August is nearly over and whilst we have somewhat seen the typical holiday slowdown, we have also seen a number of new refinancing deals which will drive additional investment in the healthcare and education sectors over the next 12 months.
This month we hear from Ploy Radford in the 'Last Word' and her thoughts on Theresa May's stance on healthcare.
For day-to-day updates in the UK Healthcare and Education sector, follow us on twitter @Nexus_CF
This month's activity:
Recent M&A Activity - recent healthcare and education M&A activity
Last Word - we speak to Ploy Radford, editor of HealthInvestor
Recent M&A activity
Healthcare
• Livingbridge has acquired Four Eyes Insight for an undisclosed sum. Four Eyes Insight is a clinical consultancy firm with a headcount of c.30.
• The Carlyle Group acquired a majority shareholding of Akari Care, a healthcare and residential care group for around £40 million, with Akari's lenders writing down c.£260 million.
• Auriens, high-end retirement living, has announced a major investment partnership with Draycott Nursing and Care to enhance its care offering when Auriens opens it's first site on the King's Road in 2019.
• Runwood Homes has added an additional 3 care homes in Northern Ireland.
• Danshell Group, the learning disability and autism care and residential group have potentially appointed Deloitte into looking at a potential refinancing, however they may be also considering a sale process.
• City & County Healthcare, the domiciliary care provider, has completed a refinancing deal worth £85 million. This includes a £25 million facility to finance strategic acquisitions.
• Hill Care Group, provider of residential, dementia, and nursing care has completed a refinancing deal of £26 million, to acquire and develop new facilities in the North of England.
• Baird has been mandated to assist Bridgepoint to exit Phlexglobal, the provider of electronic Trial Master File systems and services, early, having bought Phlexglobal in 2014.
• Cambridge Innovation Capital have successfully raised £75 million through private financing to invest in healthcare and technology sectors.
• Target Healthcare, a REIT, has completed a sale and leaseback on two care homes for £14 million. The purpose-built care homes are based in Scotland and Derbyshire.
Education
• Arden University, a blended higher education facility, has been acquired by Global University Systems for £11.5 million.
• Business Growth Fund has invested £10 million into nursery group Kids Planet, based in the North of England. This investment is to support the development of existing sites, as well as the continued expansion of the group.
• Student accommodation provider Urbannest has secured a £350 million refinancing deal with M&G and Aviva.
• UK listed Quarto Group, the publishing business acquired US company Becker and Mayer.
• Bright Horizons Family Solutions, a network of over 200 nurseries, has acquired Little Unicorn Day Nurseries Group of 4 nurseries based in Canary Wharf.
• Family-owned Children's 1st have acquired two family run nurseries bringing their locations to 20 across the Midlands and South Yorkshire.
Last Word
This month's Last Word is by Ploy Radford, editor of HealthInvestor.
"When she stood on the steps of No. 10 Downing Street to give her first speech as Prime Minister, Theresa May made sure she ticked the ‘mention healthcare’ box. Mental health and life expectancy were given air time.
However, over a month into her reign, our new leader has shown herself care-less. Given the precarious state of funding and staffing in the social care sector, two events have happened on May’s watch that do not bode well.
First up, bursaries for student nurses were scrapped. True, consultations on a measure that will make it even harder to fix the nursing shortage started while Cameron was in power, however, May still failed to step in at decision time when she had the power to do so.
Her other faux pas, and one in which May was an active participant, was the decision to demote the standing of care in the Whitehall hierarchy and push the portfolio onto a parliamentary under-secretary of state. The newly appointed David Mowat will no doubt try his best to represent the social care sector, but as the most junior rank of government minister in the UK parliament, care providers can probably expect to be overlooked in favour of the NHS even more.
While Westminster seems in a continuous state of change these days, the depressing outlook for social care funding looks like one of the depressing constants."