A company that has had shares issued but whose shares are not for sale to the general public.

In a UK private company limited by shares, the liability of a shareholder is limited to the amount unpaid on their shares. In other words if a director or shareholder holds 1 share with a value of £1 their financial liability would be  £1.

For a more detailed view of the characteristics of the different types of company that can be formed in the UK take a look at our Basics of Business™ blog article.

Or if you're ready to form a private company limited by shares now you can start your new business journey right now. We'll guide you every step of the way!

The Companies Act 2006 requires that all types of private company in the UK must have at least one director. If a company only has one director then that director must be an individual rather than a corporate entity (e.g. another company).

The Articles of Association of a company may also impose a minimum number of directors.

If you are forming your UK limited company with Lightwork Business then our Articles will allow you to have the statutory minimum number of directors which is one.

A UK company's accounting reference date is the end of it's financial year. It is often abbreviated to 'ARD' and is the date a company must make its annual financial accounts up to.

As each financial year comes to an end, you will have to:

• Arrange to complete your company's annual accounts,
• Send a copy of the accounts to each shareholder in the company,
• Send a copy to Companies House, and
• Send a copy to HMRC.

The annual accounts are needed to report your business’s activity during that financial year, up to and including the accounting reference date.

It’s very easy to change the ARD subsequent to company formation if you intend to extend or reduce your 12 month financial year. There is no limit to the amount of times you can shorten a company's financial year but you can only extend it once every five years, except in certain circumstances. You can also only change the ARD before the deadline for providing your company's annual accounts - i.e. nine months after your accounting reference date. You can not change the ARD though if the company's accounts are already overdue.

Unless a UK company has been dormant since incorporation, it must display a sign with its registered name at:

• Its' registered office.
• Any inspection place.
• Any location at which it carries on business unless the location is primarily used for living accommodation.

The registered company name - together with other details such as company number, place of registration and registered office address - must also be included on all business communications such as letters and emails.