Elmore Kindergarten was established in 1991 by Richard Marshall, who initially contacted Nurtured Childcare last year to explore the potential for a transaction. His sale of the business has enabled him to retire.
The Elmore Kindergarten group consists of three settings: Broomhill Nursery, located close to Sheffield Teaching Hospital; Ecclesfield Nursery; and Middlewood Nursery, which is set at the entrance of Wadsley Park, within the Middlewood Park Conservation Area.
Each of the three settings is currently rated “Good” by Ofsted. They offer a combined total of 324 childcare places and employ 77 staff.
The acquisition of the Elmore Kindergarten group brings the total number of childcare settings operated by Nurtured Childcare to 11, consolidating its footprint in South Yorkshire. The three acquired nurseries will be rebranded over the coming months to reflect their new ownership.
The transaction was financed with a £2.7 million loan from OakNorth, the leading digital bank for entrepreneurs, by entrepreneurs. In addition to enabling the acquisition of Elmore Kindergarten Group this facility refinanced existing borrowing by the Nurture Childcare group and will provide an element of working capital.
The acquisition is projected to increase Nurtured Childcare’s turnover by more than £2.3 million.
Nurtured Childcare was founded in 2021 by the entrepreneur Craig Brennan to provide nurseries that offer high-quality education, create rich environments and foster a spirit of exploration. It is one of the country's fastest-growing childcare groups and now offers more than 790 places across the North of England, employing almost 300 staff across its Stockport head office and childcare premises in Sheffield, Wakefield, Rotherham and Stoke-on-Trent.
Craig Brennan, CEO & founder of Nurtured Childcare, said, “We’re thrilled to welcome the Elmore team and families into the Nurtured Childcare Group. Each of these sites is in a prime location and is already equipped with significant resources, which we plan to build on with further investment and an expansion of the extra-curricular activities they offer, as well as providing staff with access to our detailed, bespoke programme of training and support.
“OakNorth’s deep understanding of the nursery and early years sector, coupled with their flexible and transparent financing approach, made them our ideal funding partner for this acquisition-led project. Following this successful acquisition, we’re well-positioned to expand high-quality early years education across more areas of the North of England.”
Childcare is a key market for OakNorth. According to the Department for Education factors including population growth and return-to-office working policies will lead the sector to grow to £10.8 billion by 2027, an increase of 10.7 per cent compared to 2023.
Stewart Haworth, director of debt finance at OakNorth, said, “Nurtured Childcare represents everything we look for in a borrower – ambitious leadership, operational rigour, and community impact. We’re proud to back Craig and his team as they bring new energy and vision to the North of England’s nursery sector.
“The combination of an award-winning and experienced operator with the projected tailwinds for the UK’s childcare market, means this acquisition is set to be another success story for the group. We look forward to watching their growth story going forward and supporting Nurtured Childcare on future projects.”
Nurtured Childcare worked with KeySME Business Finance to secure the OakNorth facility. Ash Richardson, founder of KeySME Business Finance, said, “We were appointed on this transaction to support Nurtured Childcare with a competitive, bespoke funding package to facilitate the acquisition of Elmore Kindergarten Group and consolidate existing finance.
“Working with our lender partner, OakNorth, we have collectively delivered a flexible structure to support Craig's ambitions for the business. This has been a rewarding deal to work on and highlights the abilities of KeySME Business Finance to unlock tailored funding solutions for UK SMEs.
“Thank you to all parties involved for their efforts in getting this transaction over the line and congratulations to the team at Nurtured Childcare. We wish them continued success into the future.”
Nurtured Childcare also received commercial legal advice from Mark Ryan Solicitors and Clarion Solicitors, while the property element of the transaction was handled by John Galvin of Clifford Johnson Solicitors.
OakNorth was advised by Brabners. The vendor received legal advice from Wake Smith Solicitors and Eddisons.