OPERA NORTH LIMITED

Active
Company number 01550778Private company limited by guaranteeIncorporated 1981

Key figures

£27,478,728
Net assets 2025/26

† OPERA NORTH LIMITED filed these accounts on paper, so Companies House publishes them only as a scanned image. The figures for the years marked † were read automatically from the scan and kept only where the statements add up (for example net assets equal total equity), but a reading error is still possible — check the original accounts at Companies House.

Ratios

2025/26

Sector comparison

SIC 90010

Where the company stands among the 17,682 active companies whose first SIC code is 90010 (Performing arts).

Turnover£1,375,982
Higher than 88% · median £19,467 among 738 that publish turnover
Net assets£27,478,728
Higher than 99% · median £2,752
Total assets£30,019,173
Higher than 99% · median £16,934
Cash£138,378
Higher than 81% · median £12,899
Company age45.7 years
Older than 99% · median 5.0 years
Largest in this sector by net assets
  1. INTERNATIONAL ENTERTAINMENT MIDCO LIMITED£448.1m
  2. CAMERON MACKINTOSH LIMITED£365.5m
  3. 11ARCHES£46.9m
  4. THE LOWRY CENTRE TRUST£44.2m
  5. SHAKESPEARE GLOBE TRUST(THE)£43.1m
  6. CLAY 10 LIMITED£30.1m
  7. 33 1/3RD LIMITED£28.3m
  8. OPERA NORTH LIMITED£27.5m
  9. ENGLISH NATIONAL OPERA£25.6m
  10. CROSSROADS PANTOMIMES LTD£24.7m

Positions are approximate. Figures come from each company's latest accounts; money and employee figures are compared only with companies that filed accounts in pounds for a period ending in the last two and a half years and are not dormant, so those groups are smaller than 17,682. The line on each bar marks the median.

Summary: OPERA NORTH LIMITED

What kind of company is it?

OPERA NORTH LIMITED is a private company limited by guarantee registered with Companies House under company number 01550778. It was incorporated on 13 Mar 1981. Its status is active. The registered office is in Leeds (LS1). Its nature of business (SIC 2007) is performing arts (90010).

How is the company doing financially?

The latest accounts in the database are for 2025/26 (period ending 31 Mar 2026); the company files group accounts. Turnover was £1,375,982. Net assets were £27,478,728. Cash at bank and in hand was £138,378. Total assets were £30,019,173 and total liabilities £2,540,445.

How does it compare with similar companies?

Compared with 17,682 active companies whose first SIC code is 90010: By turnover it ranks higher than 88% of the 738 that publish turnover (median £19,467). By net assets it ranks higher than 99% of them (median £2,752). By total assets it ranks higher than 99% of them (median £16,934). By cash it ranks higher than 81% of them (median £12,899). It is older than 99% of them (median age 5.0 years).

Does it supply the public sector?

The company is named as a supplier in 2 public contract award notices from Leeds City Council since 2018. 2 of the awards are shared with other suppliers, typically framework agreements. It is recorded as the recipient of 16 central government grants worth £56.1m, mainly from Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport.

What do public registers and reports show?

It is a registered charity (number 511726) with a latest reported income of £18.8m. It appears on the Home Office register of licensed sponsors (Creative Worker, Skilled Worker). HMRC lists it as an importer of goods, mainly printed matter, electrical equipment, toys, games and sports goods. Its gender pay gap report for 2025/26 shows median hourly pay for women 17.4% lower than for men.

Who runs and controls the company?

3 of 3 registered charges are outstanding.

When are its next filings due?

The next accounts are due by 31 Dec 2027. The next confirmation statement is due by 29 Dec 2026.

Filed accounts2025/26
2025/26 †
Turnover1,375,982
Cash at bank and in hand138,378
Total assets30,019,173
Total liabilities2,540,445
Net assets / total equity27,478,728

A dash (—) means no accounts were filed for that year or the item is not in the accounts; 0 is a zero stated in the accounts. Small companies usually file only a balance sheet, so the profit and loss account is often missing.

Public contracts

2 contracts

OPERA NORTH LIMITED is named as a supplier in 2 public contract award notices from Leeds City Council since 2018. 2 awards are shared with other suppliers.

Contracts
  1. Leeds International Orchestral Season October 2019 - May 2020‡Leeds City Council · shared by 14 suppliers, up to £500,000 in total
  2. Performing Arts - Orchestral Programming 2018/19‡Leeds City Council · shared by 9 suppliers, up to £900,000 in total

From contract award notices on Contracts Finder (since 2016) and Find a Tender (since 2021), published by the Cabinet Office under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Values are as published by the buyer and usually cover the whole contract term; the total leaves out awards shared between several suppliers, where the published figure is a ceiling for all of them, placeholder values and single figures of £1 billion or more. Notices marked ‡ do not state a company number and were linked by an exact match on the registered name. Contracts below the publication thresholds and those of devolved buyers that publish elsewhere are not included.

Government grants

16 grants

OPERA NORTH LIMITED is recorded as the recipient of 16 central government grants since 2017, together worth £56.1m.

Funders
Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport
12 grants · £34.8m
Department for Culture, Media & Sport
4 grants · £21.4m
Grants
  1. Investment FundsDepartment for Culture, Media & Sport · £25,000
  2. Investment FundsDepartment for Culture, Media & Sport · £5,000
  3. In HarmonyDepartment for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport · £212,500
  4. National Portfolio OrganisationsDepartment for Culture, Media & Sport · £10,677,102
  5. National Portfolio OrganisationsDepartment for Culture, Media & Sport · £10,677,102
Show 11 more
  1. Investment fundsDepartment for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport · £5,000 · Investment Funds
  2. In HarmonyDepartment for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport · £32,986
  3. In HarmonyDepartment for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport · £98,335
  4. In HarmonyDepartment for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport · £18,679
  5. National Portfolio OrganisationsDepartment for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport · £10,577,102
  6. National Portfolio Organisations 2018-2022Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport · £10,577,102 · ALB - Arts Council England - National Portfolio Organisations
  7. Cultural Capital Kickstart FundDepartment for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport · £499,999 · Culture Recovery Fund: Cultural Capital Kickstart Fund (ACE)
  8. Opera North CRF 2Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport · £2,000,000 · Culture Recovery Fund: Arts Recovery (ACE)
  9. In Harmony (DfE)Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport · £79,167 · ALB - Arts Council England - In Harmony
  10. In HarmonyDepartment for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport · £79,167
  11. National Portfolio OrganisationsDepartment for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport · £10,577,102

From the Government Grants Register published by the Cabinet Office (financial years 2016/17 onwards, Open Government Licence v3.0). It covers grants from central government departments and their agencies where the register states the recipient's company number and the recipient name matches this company; grants from local authorities, lottery distributors and devolved governments are not included.

Statutory reporting

Gender pay gap2025/26
Median hourly pay
women 17.4% lower
Mean hourly pay
women 8.4% lower
Employer size
250 to 499 employees
Lower pay quarter57% womenLower middle65% womenUpper middle60% womenUpper pay quarter45% women
Earlier years (7)
Year
Median hourly pay
Mean hourly pay
2024/25
women 7.4% lower
women 10.3% lower
2023/24
women 17.3% lower
women 15.2% lower
2022/23
women 24.9% lower
women 16.3% lower
2021/22
women 24.7% lower
women 22.1% lower
2020/21
women 25.3% lower
women 23.1% lower
2018/19
women 13% lower
women 14.9% lower
2017/18
women 9.8% lower
women 13.6% lower

A positive gap means women's average hourly pay is lower than men's across the whole employer; it is not a comparison of pay for the same work. View on the Gender pay gap service

Figures the company reported itself to the government's Check payment practices service, Gender pay gap service and Modern slavery statement registry (Open Government Licence v3.0). Only large companies and employers with 250 or more staff have to report, so most companies have nothing here.

Registers and licences

Registered charityNo. 511726
Registered with the Charity Commission
31 Jul 1981
Income, year to 31 Mar 2025
£18.8m
Spending
£19.5m

The principal activities of the charity are to encourage the understanding and appreciation of the lyric art by providing, presenting, organising and conducting opera performances, symphony concerts and educational events primarily in the North of England.

View on the register of charities

Sponsor licence‡
Licence type and rating
Temporary Worker (A rating), Worker (A rating)
Routes
Creative Worker, Skilled Worker

On the Home Office register of licensed sponsors, which lists organisations licensed to sponsor workers from overseas.

International trade‡

Listed by HMRC as an importer of goods in 3 of the last 12 months on record, most recently August 2026. Main goods: printed matter, electrical equipment and toys, games and sports goods.

From HMRC's monthly lists of importers and exporters. Traders can ask to be left off the lists, so absence does not mean a company does not trade.

Sources: Charity Commission for England and Wales, Care Quality Commission, Home Office and HM Revenue & Customs, under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Entries marked ‡ come from lists that do not state a company number and were linked by an exact match on the registered name.

History

2 events
  1. Financial year 2025/26 endedAccounts: turnover £1.4m, net assets £27.5m
  2. Company incorporatedPrivate company limited by guarantee

Dates as recorded at Companies House: incorporation, name changes, officer appointments and resignations, current persons with significant control, and the end of each financial year with figures in the database. Former persons with significant control are not listed.