THE FESTINIOG RAILWAY COMPANY
Controlled by the Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways Trust, the company owns and operates the historic Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland heritage railways in North Wales, alongside providing ancillary engineering services.
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Cash
£1.8M
+59.3% highest in 3 filed years
Net assets
£9.3M
+0.3% vs 2024
Employees
130
-7.1% lowest in 3 filed years
Profit before tax
£51K
+264.4% highest in 3 filed years
Watchouts
Facts from the Companies House register and the latest accounts — not a rating
-
1 PSC ceased in last 24 months
Significant control changed hands — see the Ownership section.
Net assets
3-year trend · vs Consumer Discretionary median
Accounts
3-year trend · Δ = latest vs prior filed period · latest reflected 2025-12-31
| Metric | Trend | 2023-12-31 | 2024-12-31 | 2025-12-31 | Δ vs prior |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turnover | £7,280,450 | £7,343,308 | £7,104,738 | -3.2% | |
| Operating profit | £20,650 | £2,240 | £32,273 | +1,340.8% | |
| Profit before tax | £34,444 | £13,910 | £50,688 | +264.4% | |
| Net profit | £34,444 | £9,157 | £50,688 | +453.5% | |
| Cash | £1,045,703 | £1,118,012 | £1,780,901 | +59.3% | |
| Total assets less current liabilities | £28,166,401 | £29,148,718 | £29,130,898 | -0.1% | |
| Net assets | £9,151,403 | £9,256,560 | £9,285,249 | +0.3% | |
| Equity | £9,151,403 | £9,256,560 | £9,285,249 | +0.3% | |
| Average employees | 131 | 140 | 130 | -7.1% | |
| Wages | £3,019,136 | £3,268,666 | £3,137,590 | -4% | |
| Directors' remuneration | £101,052 | £103,313 | £107,646 | +4.2% |
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 | 2023-12-31 | 2024-12-31 | 2025-12-31 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating margin | 0.3% | 0.0% | 0.5% | |
| Net margin | 0.5% | 0.1% | 0.7% | |
| Return on capital employed | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.1% | |
| Gearing (liabilities / total assets) | 68.9% | 69.8% | — | |
| Current ratio | 2.10x | 2.02x | 2.38x | |
| Interest cover | 8.35x | 0.94x | — |
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
- Williams Denton Cyf
- Audit opinion
- Unqualified (clean)
- Going concern
- Affirmed
“In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the directors' use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate. Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the company's ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.”
Group structure
- THE FESTINIOG RAILWAY COMPANY · parent
- Welsh Highland Light Railway Ltd
- Welsh Highland Railway Construction Ltd
- Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways Heritage Ltd
Significant events
- “Completion of the £5m National Lottery Heritage Fund project at Boston Lodge was formally celebrated.”
- “The combined Railway 200 and FR Platinum Jubilee celebration weekend, marking the 70th Anniversary of passenger trains running in the 'preservation' era, and linked with the national Railway 200 celebrations.”
- “Progress continued with the reroofing of the 'new' erecting shop, providing much greater insulation offering better working conditions for the staff and volunteers there.”
- “At Dinas, the remodelling of the North Yard continues apace, with much ground work and track work being carried out in advance of the erection of the new carriage shed and associated facilities.”
Auditor, going-concern and subsidiary information is drawn from the narrative of the latest annual accounts. About these numbers
People
11 active · 0 resigned
| Name | Role | Appointed | Born | Nationality |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BURBIDGE, Nigel Ferrier | Director | 2004-06-01 | Oct 1957 | British |
| CHARLES, Joanna Mary | Director | 2024-06-14 | Apr 1961 | British |
| COLE, Graham | Director | 2023-06-15 | Feb 1956 | British |
| HART, Michael Clifford | Director | 1990-06-01 | Apr 1951 | British |
| KEAY, David William | Director | 2017-06-01 | Apr 1957 | British |
| LEA, Colin | Director | 2024-06-14 | Nov 1978 | British |
| LEWIN, Paul Anthony | Director | 2015-06-01 | Mar 1964 | British |
| MURFITT, Stephen Edward, Dr | Director | 2006-06-01 | Apr 1949 | British |
| NOON, Henry Richard | Director | 2024-06-14 | Jun 1960 | British |
| PRIDEAUX, John Denys Charles Anstice, Dr | Director | 2006-12-31 | Aug 1944 | British |
| SCARISBRICK, Julian | Director | 2023-06-15 | May 1982 | British |
Ownership
Persons with significant control
| Name | Kind | Nature of control | Notified | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mr David Richard Jones | Individual | Significant influence | 2025-03-23 | Active |
| Nigel Ferrier Burbidge | Individual | Significant influence | 2025-01-01 | Active |
| David Rhys Gwyn | Individual | Shares 75–100%, Significant influence | 2017-01-01 | Active |
| Mark Leonard Smith | Individual | Significant influence | 2016-04-06 | Ceased 2024-12-31 |
| Dr Dewi Wyn Roberts | Individual | Shares 75–100%, Significant influence | 2016-04-06 | Ceased 2024-02-23 |
| Dr John Denys Charles Anstice Prideaux | Individual | Significant influence | 2016-04-06 | Active |
| Mr Richard Broyd | Individual | Significant influence | 2016-04-06 | Active |
Filing timeline
Last 20 of 35 total filings
| Date | Type | Category | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-01 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2026-05-19 | PSC01 | persons-with-significant-control | Notification of a person with significant control | |
| 2026-05-19 | CS01 | confirmation-statement | Confirmation statement with updates | |
| 2026-03-18 | PSC01 | persons-with-significant-control | Notification of a person with significant control | |
| 2026-03-18 | PSC04 | persons-with-significant-control | Change to a person with significant control | |
| 2026-03-18 | PSC07 | persons-with-significant-control | Cessation of a person with significant control | |
| 2026-03-18 | PSC07 | persons-with-significant-control | Cessation of a person with significant control | |
| 2025-11-21 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2025-11-21 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2025-11-21 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2025-11-21 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2025-11-21 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2025-11-19 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2025-11-19 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2025-11-19 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2025-11-19 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2025-11-19 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2025-11-19 | AP01 | officers | Appoint person director company with name date | |
| 2025-08-01 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full | |
| 2024-07-08 | AA | accounts | Accounts with accounts type full |
Public-record activity
Raw counts from Companies House — last 12–24 months
- Filings
- 19
- 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.