SMART GROUP BUILDING SERVICES LTD

🌳Matureactive
SC535371 · ltd · incorporated 2016-05-13
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 Oct 2024
Net worth
£97
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
Pursue
Asset-holding vehicle. Family succession underway — not a classic acquisition target.

Opportunity 78/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Same-surname younger director in place — likely family handover, not open to sale. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

Data confidence

Overall: medium (74/100)

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
1 year of iXBRL accounts extracted (no YoY comparison) + narrative notes parsed
50
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
5 officers (2 active, 5 linked, 3 with DOB)
82
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
13 connected companies via shared directors
84
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 · accounting standard not declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £97

Key financials

1 year extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£24k
Net Worth
£97
Current Assets
£227k
Current Liabilities
—

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2024-10-31
Total assets£2.0k
Current assets£227.4k
Cash£23.7k
Debtors£203.7k
Net assets£97

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 (26 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-07-03
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-04-12
    📄
    change-account-reference-date-company-current-extended
    accounts · AA01
  3. 2024-01-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2023-09-12
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  5. 2023-09-12
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  6. 2023-09-12
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  7. 2023-09-12
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  8. 2023-09-08
    ➕
    HARKINS, Sean appointed
    director
  9. 2023-09-06
    📄
    capital-name-of-class-of-shares
    capital · SH08
  10. 2023-09-04
    📄
    resolution
    resolution · RESOLUTIONS
  11. 2023-01-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2022-08-25
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC05
  13. 2022-08-24
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  14. 2022-08-24
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  15. 2022-04-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  16. 2021-10-22
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  17. 2021-04-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  18. 2019-09-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  19. 2016-05-13
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As SMART GROUP BUILDING SERVICES LTD
  20. 2016-05-13
    ➕
    HARKINS, James Lawrence appointed
    director
  21. 2016-05-13
    ➕
    COSEC LIMITED appointed
    corporate-secretary
  22. 2016-05-13
    ➖
    COSEC LIMITED resigned
    corporate-secretary
  23. 2016-05-13
    ➕
    MCMEEKIN, James Stuart appointed
    director
  24. 2016-05-13
    ➖
    MCMEEKIN, James Stuart resigned
    director
  25. 2016-05-13
    ➕
    COSEC LIMITED appointed
    corporate-director
  26. 2016-05-13
    ➖
    COSEC LIMITED resigned
    corporate-director

Owner dependency

81/100
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
  • +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 65 — succession pressure is live.
  • +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.

Succession & seller-readiness

21/100
No succession signal

No meaningful acquirability indicators from public data.

SIGNALS
  • primaryFamily succession underway: Not a takeover target — HARKINS, Sean (same surname) appointed 2023-09-08. Pattern consistent with intra-family handover.
  • primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 65. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • 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 Lawrence Harkins
Individual · Scottish · DOB 09/1961 · age 65
25–50%
25–50%board control25-50% shares · 25-50% voting · board control08/09/2023
Mr Sean Harkins
Individual · British · DOB 08/1987 · age 39
25–50%
25–50%board control25-50% shares · 25-50% voting · board control08/09/2023
1 historic (ceased) PSC
  • Smart Group (Scotland) Ltdceased 08/09/2023· 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · 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.

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Company details

Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2016-05-13
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC82990 — Other business support service activities n.e.c.

Registered office

Solar House
121 Deerdykes View
Cumbernauld
G68 9HN
United Kingdom

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-07-31
Last made up to: 2024-10-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-09-21
Last: 2025-09-07

Officers (2 active · 3 resigned)

HARKINS, James Lawrence→
director · ~65y · appointed 2016-05-13
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
HARKINS, Sean→
director · ~39y · appointed 2023-09-08
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
COSEC LIMITED→
corporate-secretary · appointed 2016-05-13 · resigned 2016-05-13
Resigned
MCMEEKIN, James Stuart→
director · ~59y · appointed 2016-05-13 · resigned 2016-05-13
Resigned
COSEC LIMITED→
corporate-director · appointed 2016-05-13 · resigned 2016-05-13
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
2025-09-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-07-03
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-09-12
change-account-reference-date-company-current-extended
accounts · AA01
2024-04-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-01-09
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2023-09-12
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2023-09-12
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2023-09-12
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2023-09-12
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-09-07
capital-name-of-class-of-shares
capital · SH08
2023-09-06
resolution
resolution · RESOLUTIONS
2023-09-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-01-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-01-26
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC05
2022-08-25