FAMILY PAYROLL LTD
💤Zombieactive
SC666761 · ltd · incorporated 2020-07-08
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 Jul 2025
Net worth
£-2.0k
book net assets
Opportunity
72/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Human resources provision and management of human resources functions
Sector: Administrative & support services
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.
Opportunity 72/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. 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: distressed disposal / insolvency (65/100).
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 4 total, 4 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
23 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
72/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
65
Adequate — check latest filings for context.
Acquirability
55
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102Negative net assets
Liabilities exceed assets by £1,971
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£23k
Net Worth
-£2k
Current Assets
£24k
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2025-07-31 | 2024-07-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £-2.0k | — |
| Current assets | £24.4k | — |
| Cash | £23.3k | — |
| Debtors | £1.1k | — |
| Net assets | £-2.0k | — |
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
1
filing
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (24 events)Click to expand
- 2025-11-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-04-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2025-03-26📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2025-03-26📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2025-03-24➖CORMACK, Pamela resigneddirector
- 2025-03-24📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2025-03-24📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2025-03-24📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2025-03-20➕KEENAN, Steven William appointeddirector
- 2025-03-20📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2024-04-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2023-06-02📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2023-06-01➖GRIEVE, Karen resigneddirector
- 2023-06-01📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2023-04-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2022-03-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2021-06-16📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2021-06-08📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2021-06-07📄capital-allotment-sharescapital · SH01
- 2021-05-31➕GRIEVE, Karen appointeddirector
- 2021-05-31📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2020-07-08🏢Company incorporatedAs FAMILY PAYROLL LTD
- 2020-07-08➕CORMACK, Pamela appointeddirector
- 2020-07-08📄incorporation-companyincorporation · NEWINC
Owner dependency
75/100
High — earn-out structure requiredMaterial founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.
FACTORS
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
Succession & seller-readiness
45/100
Moderate signalSome succession indicators present. Worth watching; approach if sector/strategy fits.
SIGNALS
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
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 · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Ms Pamela Cormack Individual · Scottish · DOB 06/1973 · age 53 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control · trust interest · firm interest | 25/03/2025 |
3 historic (ceased) PSCs
- Mr Steven William Keenanceased 25/03/2025· 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control · significant influence · trust interest · firm interest
- Ms Karen Grieveceased 30/04/2023· 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting
- Ms Pamela Cormackceased 24/03/2025· 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting · board control
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Professional services · EH postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FARRER MARKETING LIMITED→ SC546449 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| FARRPOINT LIMITED→ SC296299 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 20y | — | — |
| FAST ACTION PAY LIMITED→ SC739139 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| FAYYAN CARS LTD→ SC815933 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| FB ACTUARIAL AND BUSINESS CONSULTING LTD→ SC695658 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| FB PHARMTECH LTD→ SC753069 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| FEDM CONSULTING LTD→ SC811361 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| FERGUSSON LAW & CO (EDINBURGH) LTD→ SC744888 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| FERLIEHALD LTD→ SC771415 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| FINALTY SERVICES LIMITED→ SC416514 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| FINOPSYS LIMITED→ SC778277 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| FINRISK SOLUTIONS LIMITED→ SC855451 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
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
Incorporated2020-07-08
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC78300 — Human resources provision and management of human resources functions
Registered office
2 Atholl View
Prestonpans
EH32 9FL
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-04-30
Last made up to: 2025-07-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-07-21
Last: 2025-07-07
Officers (1 active · 2 resigned)
KEENAN, Steven William→
Activedirector · ~52y · appointed 2025-03-20
View their other companies + combined net worth →
CORMACK, Pamela→
Resigneddirector · ~53y · appointed 2020-07-08 · resigned 2025-03-24
GRIEVE, Karen→
Resigneddirector · ~49y · appointed 2021-05-31 · resigned 2023-06-01
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (23 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-11-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-07-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2025-04-24
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2025-03-26
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2025-03-26
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2025-03-24
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2025-03-24
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2025-03-24
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2025-03-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-07-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2024-04-17
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-07-20
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2023-06-02
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2023-06-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2023-04-14