ASCENSION CONCEPT DESIGN LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
SC458639 · ltd · incorporated 2013-09-09
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
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
- · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
74/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Specialised design activities
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 74/100 (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 (58/100).
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
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
35 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
74/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
55
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
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 · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 200 | 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
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (19 events)Click to expand
- 2025-07-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-04-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-09-01📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-06-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-01-06📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2022-01-06📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2022-01-06📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2021-08-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-06-24📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-extendedaccounts · AA01
- 2021-06-21📄change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortenedaccounts · AA01
- 2020-08-28📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2020-08-28📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2020-08-28📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2020-08-28📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2020-05-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-01-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2013-09-09🏢Company incorporatedAs ASCENSION CONCEPT DESIGN LIMITED
- 2013-09-09➕JOHNSTONE, John Alexander appointeddirector
- 2013-09-09➕JOHNSTONE, Sara, Dr appointeddirector
Owner dependency
71/100
High — earn-out structure requiredMaterial 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.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
- +No director turnover: Company is 13 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
49/100
Moderate signalSome succession indicators present. Worth watching; approach if sector/strategy fits.
SIGNALS
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 13 years.
- 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
1 active beneficial owner| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr John Alexander Johnstone Individual · British · DOB 08/1980 · age 46 | 50–75% | 50–75% | board control50-75% shares · 50-75% voting · board control | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
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| CW RIBBECK ENGINEERING SERVICES LTD→ SC698388 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| DALES RESOURCES LIMITED→ SC489961 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| DAVANAL LIMITED→ SC727570 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| DAVID LAW LIMITED→ SC075254 · est 1981 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 44y | — | — |
| DAVID W HARRIS LIMITED→ SC576671 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| DAVIDSON'S FABRICATIONS LTD→ SC735661 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
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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
Incorporated2013-09-09
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC74100 — Specialised design activities
Registered office
29 Portland Road
Kilmarnock
KA1 2BY
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-29
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-09-29
Last: 2025-09-15
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
JOHNSTONE, John Alexander→
Activedirector · ~46y · appointed 2013-09-09
View their other companies + combined net worth →
JOHNSTONE, Sara, Dr→
Activedirector · ~45y · appointed 2013-09-09
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (35 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-09-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-07-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-10-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-04-12
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-10-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-09-01
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-10-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-06-13
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2022-01-06
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2022-01-06
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2022-01-06
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-09-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-08-30
change-account-reference-date-company-previous-extended
accounts · AA01
2021-06-24
change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
accounts · AA01
2021-06-21