FOOTWALL GEOLOGY LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
SC408295 · ltd · incorporated 2011-09-28
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
—
year to Sept 2025
Net worth
£384.1k
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
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What this business does
Primary activity: Other professional, scientific and technical activities n.e.c.
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
Pursue
Strong opportunity: asset-holding vehicle with strong profile and bankable structure.

Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. 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
2 officers (2 active, 2 linked, 2 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
32 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
79/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

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

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
75
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 · accounting standard not declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £384,103

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£368k
Net Worth
£384k
Current Assets
£382k
Current Liabilities
—
£0£77k£154k£230k£307k£384kSept 2024Sept 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-09-302024-09-30
Total assets£384.1k—
Current assets£382.5k—
Cash£367.5k—
Debtors£15.0k—
Net assets£384.1k—
Average employees—200

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
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (18 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-03-10
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-10-29
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  3. 2025-10-29
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  4. 2024-12-03
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  5. 2024-02-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  6. 2023-10-25
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  7. 2023-02-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2022-02-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2021-06-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  10. 2020-01-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  11. 2019-02-06
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  12. 2018-06-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  13. 2017-06-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  14. 2016-06-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  15. 2015-10-07
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  16. 2011-09-28
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As FOOTWALL GEOLOGY LIMITED
  17. 2011-09-28
    ➕
    GIFFORD, James Patrick appointed
    director
  18. 2011-09-28
    ➕
    GIFFORD, Samantha Jane appointed
    director

Owner dependency

79/100
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 59 — approaching natural succession window.
  • +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
  • +No director turnover: Company is 15 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.

Succession & seller-readiness

59/100
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.
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 15 years.
  • 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

2 active beneficial owners
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr James Patrick Gifford
Individual · British · DOB 01/1968 · age 58
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting28/09/2016
Mrs Samantha Jane Gifford
Individual · British · DOB 05/1967 · age 59
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting28/09/2016

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

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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
Incorporated2011-09-28
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC74909 — Other professional, scientific and technical activities n.e.c.

Registered office

7 Fare View
Glassel
Banchory
AB31 4DT
Scotland

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-06-30
Last made up to: 2025-09-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-10-12
Last: 2025-09-28

Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)

GIFFORD, James Patrick→
director · ~58y · appointed 2011-09-28
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
GIFFORD, Samantha Jane→
director · ~59y · appointed 2011-09-28
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active

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

Recent filings (32 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-03-10
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-10-29
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-10-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-10-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-12-03
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-09-29
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-02-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-10-25
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2023-10-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-02-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-10-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-02-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-10-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-06-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-09-30