
NWH HOLDINGS LIMITED→ SC303441 · est 2006	£3.67M £2.70M–£4.64M	—	—	373	19y	88	61y
BLYTH & BLYTH CONSULTING ENGINEERS LIMITED→ SC241155 · est 2002	£2.78M £2.05M–£3.52M	—	—	93	23y	87	85y
SIBCAS LIMITED→ SC052604 · est 1973	£1.88M £1.39M–£2.38M	—	—	165	53y	88	68y
HORIZON (GP) LIMITED→ SC493523 · est 2014	£45.2k £33.3k–£57.1k	—	—	6	11y	95	66y
BURNDENE INVESTMENTS LIMITED→ SC015613 · est 1929	£14.3k £10.5k–£18.0k	—	—	0	96y	83	63y
3 ED HOLDINGS 2 LIMITED→ SC328040 · est 2007 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	18y	83	65y
ABACUS FINANCIAL MARKETING LIMITED→ SC197503 · est 1999	—	—	£3.4k	—	26y	83	59y
ACCOUNTING & TAXATION SERVICE LTD→ SC360357 · est 2009 · no financials extracted	—	—	—	—	17y	83	58y

Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →

🔒Tailored diligence questions

6 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

Incorporated2000-08-10

Jurisdictionscotland

Primary SIC69102 — Solicitors

Registered office

C/O Shepherd And Wedderburn Llp

9 Haymarket Square

Edinburgh

EH3 8FY

Scotland

Filing status

Accounts

Next due: 2027-05-31

Last made up to: 2025-08-31

Confirmation statement

Next due: 2026-08-17

Last: 2025-08-03