STEPHENSON GROUP LTD
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Cash
£2.9M
-21.3% vs 2024
Net assets
£10M
+31.2% highest in 5 filed years
Employees
95
-4% lowest in 5 filed years
Profit before tax
£3.7M
+9.6% vs 2024
Net assets
5-year trend · vs Basic Materials median
Accounts
5-year trend · Δ = latest vs prior filed period · latest reflected 2025-09-30
| Metric | Trend | 2021-09-30 | 2022-09-30 | 2023-09-30 | 2024-09-30 | 2025-09-30 | Δ vs prior |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turnover | £34,872,457 | £34,790,552 | £26,970,701 | £28,245,105 | £29,179,403 | +3.3% | |
| Operating profit | £4,434,992 | £3,681,291 | £2,492,980 | £3,423,778 | £3,684,669 | +7.6% | |
| Profit before tax | £4,371,992 | £3,609,291 | £2,400,980 | £3,338,313 | £3,657,619 | +9.6% | |
| Net profit | £3,674,934 | £2,958,437 | £2,032,523 | £2,604,712 | £2,997,392 | +15.1% | |
| Cash | £3,362,852 | £2,284,284 | £2,461,852 | £3,630,738 | £2,859,121 | -21.3% | |
| Total assets less current liabilities | £10,771,147 | £12,043,087 | £12,326,156 | £9,639,767 | £11,190,409 | +16.1% | |
| Net assets | £6,676,080 | £9,213,017 | £9,791,290 | £7,658,767 | £10,050,109 | +31.2% | |
| Equity | £6,676,080 | £9,213,017 | £9,791,290 | £7,658,767 | £10,050,109 | +31.2% | |
| Average employees | 111 | 113 | 103 | 99 | 95 | -4% | |
| Wages | £4,538,092 | £4,632,634 | £3,533,300 | £3,825,073 | £3,792,390 | -0.9% | |
| Directors' remuneration | £555,837 | £619,948 | £472,234 | £368,281 | £384,380 | +4.4% |
Values shown as filed in the company's annual accounts. — indicates the figure wasn't present under that line item in that period. The Δ column is the change from the prior filed period as a percentage of |prior|; lines a company doesn't report show —. About these numbers
Ratios
Computed from the line items above — sparklines read oldest → newest
| Ratio | Trend | 2021-09-30 | 2022-09-30 | 2023-09-30 | 2024-09-30 | 2025-09-30 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating margin | 12.7% | 10.6% | 9.2% | 12.1% | 12.6% | |
| Net margin | 10.5% | 8.5% | 7.5% | 9.2% | 10.3% | |
| Return on capital employed | 41.2% | 30.6% | 20.2% | 35.5% | 32.9% | |
| Gearing (liabilities / total assets) | — | — | — | 51.3% | 38.3% | |
| Current ratio | — | — | 2.96x | 2.05x | 2.61x | |
| Interest cover | — | — | 27.10x | 31.07x | 68.23x |
Margins divide P&L lines by turnover. Gearing is liabilities over total assets. Current ratio is current assets over creditors falling due within one year. Interest cover is operating profit over absolute finance costs. Sector-distribution context coming next.
Name history
Renamed 1 time since incorporation
- STEPHENSON GROUP LTD 1988-04-05 → present
- STEPHENSON BROS. LIMITED 1900-12-21 → 1988-04-05
Audit & accounting basis
- Accounting basis
- FRS 102
- Reporting scope
- Standalone (parent only)
- Auditor
- Sumer Auditco Limited
- Audit opinion
- Unqualified (clean)
- Going concern
- Affirmed
“In the opinion of the Directors, the Company has sufficient financial resources together with clearly defined performance objectives. The Company has strong support of its bankers and shareholders in working towards meeting its financial objectives. As a consequence the Directors believe that the Company is well placed to manage its business risks successfully. The Directors have a reasonable expectation that the Company has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus they continue to adopt a going concern basis of accounting in preparing the annual report and the financial statements.”
Significant events
- “the 2025 business environment grew more difficult due to US tariffs and protectionist policies. These trade barriers disrupted supply chains, introduced fresh volatility to material prices, and created a more challenging business environment.”
- “The Company has set ambitious plans to expand its range of solid format products, recognising the substantial growth potential and aligning its efforts with its broader sustainability goals.”
- “Our new product development in the last 12 months has been focussed on 2 primary product groups. Firstly, esterification technology to create a range of 100% natural esters that are multi-functional using green chemistry techniques. Secondly, solid format personal care products, which have a low carbon footprint, are concentrated so reducing water usage, and packaged in sustainable materials supporting the challenge of eliminating single use plastic.”
Auditor, going-concern and subsidiary information is drawn from the narrative of the latest annual accounts. About these numbers
People
7 active · 12 resigned
| Name | Role | Appointed | Born | Nationality |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BENTLEY, Thomas James Macaulay | Director | 1999-04-01 | Mar 1971 | British |
| BENTLEY, Thomas Richard | Director | — | Jun 1943 | British |
| BILBROUGH, Lucy | Director | 2023-01-01 | Oct 1986 | British |
| BRADLEY, Sarah | Director | 2024-01-01 | Feb 1974 | British |
| CARR, Robert Leo | Director | 2014-09-08 | Oct 1973 | British |
| FLANNERY, Lisa | Director | 2018-12-21 | Jan 1965 | British |
| STORY, John Michael | Director | 1997-04-01 | Jun 1963 | British |
Show 12 resigned officers
| Name | Role | Appointed | Resigned |
|---|---|---|---|
| DAVIS, Derek John | Secretary | — | 1994-04-30 |
| GARDNER, Malcolm John | Secretary | 1994-05-01 | 2008-11-28 |
| MORRIS, Morgan Lawn | Secretary | 2008-11-28 | 2014-09-04 |
| CLEWS, James Aaron | Director | 2019-01-01 | 2023-01-01 |
| DAVIS, Derek John | Director | — | 2004-06-30 |
| LONG, Jonathan Michael Dampier | Director | — | 2003-07-24 |
| MORRIS, Morgan Lawn | Director | 2006-04-10 | 2014-09-04 |
| PARTRIDGE, Lionel Keith | Director | — | 2000-03-31 |
| REID, John | Director | — | 2001-09-30 |
| SHARP, David John Traquair | Director | 2006-02-01 | 2008-03-20 |
| SUTCLIFFE, Peter Douglas | Director | — | 1997-03-31 |
| SWALLOW, David | Director | — | 1999-03-31 |
Ownership
Persons with significant control
| Name | Kind | Nature of control | Notified | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thos. Bentley & Son Limited | Corporate entity | Shares 75–100%, Voting 75–100%, Appoints directors | 2016-04-06 | Active |
Filing timeline
Last 20 of 153 total filings
| Date | Type | Category | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-30 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2026-05-26 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with updates | |
| 2025-06-25 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2025-06-03 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with no updates | |
| 2025-06-03 | CH01 | officers | Change person director company with change date | |
| 2025-06-02 | CH01 | officers | Change person director company with change date | |
| 2024-05-21 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with no updates | |
| 2024-03-06 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2024-01-18 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2023-06-23 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2023-06-01 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with no updates | |
| 2023-05-31 | CH01 | officers | Change person director company with change date | |
| 2023-01-23 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2023-01-23 | TM01 | officers | Termination director company with name termination date | |
| 2022-05-24 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2022-05-23 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with no updates | |
| 2021-06-15 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with no updates | |
| 2021-06-15 | CH01 | officers | Change person director company with change date | |
| 2021-06-15 | CH01 | officers | Change person director company with change date | |
| 2021-06-15 | CH01 | officers | Change person director company with change date |
Public-record activity
Raw counts from Companies House — last 12–24 months
- Filings
- 2
- Capital events
- 0
- Officers appointed
- 0
- Officers resigned
- 0
last 12 months
last 24 months
last 12 months
last 12 months
Direct counts from the register. No score, no rating — see the Filing timeline for the underlying events.