PACKAGING AUTOMATION LIMITED
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Cash
£861k
+8% vs 2024
Net assets
£2.2m
-0.5% lowest in 6 filed years
Employees
96
-5% lowest in 6 filed years
Profit before tax
£147k
-15.3% first positive since 2023
Net assets
6-year trend · vs Industrials median
Accounts
6-year trend · Δ = latest vs prior filed period · latest reflected 2025-09-30
| Metric | Trend | 2020-09-30 | 2021-09-30 | 2022-09-30 | 2023-09-30 | 2024-09-30 | 2025-09-30 | Δ vs prior |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turnover | £12,115,682 | £12,037,207 | £13,610,501 | £11,158,769 | £11,143,038 | £11,846,588 | +6.3% | |
| Operating profit | £443,219 | £463,240 | -£197,985 | -£462,823 | £247,586 | £236,105 | -4.6% | |
| Profit before tax | £401,501 | £415,615 | -£255,165 | -£533,858 | £174,101 | £147,493 | -15.3% | |
| Net profit | £366,568 | £400,687 | -£298,518 | -£237,930 | £97,942 | £161,433 | +64.8% | |
| Cash | £1,521,179 | £1,250,907 | £74,241 | £771,689 | £797,441 | £861,203 | +8% | |
| Total assets less current liabilities | £5,318,172 | £5,310,401 | £4,704,959 | £4,460,976 | £3,007,237 | £3,870,818 | +28.7% | |
| Net assets | £3,242,896 | £3,383,583 | £2,825,065 | £2,327,135 | £2,201,190 | £2,189,295 | -0.5% | |
| Equity | £3,242,896 | £3,383,583 | £2,825,065 | £2,327,135 | £2,201,190 | £2,189,295 | -0.5% | |
| Average employees | 133 | 144 | 142 | 126 | 101 | 96 | -5% | |
| Wages | £4,260,038 | £4,546,490 | £5,040,437 | £4,733,794 | £4,049,832 | — | — | |
| Directors' remuneration | £453,165 | £451,100 | £487,095 | £457,111 | £451,415 | £434,826 | -3.7% | |
| Directors' pension contributions | £NaN | £NaN | £NaN | £3,940 | £3,940 | £NaN | NaN% | |
| Highest paid director | £NaN | £NaN | £NaN | £158,027 | £180,240 | £NaN | NaN% |
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 | 2020-09-30 | 2021-09-30 | 2022-09-30 | 2023-09-30 | 2024-09-30 | 2025-09-30 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating margin | 3.7% | 3.8% | -1.5% | -4.1% | 2.2% | 2.0% | |
| Net margin | 3.0% | 3.3% | -2.2% | -2.1% | 0.9% | 1.4% | |
| Return on capital employed | 8.3% | 8.7% | -4.2% | -10.4% | 8.2% | 6.1% | |
| Gearing (liabilities / total assets) | 59.4% | 60.0% | 64.4% | 67.4% | 67.6% | 65.2% | |
| Current ratio | — | — | — | 1.39x | 1.03x | 1.50x | |
| Interest cover | 10.52x | 9.70x | -3.45x | -6.19x | 2.87x | 2.40x |
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.
Audit & accounting basis
- Accounting basis
- FRS 102
- Reporting scope
- Standalone (parent only)
- Auditor
- Hurst Accountants Limited
- Audit opinion
- Unqualified (clean)
- Going concern
- Affirmed
“The directors' use of the going concern basis of accounting is appropriate. Auditors identified no material uncertainties casting significant doubt on the Company's ability to continue for at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.”
Significant events
- “On 24 April 2020 a bank loan totalling £500,000 was taken out under the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme. During the year, the company repaid the outstanding loan facility in full. No amounts remain payable at the year end.”
- “On 31 January 2025, a bank loan facility totalling £1,096,473 was renewed for another 5 years.”
- “Subsequent to the year end, the company's ownership structure changed following the transfer of a majority of the issued share capital to a trust. As a result of this transfer, control of the company has passed to the trustees of that trust, being S Ashton, N Ashton, D Schumacker and C A Penn.”
- “On 7 February 2020 a bank loan totalling £1,500,000 was taken out and is secured by a debenture and charge over the commercial freehold property. During the year, the company renegotiated the terms of this existing loan facility. The original loan was not repaid; instead, the facility was refinanced through a modification of the existing agreement. The revised terms include a new interest rate of 2% over base rate. The loan continues to be repaid on a monthly basis.”
Auditor, going-concern and subsidiary information is drawn from the narrative of the latest annual accounts. About these numbers
People
7 active · 8 resigned
| Name | Role | Appointed | Born | Nationality |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PENN, Carol Ann | Secretary | 1996-12-14 | — | British |
| ASHTON, Neil | Director | 2012-04-24 | Oct 1973 | British |
| ASHTON, Samantha | Director | 2012-04-24 | Jul 1970 | British |
| COOKE, Francis Joseph | Director | 2014-04-02 | Jul 1952 | British |
| HOLDEN, William George, Doctor | Director | 1997-03-27 | Jan 1951 | British |
| PENN, Carol Ann | Director | 1996-05-28 | Sep 1946 | British |
| SCHUMACKER, David | Director | 2019-01-01 | Oct 1973 | British |
Show 8 resigned officers
| Name | Role | Appointed | Resigned |
|---|---|---|---|
| JONES, John Bannister | Secretary | 1996-09-24 | 1996-12-14 |
| PENN, Arthur | Secretary | — | 1996-10-24 |
| HAGUE, Paul Nicholas | Director | 1997-03-27 | 2004-01-31 |
| JONES, John Bannister | Director | — | 1996-12-14 |
| MURRAY, Andrew John | Director | — | 2014-01-20 |
| PENN, Anthony Arthur | Director | — | 2023-06-19 |
| PENN, Arthur | Director | — | 1998-05-15 |
| PENN, Nicholas John | Director | — | 1995-09-26 |
Ownership
Persons with significant control
| Name | Kind | Nature of control | Notified | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mrs Samantha Ashton | Individual | Shares 75–100% (as trust), Voting 75–100% (as trust) | 2025-11-19 | Active |
| Mr Neil Ashton | Individual | Shares 75–100% (as trust), Voting 75–100% (as trust) | 2025-11-19 | Active |
| Mr David Schumacker | Individual | Shares 75–100% (as trust), Voting 75–100% (as trust) | 2025-11-19 | Active |
| Mrs Carol Ann Penn | Individual | Shares 75–100% (as trust), Voting 75–100% (as trust), Appoints directors | 2024-01-04 | Active |
| Mr Anthony Arthur Penn | Individual | Shares 75–100% | 2016-04-06 | Ceased 2024-01-04 |
Filing timeline
Last 20 of 204 total filings
Material constitutional events — rename, articles re-file, resolution
- 2025-11-21 RESOLUTIONS Resolution
- 2025-11-21 MA Memorandum articles
| Date | Type | Category | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-05 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2026-01-13 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with updates | |
| 2025-11-21 | RESOLUTIONS | resolution | Resolution | |
| 2025-11-21 | MA | incorporation | Memorandum articles | |
| 2025-11-19 | SH10 | capital | Capital variation of rights attached to shares | |
| 2025-11-19 | PSC04 | persons-with-significant-control | Change to a person with significant control | |
| 2025-11-19 | PSC01 | persons-with-significant-control | Notification of a person with significant control | |
| 2025-11-19 | PSC01 | persons-with-significant-control | Notification of a person with significant control | |
| 2025-11-19 | PSC01 | persons-with-significant-control | Notification of a person with significant control | |
| 2025-11-19 | SH08 | capital | Capital name of class of shares | |
| 2025-10-22 | MR04 | mortgage | Mortgage satisfy charge full | |
| 2025-10-22 | MR04 | mortgage | Mortgage satisfy charge full | |
| 2025-10-22 | MR04 | mortgage | Mortgage satisfy charge full | |
| 2025-10-22 | MR04 | mortgage | Mortgage satisfy charge full | |
| 2025-10-22 | MR04 | mortgage | Mortgage satisfy charge full | |
| 2025-09-23 | CH01 | officers | Change person director company with change date | |
| 2025-09-23 | CH03 | officers | Change person secretary company with change date | |
| 2025-09-23 | PSC04 | persons-with-significant-control | Change to a person with significant control | |
| 2025-06-04 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2025-01-20 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with updates |
Public-record activity
Raw counts from Companies House — last 12–24 months
- Filings
- 15
- Capital events
- 2
- 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.