BERNEL LTD
💤Zombieactive
09635805 · ltd · incorporated 2015-06-12
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
—
not disclosed
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
77/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Fund management activities
Sector: Financial & insurance
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 77/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (65/100, director aged 58). 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).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
3 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 7.1y
30/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 7.1 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (57/100)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
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
3 charges (3/3 with lender, 3/3 with type)
90
Directors & officers
3 officers (2 active, 3 linked, 2 with DOB)
83
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
4 connected companies via shared directors
57
Filing history
40 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
77/100Strong
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
77
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Recent activity
Last 30 days
4
filings
- • 2 persons-with-significant-control
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 officers
Last 90 days
5
filings
- • 2 persons-with-significant-control
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 officers
Last 180 days
5
filings
- • 2 persons-with-significant-control
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 officers
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (28 events)Click to expand
- 2026-03-23➖NELSON, Joseph Craig resigneddirector
- 2026-03-23📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2026-03-23📄termination-director-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM01
- 2026-03-23📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2026-03-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2025-03-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-02-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-01-16📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2024-01-16📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2024-01-16📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2023-08-31📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2023-06-21📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2023-06-21📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2023-06-21📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2023-04-19📍default-companies-house-registered-office-address-appliedaddress · RP05
- 2023-03-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-03-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-12-08📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-03📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2019-12-03🔓Charge satisfied #2
- 2019-12-03🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2019-12-02🔒Charge registered #3Lender: District and County Investments Limited
- 2019-03-20🔒Charge registered #2Lender: United Trust Bank Limited
- 2019-03-20🔒Charge registered #1Lender: United Trust Bank Limited
- 2015-06-12🏢Company incorporatedAs BERNEL LTD
- 2015-06-12➕BERRY, Kay appointedsecretary
- 2015-06-12➕BERRY, Kay appointeddirector
- 2015-06-12➕NELSON, Joseph Craig appointeddirector
Owner dependency
83/100
Critical — business is the founderThe 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.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 58 — approaching natural succession window.
Succession & seller-readiness
60/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 58. Early succession window.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.
Red flags
1 med ·Charge satisfaction-then-recreation pattern
mediumMultiple instances where a charge was satisfied and a new charge created within 6 months. Suggests active refinancing cycle.
Shareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Ms Kay Berry Individual · British · DOB 03/1968 · age 58 | 75–100% | 75–100% | 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting | 01/05/2017 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Mr Joseph Craig Nelsonceased 23/03/2026· 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting
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.
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A&K HERD LTD→ 10754966 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
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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.
See pricing →Company details
Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2015-06-12
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC66300 — Fund management activities
Registered office
63 Millbrook Road
Kingstown Industrial Estate
Carlisle
Cumbria
CA3 0EU
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-03-31
Last made up to: 2025-06-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-04-06
Last: 2026-03-23
Officers (2 active · 1 resigned)
Active
Active
NELSON, Joseph Craig→
Resigneddirector · ~65y · appointed 2015-06-12 · resigned 2026-03-23
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
3
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:3 of 3 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | District and County Investments District and County Investments Limited | A registered charge | 1 property | 02/12/2019 | — | |
| satisfied | United Trust Bank United Trust Bank Limited | A registered charge | 1 property | 20/03/2019 | 03/12/2019 | |
| satisfied | United Trust Bank United Trust Bank Limited | A registered charge | 1 property | 20/03/2019 | 03/12/2019 |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (40 total)
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2026-03-23
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-03-23
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2026-03-23
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2026-03-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-03-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-06-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-03-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-06-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-02-19
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2024-01-16
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2024-01-16
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2024-01-16
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2023-08-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-06-21
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2023-06-21