MCL BUILDING & CIVIL ENGINEERING LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
SC397866 · ltd · incorporated 2011-04-15
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 Apr 2025
Net worth
£378.8k
book net assets
Opportunity
77/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Construction of other civil engineering projects n.e.c.
Sector: Construction
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: asset-holding vehicle with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 77/100 (strong), bankability 85/100. 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 14.9y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 14.9 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (77/100)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
2 officers (2 active, 2 linked, 1 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
49 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
77/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
60
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £378,773
Net assets shrinking
Down £35,231 YoY
Cash YoY
+474%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£99k
↑ 474% YoY
Net Worth
£379k
↓ 8.5% YoY
Current Assets
£323k
↑ 37% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-04-30 | 2024-04-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £403.0k | £435.5k |
| Current assets | £323.0k | £235.7k |
| Cash | £98.9k | £17.2k |
| Debtors | £66.2k | £143.7k |
| Net assets | £378.8k | £414.0k |
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
2
filings
- • 1 accounts
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (25 events)Click to expand
- 2025-11-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-11-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-11-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-11-15📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2023-11-15📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2023-01-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-01-09📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2023-01-09🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2022-02-16📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2022-02-16📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2022-02-16📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2022-02-16📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2022-02-07📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-12-03📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2021-12-03📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2021-12-03📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2021-12-03📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2021-12-03📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2021-10-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-02📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2020-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2011-06-09🔒Charge registered #1Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
- 2011-04-15🏢Company incorporatedAs MCL BUILDING & CIVIL ENGINEERING LIMITED
- 2011-04-15➕MCLATCHIE, Helen Victoria appointedsecretary
- 2011-04-15➕MCLATCHIE, Stephen appointeddirector
Owner dependency
90/100
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.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 15 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +No director turnover: Company is 15 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
68/100
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 15 years.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 15 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
cleanNo red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)
Shareholders & ownership
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Stephen Mclatchie Individual · British · DOB 04/1975 · age 51 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 03/11/2016 |
Mrs Helen Victoria Mclatchie Individual · British · DOB 09/1972 · age 54 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 03/11/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Construction · DG postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JLR DEVELOPMENTS LTD→ SC790075 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| M CAINES JOINERY LTD→ SC724794 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| MACKAY DEVELOPMENT SERVICES LTD→ SC528755 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 10y | — | — |
| MCCARTNEY (DUMFRIES) LIMITED→ SC139555 · est 1992 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 33y | — | — |
| MCDEVITT RENEWABLES LTD→ SC838378 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| NEILSON ELECTRICAL SERVICES LIMITED→ SC479493 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| NITHSDALE PLUMBING & HEATING LIMITED→ SC457556 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| OAKBANK CONTRACT SERVICES LIMITED→ SC605119 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| OKHREWOOD DEVELOPMENTS LIMITED→ SC861787 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| PETER C HAINING BATHROOMS LIMITED→ SC349392 · est 2008 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 17y | — | — |
| PH ENERGY SYSTEMS LTD→ SC754957 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| PHOENIX SOLAR ENERGY LIMITED→ SC811472 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2011-04-15
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC42990 — Construction of other civil engineering projects n.e.c.
Registered office
Prior Cottage Holmwood
Kirkpatrick Fleming
Annan
Dumfriesshire
DG11 3AU
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-01-31
Last made up to: 2025-04-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-11-14
Last: 2025-10-31
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
MCLATCHIE, Helen Victoria→
Activesecretary · appointed 2011-04-15
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MCLATCHIE, Stephen→
Activedirector · ~51y · appointed 2011-04-15
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
0
Outstanding
0
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | Lloyds Banking Group The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC | Floating charge | 1 property | 09/06/2011 | 09/01/2023 |
Recent filings (49 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-11-14
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-11-10
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-11-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-11-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-11-16
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-11-15
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2023-11-15
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2023-11-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-01-09
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2023-01-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-10-31
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2022-02-16
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2022-02-16
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2022-02-16
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2022-02-16