ANCHOR GAS SERVICES LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
SC413366 · ltd · incorporated 2011-12-16
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.
Why now
Window steady · low confidence
Steady and stalled — no momentum either way. Needs an approach trigger.
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 Dec 2024
Net worth
£-10.3k
book net assets
Opportunity
78/100
Strong
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What this business does
Primary activity: Plumbing, heat and air-conditioning installation
Sector: Construction
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)
Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.

Opportunity 78/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 72). 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).

Data confidence

Overall: medium (77/100)

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
7 officers (1 active, 7 linked, 6 with DOB)
87
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
46 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 · FRS 102
Negative net assets
Liabilities exceed assets by £10,252
Net assets shrinking
Down £11,281 YoY
Cash YoY
+122%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£29k
↑ 122% YoY
Net Worth
-£10k
↓ 1096% YoY
Current Assets
£86k
↑ 32% YoY
Current Liabilities
-£10k£9k£28k£48k£67k£86kDec 2023Dec 2024

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2024-12-312023-12-31
Total assets£14.2k£30.1k
Current assets£86.3k£65.2k
Cash£29.2k£13.2k
Debtors£57.1k£52.0k
Net assets£-10.3k£1.0k

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

🔒Filing-note intelligence

2 signals 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
1
filing
  • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (28 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-10-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-12-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2024-05-01
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  4. 2024-05-01
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  5. 2024-04-30
    DILLON, William resigned
    director
  6. 2023-11-17
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  7. 2023-11-17
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  8. 2023-10-23
    DILLON, Stephen resigned
    director
  9. 2023-09-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2022-09-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2021-09-15
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2020-03-10
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2019-05-01
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  14. 2018-04-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  15. 2017-10-04
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  16. 2017-04-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  17. 2013-12-16
    DILLON, Helen Linda resigned
    director
  18. 2013-12-16
    DILLON, William appointed
    director
  19. 2012-04-25
    BLACKLAWS, Ronald appointed
    director
  20. 2012-04-25
    DEVLIN, Michael resigned
    director
  21. 2012-04-25
    DILLON, Helen Linda appointed
    director
  22. 2012-04-25
    DILLON, Stephen appointed
    director
  23. 2011-12-16
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As ANCHOR GAS SERVICES LIMITED
  24. 2011-12-16
    BRIAN REID LTD. appointed
    corporate-secretary
  25. 2011-12-16
    BRIAN REID LTD. resigned
    corporate-secretary
  26. 2011-12-16
    DEVLIN, Michael appointed
    director
  27. 2011-12-16
    MABBOTT, Stephen George appointed
    director
  28. 2011-12-16
    MABBOTT, Stephen George resigned
    director

Owner dependency

90/100
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
  • +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 72 — succession pressure is live.

Succession & seller-readiness

88/100
Likely off-market candidate

Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 72 years old. Natural succession window is now.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 14 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

1 active beneficial owner
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Ronald Blacklaws
Individual · British · DOB 06/1954 · age 72
sig. influencesignificant influence01/12/2016
2 historic (ceased) PSCs
  • Mr William Dillonceased 30/04/2024· significant influence
  • Mr Stephen Dillonceased 23/10/2023· significant influence

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

8 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
Incorporated2011-12-16
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC43220 — Plumbing, heat and air-conditioning installation

Registered office

Unit 13 Coatbank Way
Coatbridge
ML5 3AG
Scotland

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-05-08
Last: 2026-04-24

Officers (1 active · 6 resigned)

BLACKLAWS, Ronald
director · ~72y · appointed 2012-04-25
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BRIAN REID LTD.
corporate-secretary · appointed 2011-12-16 · resigned 2011-12-16
Resigned
DEVLIN, Michael
director · ~36y · appointed 2011-12-16 · resigned 2012-04-25
Resigned
DILLON, Helen Linda
director · ~78y · appointed 2012-04-25 · resigned 2013-12-16
Resigned
DILLON, Stephen
director · ~59y · appointed 2012-04-25 · resigned 2023-10-23
Resigned
DILLON, William
director · ~79y · appointed 2013-12-16 · resigned 2024-04-30
Resigned
MABBOTT, Stephen George
director · ~76y · appointed 2011-12-16 · resigned 2011-12-16
Resigned

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

Recent filings (46 total)

confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-04-29
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-10-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-05-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-28
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-05-01
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2024-05-01
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2024-05-01
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-27
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2023-11-17
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2023-11-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-09-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-12-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-09-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-12-31
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-09-15