Thwaites: who owns it, who runs it and what the accounts show
Thwaites Limited's person with significant control on the Companies House register is Lord Michael Dulverton. In the year to August 2025 Thwaites Limited reported turnover of £85m.
- In the year to August 2025, Thwaites had turnover of £85m, up 6.2% on the year before.
- It made a pre-tax profit of £6m, keeping £7.07 of every £100 of sales.
- It employed an average of 282 people.
- These figures are from Thwaites Limited's accounts for the year to August 2025, filed at Companies House on 16 May 2026.
- Registered name
- THWAITES LIMITED
- Company number
- 00387579
- Status
- Active
- Incorporated
- 13 May 1944
- Registered office area
- Coventry
- Industry code on the register
- 28220: Manufacture of machinery and equipment
- Accounts
- Single company accounts, this company only
- Accounts type
- Full accounts
- Latest accounts
- Year to August 2025, filed 16 May 2026
What does Thwaites do?
Thwaites is a family-owned Lancashire pub, inn and hotel business founded as a brewer in Blackburn in 1807. It sold its main beer brands to Marston's in 2015 and now brews in a smaller brewery at Mellor Brook, near Blackburn. Most of its money comes from its pubs, inns and hotels across the North of England.
In brief: family business · Lancashire · pubs, inns and hotels · brewer since 1807
Source: Spark Intel editorial, checked 4 November 2026. Official website: thwaites.co.uk.
Who owns Thwaites?
The Companies House register records Lord Michael Dulverton as the person with significant control of Thwaites Limited, company number 00387579.
The register names an individual, not a company, as its controller.
The full ownership record is on the Companies House register. Control is given in the bands the register uses, not as exact shareholdings.
Who runs Thwaites?
The Companies House register lists 6 current officers for Thwaites Limited.
All 6 current officers
| Officer | Appointed |
|---|---|
| Rt Hon The Lord Gilbert Michael Hamilton Dulverton | |
| Robert Ian Hamilton Wills | 22 December 1992 |
| Ian Charles Metcalfe Brown | 1 September 1997 |
| Simon Kimberley Hill | 22 December 2015 |
| Simon Kimberley Hill | 24 March 2016 |
| The Hon. Robert Anthony Wills | 11 April 2018 |
Every current officer, with appointment dates, is on the Companies House register.
What did Thwaites file?
Thwaites Limited reported turnover of £85m in the year to August 2025. That was up 6.2% on £80m the year before.
It reported 282 employees. The year before it reported 278.
It filed a pre-tax profit of £6m for the year, against a pre-tax profit of £6m the year before.
It ended the year with £7m at the bank and net assets of £38m. It paid dividends of £4m.
| Measure | Aug 2025 | Aug 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Turnover | £85m | £80m |
| Pre-tax profit | £6m (filed) | £6m (filed) |
| Employees | 282 | 278 |
| Bank and cash | £7m | £3m |
| Net assets | £38m | £38m |
| Dividends paid | £4m | £4m |
| Interest paid | £0.4m | |
| Directors' pay | £2m |
Read the accounts to August 2025 (PDF, Companies House) · every accounts filing
What do these figures mean? Turnover vs profit · Profit per £100 · Cash vs profit · Net assets
Are there any charges against Thwaites?
Thwaites Limited has registered 3 charges at Companies House, of which 2 are still outstanding. A charge is security a lender takes over a company's assets; one is satisfied when the lending behind it is repaid or released.
Both outstanding charges
| Charge holder | Created |
|---|---|
| Hsbc UK Bank PLC | 5 January 2024 |
| Midland Bank PLC | 10 June 1993 |
Each charge, with its holder and dates, is on the Companies House register.
How Thwaites compares
Of the 6 family brewers, Thwaites is 3rd on turnover, 4th on profit margin and 2nd on growth. Harvey's keeps the most of every £100 of sales: £14.86.
| Rank | Family brewers | Turnover | Profit per £100 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | St Austell | £234m | £1.39 |
| 3rd | Thwaites | £85m | £7.07 |
| + 4 more family brewers ranked |
Ranked by turnover. Profit per £100 is pre-tax profit for every £100 of turnover, shown only where the profit is filed.
Thwaites files as Thwaites Limited, whose person with significant control is Lord Michael Dulverton, with turnover of £85m in its latest filed year.
Questions about Thwaites
What does Thwaites do?
Thwaites is a family-owned Lancashire pub, inn and hotel business founded as a brewer in Blackburn in 1807. It sold its main beer brands to Marston's in 2015 and now brews in a smaller brewery at Mellor Brook, near Blackburn. Most of its money comes from its pubs, inns and hotels across the North of England.
How does Thwaites compare with its rivals?
By turnover, Thwaites is 3rd of the 6 companies in our battle of the family brewers, behind St Austell. The battle ranks them on turnover, pre-tax profit, margin, growth and net assets. The battle of the family brewers →
Who owns Thwaites?
The Companies House register records Lord Michael Dulverton as the person with significant control of Thwaites Limited.
How much does Thwaites make?
Thwaites Limited reported turnover of £85m in the year to August 2025. It filed a pre-tax profit of £6m.
How many people work at Thwaites?
Thwaites Limited reported 282 employees in the year to August 2025.
Who runs Thwaites?
The Companies House register lists 6 current officers for Thwaites Limited. The full list, with appointment dates, is on the Companies House register.
- Figures come from Thwaites Limited's filings at Companies House, company number 00387579, for the period shown at the top of the page.
- These are single company accounts: they cover this company alone, not any wider group.
- Pre-tax profit is the figure the company filed, for both years.
- A figure the filing does not disclose is shown as n/d. A zero in the filing is treated as not disclosed, never as nil.
- Rounding: below £0.1m in thousands, from £0.1m to £2m to one decimal place, from £2m to the nearest million.
- Ownership is shown in the control bands the register of people with significant control uses, not as exact shareholdings.
- Officers' names and appointment dates come from the Companies House register. Job titles come from the company's own website. The description of what the company does comes from its website, or is marked Spark Intel editorial where it is written from stable, checked facts, with the date either way.
Spark Intel, “Thwaites: who owns it, who runs it and what the accounts show”, updated 6 November 2026. https://www.spark-intel.co.uk/companies/thwaites/. Figures from Companies House filings for THWAITES LIMITED (00387579).
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