RURAL DESIGN LTD.
🌳Matureactive
SC280072 · ltd · incorporated 2005-02-16
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 9.1y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
72/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Architectural activities
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 72/100 (strong), bankability 77/100. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Consolidate lender relationships. 3 distinct lenders creates friction — refinance into single-lender structure for cleaner diligence. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (58/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
3 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 9.1y
50/100
clean up first
Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.
- · Oldest live charge is 9.1 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
- · Legal-friction score 25/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.
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
3 charges (3/3 with lender, 3/3 with type)
90
Directors & officers
9 officers (2 active, 9 linked, 6 with DOB)
83
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
2 connected companies via shared directors
51
Filing history
74 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
72/100Strong
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
77
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
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 | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | — | £366.2k |
| Current assets | — | £164.5k |
| Cash | — | £3.1k |
| Debtors | — | £101.3k |
| Net assets | — | £358.9k |
| Average employees | 1000 | — |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
Recent activity
Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
2
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (43 events)Click to expand
- 2025-12-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-smallaccounts · AA
- 2025-03-01📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2025-03-01🔓Charge satisfied #3
- 2024-12-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-smallaccounts · AA
- 2023-12-11📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2023-12-11📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2023-08-21📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2023-08-14🔒Charge registered #3Lender: Alan Mclean Dickson
- 2023-08-03📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC02
- 2023-08-02➕GATE, John Angus appointeddirector
- 2023-08-02➕MACKINNON, Kirsty Jane appointeddirector
- 2023-08-02➖SMITH, Gillian resignedsecretary
- 2023-08-02➖DICKSON, Alan Mclean resigneddirector
- 2023-08-02📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2023-08-02📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2023-08-02📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2023-08-02📄termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM02
- 2023-08-02📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2023-08-02📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2023-06-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-06-06📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2023-06-06🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2023-04-06📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2023-03-31➖SMITH, Gillian resigneddirector
- 2022-12-30📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2022-12-10➖GALBRAITH, Iain Alasdair resigneddirector
- 2022-12-08📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2022-12-08🔓Charge satisfied #2
- 2022-12-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-07-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-04-01➕GALBRAITH, Iain Alasdair appointeddirector
- 2017-04-04🔒Charge registered #1Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
- 2017-03-29🔒Charge registered #2Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
- 2015-06-22➖MACDONALD, Marion Isobel resigneddirector
- 2005-04-07➕MACDONALD, Marion Isobel appointeddirector
- 2005-02-16🏢Company incorporatedAs RURAL DESIGN LTD.
- 2005-02-16➕SMITH, Gillian appointedsecretary
- 2005-02-16➕BRIAN REID LTD. appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2005-02-16➖BRIAN REID LTD. resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2005-02-16➕DICKSON, Alan Mclean appointeddirector
- 2005-02-16➕SMITH, Gillian appointeddirector
- 2005-02-16➕STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD. appointedcorporate-nominee-director
- 2005-02-16➖STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD. resignedcorporate-nominee-director
Owner dependency
58/100
Moderate — manageable with handoverSome founder dependency, but not acute. A structured handover period should cover most risk.
FACTORS
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
Succession & seller-readiness
36/100
Weak signalLimited succession signal. Not a near-term off-market candidate.
SIGNALS
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
Red flags
1 med ·Charge satisfaction-then-recreation pattern
mediumMultiple instances where a charge was satisfied and a new charge created within 6 months. Suggests active refinancing cycle.
Group structure
Isle Of Skye Holdings Limited is the ultimate parent — holding 75%+ shares. This company sits inside their group.
🏛️ultimate parent
Isle Of Skye Holdings Limited
Corporate parent · holds 75-100% shares · board control
⬇
RURAL DESIGN LTD.
This company · SC280072
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Isle Of Skye Holdings Limited Corporate entity | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 02/08/2023 |
2 historic (ceased) PSCs
- Mr Alan Mclean Dicksonceased 02/08/2023· 25-50% shares
- Ms Gillian Smithceased 02/08/2023· 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 · IV postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CMM ACCOUNTANCY (INVERNESS) LIMITED→ SC279223 · est 2005 | — | — | — | — | 21y | 83 | 58y |
| COPERNICUS TECHNOLOGY LTD→ SC350102 · est 2008 | — | — | £373.8k | — | 17y | 83 | 62y |
| INNES & MACKAY LIMITED→ SC283654 · est 2005 | — | — | £571.2k | — | 21y | 83 | 61y |
| SELF STORAGE - 4 U LIMITED→ SC261522 · est 2004 | — | — | — | 9 | 22y | 83 | 82y |
| ACSMID (HOLDINGS) LIMITED→ SC177791 · est 1997 | — | — | £41.8k | — | 28y | 82 | 71y |
| ANSER PROFESSIONAL SERVICES LIMITED→ SC246199 · est 2003 | — | — | £56.4k | — | 23y | 82 | 62y |
| AWS OCEAN ENERGY LIMITED→ SC268223 · est 2004 | — | — | — | 300 | 21y | 82 | 64y |
| BAYHANARTS LIMITED→ SC097397 · est 1986 | — | — | — | 0 | 40y | 82 | 84y |
| CALEDONIAN ENERGY MANAGEMENT LIMITED→ SC193616 · est 1999 | — | — | £22.4k | — | 27y | 82 | 64y |
| CAMPBELL PLANT (LOCHABER) LTD→ SC303491 · est 2006 | — | — | — | 4 | 19y | 82 | 66y |
| COLIN ARMSTRONG ASSOCIATES LIMITED→ SC259880 · est 2003 | — | — | £1.64M | — | 22y | 82 | 67y |
| VGN STV LIMITED→ SC799946 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2005-02-16
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC71111 — Architectural activities
Registered office
Mill Studio
Struan Road
Portree
Highland
IV51 9EG
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-02
Last: 2026-02-16
Officers (2 active · 7 resigned)
GATE, John Angus→
Activedirector · ~46y · appointed 2023-08-02
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MACKINNON, Kirsty Jane→
Activedirector · ~44y · appointed 2023-08-02
View their other companies + combined net worth →
SMITH, Gillian→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2005-02-16 · resigned 2023-08-02
BRIAN REID LTD.→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2005-02-16 · resigned 2005-02-16
DICKSON, Alan Mclean→
Resigneddirector · ~59y · appointed 2005-02-16 · resigned 2023-08-02
GALBRAITH, Iain Alasdair→
Resigneddirector · ~55y · appointed 2018-04-01 · resigned 2022-12-10
MACDONALD, Marion Isobel→
Resigneddirector · ~72y · appointed 2005-04-07 · resigned 2015-06-22
SMITH, Gillian→
Resigneddirector · ~58y · appointed 2005-02-16 · resigned 2023-03-31
STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD.→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-director · appointed 2005-02-16 · resigned 2005-02-16
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
3
Total charges
0
Outstanding
0
Active lenders
Status:Lender:3 of 3 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | Alan Mclean Dickson / Gillian Smith | A registered charge | 2 properties | 14/08/2023 | 01/03/2025 | |
| satisfied | Lloyds Banking Group The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC | A registered charge | — | 04/04/2017 | 06/06/2023 | |
| satisfied | Lloyds Banking Group The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC | A registered charge | 1 property | 29/03/2017 | 08/12/2022 |
Recent filings (74 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-03-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-small
accounts · AA
2025-12-08
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2025-03-01
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-02-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-small
accounts · AA
2024-12-24
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-02-29
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2023-12-11
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2023-12-11
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2023-08-21
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC02
2023-08-03
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2023-08-02
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2023-08-02
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2023-08-02
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2023-08-02
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2023-08-02