BLACKS CATERING SERVICES LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
SC398330 · ltd · incorporated 2011-04-26
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.
Why now
Window steady · low confidence
Steady and stalled — no momentum either way. Needs an approach trigger.
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
—
year to Apr 2025
Net worth
£-15.7k
book net assets
Opportunity
78/100
Strong
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What this business does
Primary activity: Other business support service activities n.e.c.
Sector: Administrative & support services
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)
Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.

Opportunity 78/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 79). 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 (73/100).

Data confidence

Overall: medium (78/100)

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
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
3 officers (1 active, 3 linked, 3 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
38 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
78/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 105 (micro)
Negative net assets
Liabilities exceed assets by £15,665

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
-£16k
↓ 47% YoY
Current Assets
£3k
↑ 9.6% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
-£16k-£12k-£8k-£4k-£439£3kApr 2024Apr 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 105 (micro)
Metric2025-04-302024-04-30
Total assets£-15.5k£-9.5k
Current assets£3.4k£3.1k
Net assets£-15.7k£-10.7k

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
1
filing
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 90 days
1
filing
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
5
filings
  • • 2 persons-with-significant-control
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
  • • 1 officers
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (21 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-02-23
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  2. 2026-02-05
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  3. 2026-02-05
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  4. 2026-02-04
    ➖
    WILLIAMS, Christina Angela resigned
    director
  5. 2026-01-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  6. 2025-01-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  7. 2024-04-29
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  8. 2024-04-29
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  9. 2024-04-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  10. 2023-04-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2022-04-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2021-04-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2021-03-16
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  14. 2021-03-15
    ➕
    WILLIAMS, Christina Angela appointed
    director
  15. 2020-01-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  16. 2019-01-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  17. 2018-01-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  18. 2014-01-30
    ➕
    BRUCE, Ian Robertson appointed
    director
  19. 2014-01-30
    ➖
    WILLIAMS, Christina Angela resigned
    director
  20. 2011-04-26
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As BLACKS CATERING SERVICES LIMITED
  21. 2011-04-26
    ➕
    WILLIAMS, Christina Angela appointed
    director

Owner dependency

90/100
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
  • +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 79 — succession pressure is live.

Succession & seller-readiness

98/100
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 79 years old. Natural succession window is now.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 12 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

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

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Ian Robertson Bruce
Individual · British · DOB 10/1947 · age 79
——sig. influencesignificant influence04/02/2026
2 historic (ceased) PSCs
  • Miss Christina Angela Williamsceased 04/02/2026· 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control
  • Mr Ian Robertson Bruceceased 29/04/2024· significant influence

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

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BLUE SQUARE OFFICES LTD.→
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————26y8365y
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——£556.7k—22y8361y
CENTRIFUGE MAINTENANCE SERVICES LIMITED→
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————29y8363y
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————16y8370y
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions

8 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
Incorporated2011-04-26
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC82990 — Other business support service activities n.e.c.

Registered office

100 Brand Street
Glasgow
Lanarkshire
G51 1DG

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-01-31
Last made up to: 2025-04-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-05-10
Last: 2026-04-26

Officers (1 active · 2 resigned)

BRUCE, Ian Robertson→
director · ~79y · appointed 2014-01-30
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
WILLIAMS, Christina Angela→
director · ~58y · appointed 2021-03-15 · resigned 2026-02-04
Resigned
WILLIAMS, Christina Angela→
director · ~58y · appointed 2011-04-26 · resigned 2014-01-30
Resigned

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

Recent filings (38 total)

confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-06-23
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2026-02-23
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2026-02-05
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2026-02-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2026-01-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-04-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-01-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-05-01
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2024-04-29
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2024-04-29
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-04-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-06-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-04-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-05-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-04-29