BLACKHALL VS LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
SC393588 · ltd · incorporated 2011-02-16
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.
Why now
Window steady · low confidence
Steady and tidy — no seller pressure yet. Approach only if an angle opens.
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

No material changes in the last 30 days.

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
not disclosed
Net worth
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
🔔
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What this business does
Primary activity: Veterinary activities
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
Pursue
Strong opportunity: active trading company with exceptional profile and acceptable with review structure.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 57/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Consolidate lender relationships. 4 distinct lenders creates friction — refinance into single-lender structure for cleaner diligence. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

5 live charges · 4 lenders · oldest 15.2y

35/100
too messy

Refinance path is blocked by complexity. Rethink structure or expect bespoke, expensive terms.

  • · Oldest live charge is 15.2 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · 4 lenders named — inter-creditor friction likely.
  • · Legal-friction score 25/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.

Data confidence

Overall: medium (60/100)

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
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
5 charges (5/5 with lender, 5/5 with type)
90
Directors & officers
8 officers (2 active, 8 linked, 7 with DOB)
88
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 6 total, 6 with control declared
90
Director network
10 connected companies via shared directors
75
Filing history
92 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
80/100Exceptional
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
75
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.

Recent activity

Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
5
filings
  • 2 accounts
  • 2 other
  • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (42 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-02-16
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-audit-exemption-subsiduary
    accounts · AA
  2. 2026-02-16
    📄
    legacy
    accounts · PARENT_ACC
  3. 2026-02-16
    📄
    legacy
    other · GUARANTEE2
  4. 2026-02-16
    📄
    legacy
    other · AGREEMENT2
  5. 2025-06-12
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC02
  6. 2025-06-11
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  7. 2025-02-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-audit-exemption-subsiduary
    accounts · AA
  8. 2025-02-25
    📄
    legacy
    accounts · PARENT_ACC
  9. 2025-02-25
    📄
    legacy
    other · GUARANTEE2
  10. 2025-02-25
    📄
    legacy
    other · AGREEMENT2
  11. 2024-07-04
    📄
    accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-audit-exemption-subsiduary
    accounts · AAMD
  12. 2024-03-12
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-audit-exemption-subsiduary
    accounts · AA
  13. 2024-03-12
    📄
    legacy
    accounts · PARENT_ACC
  14. 2024-03-12
    📄
    legacy
    other · AGREEMENT2
  15. 2024-03-12
    📄
    legacy
    other · GUARANTEE2
  16. 2023-12-20
    📄
    mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
    mortgage · MR01
  17. 2023-12-14
    🔒
    Charge registered #5
    Lender: Ares Management Limited (As Security Agent)
  18. 2023-10-19
    📄
    mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
    mortgage · MR01
  19. 2023-10-12
    🔒
    Charge registered #4
    Lender: Ares Management Limited (As Security Agent for the Beneficiaries)
  20. 2023-04-12
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-audit-exemption-subsiduary
    accounts · AA
  21. 2023-04-12
    📄
    legacy
    accounts · PARENT_ACC
  22. 2023-04-12
    📄
    legacy
    other · AGREEMENT2
  23. 2023-04-11
    📄
    legacy
    other · GUARANTEE2
  24. 2020-04-09
    🔒
    Charge registered #3
    Lender: Ares Management Limited (As Security Agent for the Beneficiaries)
  25. 2020-04-09
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: Ares Management Limited as Security Agent
  26. 2019-11-01
    MALONE, Joanna Clare appointed
    director
  27. 2019-11-01
    STANWORTH, Mark appointed
    director
  28. 2019-11-01
    BODY, Stephen Mark resigned
    director
  29. 2019-11-01
    BREMNER, Bruce James resigned
    director
  30. 2019-11-01
    CARNOCHAN, Charles Ferguson Dewar resigned
    director
  31. 2019-11-01
    SMITH, Andrew William, Dr resigned
    director
  32. 2019-08-20
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #1
  33. 2016-04-01
    SMITH, Andrew William, Dr appointed
    director
  34. 2015-08-31
    YOUNG, Scott Stewart resigned
    secretary
  35. 2015-08-31
    YOUNG, Scott Stewart resigned
    director
  36. 2011-04-22
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Clydesdale Bank PLC
  37. 2011-02-16
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As BLACKHALL VS LIMITED
  38. 2011-02-16
    YOUNG, Scott Stewart appointed
    secretary
  39. 2011-02-16
    BODY, Stephen Mark appointed
    director
  40. 2011-02-16
    BREMNER, Bruce James appointed
    director
  41. 2011-02-16
    CARNOCHAN, Charles Ferguson Dewar appointed
    director
  42. 2011-02-16
    YOUNG, Scott Stewart appointed
    director

Owner dependency

66/100
High — earn-out structure required

Material founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.

FACTORS
  • +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 62 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

56/100
Strong succession signal

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

SIGNALS
  • secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 62. Early succession window.
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 15 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.

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

Ares Management Limited is the ultimate parent — holding 75%+ shares. This company sits inside their group.

🏛️
Ares Management Limited
Corporate parent · holds 75-100% shares
ultimate parent
BLACKHALL VS LIMITED
This company · SC393588

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%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Ares Management Limited
Corporate entity
75100%
75–100%75-100% shares · 75-100% voting09/04/2020
5 historic (ceased) PSCs
  • Vetpartners Limitedceased 09/04/2020· 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control
  • Mr Bruce James Bremnerceased 01/11/2019· 25-50% shares
  • Mr Charlie Carnochanceased 01/11/2019· 25-50% shares
  • Mr Stephen Bodyceased 01/11/2019· 25-50% shares
  • Dr Andrew William Smithceased 01/11/2019· board control

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
Incorporated2011-02-16
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC75000 — Veterinary activities

Registered office

171 Mayfield Road
Edinburgh
EH9 3AZ
Scotland

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-03-31
Last made up to: 2025-06-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-02
Last: 2026-02-16

Officers (2 active · 6 resigned)

MALONE, Joanna Clare
director · ~52y · appointed 2019-11-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
STANWORTH, Mark
director · ~62y · appointed 2019-11-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
YOUNG, Scott Stewart
secretary · appointed 2011-02-16 · resigned 2015-08-31
Resigned
BODY, Stephen Mark
director · ~45y · appointed 2011-02-16 · resigned 2019-11-01
Resigned
BREMNER, Bruce James
director · ~70y · appointed 2011-02-16 · resigned 2019-11-01
Resigned
CARNOCHAN, Charles Ferguson Dewar
director · ~46y · appointed 2011-02-16 · resigned 2019-11-01
Resigned
SMITH, Andrew William, Dr
director · ~42y · appointed 2016-04-01 · resigned 2019-11-01
Resigned
YOUNG, Scott Stewart
director · ~54y · appointed 2011-02-16 · resigned 2015-08-31
Resigned

Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.

Mortgages & charges

5
Total charges
4
Outstanding
3
Active lenders
Status:Lender:5 of 5 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Ares Management (As Security Agent)
Ares Management Limited (As Security Agent)
A registered charge14/12/2023
outstanding
Ares Management (As Security Agent for the Beneficiaries)
Ares Management Limited (As Security Agent for the Beneficiaries)
A registered charge1 property12/10/2023
outstanding
Ares Management (As Security Agent for the Beneficiaries)
Ares Management Limited (As Security Agent for the Beneficiaries)
A registered charge1 property09/04/2020
outstanding
Ares Management as Security Agent
Ares Management Limited as Security Agent
A registered charge1 property09/04/2020
satisfied
Virgin Money
Clydesdale Bank PLC
Floating charge1 property22/04/201120/08/2019
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (92 total)

confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-audit-exemption-subsiduary
accounts · AA
2026-02-16
legacy
accounts · PARENT_ACC
2026-02-16
legacy
other · GUARANTEE2
2026-02-16
legacy
other · AGREEMENT2
2026-02-16
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC02
2025-06-12
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2025-06-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-audit-exemption-subsiduary
accounts · AA
2025-02-25
legacy
accounts · PARENT_ACC
2025-02-25
legacy
other · GUARANTEE2
2025-02-25
legacy
other · AGREEMENT2
2025-02-25
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-02-17
accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-audit-exemption-subsiduary
accounts · AAMD
2024-07-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-audit-exemption-subsiduary
accounts · AA
2024-03-12
legacy
accounts · PARENT_ACC
2024-03-12