Risk Assessment: Slade Parry Limited (05605894)

Basis of analysis: Micro-entity, unaudited accounts filed under FRS 105. No profit and loss account is published, and the balance sheet data is limited in granularity. Conclusions below are therefore drawn from balance sheet trends, filing behaviour, and disclosed notes only.

1. Risk Rating: MEDIUM (elevated)

The company is currently solvent with positive working capital and a clean compliance record, which rules out a HIGH rating on present evidence. However, the rating is elevated by: a negative equity position as recently as FY2023; a 63% decline in net assets in the latest filed year; a near-tripling of short-term creditors; and an 84% contraction in total assets since the FY2018 peak. The absolute scale of the business (£33k total assets, one employee) leaves minimal capacity to absorb shocks.

2. Key Concerns

a) Sharp deterioration in the latest filed year (FY2026) Net assets fell from £28,883 to £10,754 (-63%), while creditors falling due within one year rose from £7,419 to £21,406 (an increase of ~188%). Net current assets of £12,375 provide only a thin working capital buffer. Without a filed P&L, the driver of the creditor increase cannot be determined from public data.

b) Recent balance-sheet insolvency and persistent volatility FY2023 recorded negative shareholders' funds of -£3,476, meaning the company was balance-sheet insolvent at that year end. The equity base has swung widely over the decade (£85k in 2018, £2k in 2024, £29k in 2025, £11k in 2026), indicating volatile results and limited financial resilience. The recovery from the 2023 position is encouraging, but the pattern suggests results are erratic year to year.

c) Sustained contraction and total key-person dependency Total assets have declined from £212,533 (FY2018) to £33,035 (FY2026). This may reflect a deliberate wind-down of scale, reduced demand, or extraction of value — the data does not distinguish between these. The company employs one person (including directors), so operational continuity rests entirely on a single individual. Related to this, the accounts state that £32,457 was advanced to a director and subsequently repaid in full during FY2026 (unsecured, 3.75% interest, no repayment terms, nil balance at both year ends). While properly disclosed and settled per the accounts, an intra-year advance of this magnitude — roughly equal to the company's entire asset base — indicates the company's funds were exposed to related-party credit risk during the year.

3. Positive Indicators

• Longevity: Incorporated in October 2005 — nearly 20 years of continuous registration and trading history.
• Full regulatory compliance: Both accounts and confirmation statement are current, with no overdue filings. The latest accounts were signed and authorised promptly (23 June 2026 for a 31 March 2026 year end).
• Restored solvency: Positive working capital of £12,375 and net assets of £10,754; the company moved from negative equity in FY2023 to £28,883 by FY2025, demonstrating capacity to recover.
• Related-party exposure settled: Per the accounts, the director's advance was repaid in full within the year, with nil opening and closing balances.
• Transparent, simple ownership: Two current officers, with PSCs clearly registered at defined shareholding thresholds (one above 75%, one between 25% and 50%).
• Asset-light model: Fixed assets of just £1,529 are consistent with a professional services business (quantity surveying) requiring minimal capital, so a small balance sheet is not inherently a distress signal.

4. Due Diligence Notes

1. Obtain turnover and profitability data. Micro-entity exemptions mean no P&L is filed. Request management accounts to assess revenue trajectory, margins, and whether the business is actively trading or winding down.
2. Interrogate the creditor increase. Establish the composition of the £21,406 due within one year (trade creditors, HMRC, accruals, or related parties) and its ageing. This is the single largest unexplained movement in FY2026.
3. Clarify the long-term contraction. Ask management to explain the ~84% reduction in total assets since FY2018 — deliberate downsizing, client loss, or distributions.
4. Review the FY2023 insolvency and subsequent recovery. Understand what drove negative equity that year and the swing to £28,883 by FY2025; assess whether the FY2026 decline is a continuation of that volatility.
5. Examine related-party loan practices. The accounts state the FY2026 advance was repaid in full; confirm whether similar intra-year advances occurred in prior years and review any supporting documentation.
6. Run standard external checks: county court judgments, registered charges, VAT/PAYE registration status — none of which are visible in this dataset.
7. Verify current trading activity via the company's website and, where possible, client references, given the single-employee structure and key-person concentration.
8. Minor administrative note: the officer record for the individual holding both secretary and director roles appears duplicated at Companies House; confirm the actual officer structure.