£5.5m investment to drive expansion of specialist children’s care homes in the North West

Growth Lending has provided a £5.5m term loan to YourCare Limited, the North West based operator of specialist residential homes for children and young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties, complex needs and/or learning difficulties.

The funding will enable YourCare to acquire and fit out four additional properties, expanding its estate from five to nine homes, while also providing working capital headroom to support this next stage of growth.

YourCare, headquartered in Preston, currently employs 55 dedicated staff who deliver round-the-clock support to children and young people with emotional/behavioural and developmental needs.

Following completion of this funding round, the business will add 8 new beds to its portfolio and around 25 new care roles will be created as the new homes open, increasing employment opportunities and helping to ease the acute shortage of complex-needs placements for children and young people across the region while continuing to deliver its existing levels of vital, high-quality care.

The funding comes at a timely juncture, as the government recently launched its “UK Infrastructure: A 10 Year Strategy”; which pledges £6 billion per year to England’s healthcare system and places renewed emphasis on both primary and community care.

Sean McCormick, Director of Debt finance in Growth Lending’s Manchester office said: “YourCare is exactly the type of business Growth Lending wants to support. Our funding will accelerate its already impressive growth trajectory in a sector underpinned by strong market drivers and real-world impact. With the solid foundation the management team has built, we are confident the business will go from strength to strength and we are excited to support the team on their journey.”

Alex Nuttall, Director at YourCare, said: “Securing this finance marks a significant milestone in our journey to expand and enhance our children’s residential care services. It’s a testament to the strength of our vision and the unwavering dedication of our exceptional management team. With this support, we are now positioned to grow sustainably and continue providing safe, nurturing environments where every child can thrive.”

The transaction was led and introduced by YourCare’s advisers, PMD Business Finance. John Platt, Head of Structured Finance at PMD, said: “The successful completion of this transaction highlights the strength of PMD’s debt advisory capabilities and the depth of expertise within the PMD team. We collaborated closely with YourCare to craft a tailored funding strategy aligned with their ambitious growth objectives, delivering a comprehensive, end-to-end advisory service. Our support included the involvement of our CFO, Nick Dumper, who worked alongside Alex and the team to develop a robust financial model and forecast to facilitate Growth Lending’s underwriting and due diligence process.

“We’re proud to have played a key role in securing this facility, which will enable YourCare to realise its growth plans. We wish Alex and the entire team continued success on their journey.”

Growth Lending, founded as BOOST&Co in 2011, finances ambitious UK businesses with flexible facilities that support expansion, acquisitions and working-capital requirements and has advanced more than £1 billion to growth-stage enterprises across multiple sectors. This recent deal underpins their growing portfolio in the UK healthcare sector.

• For more information about Your Care visit yourcarecompany.co.uk
• For more information about healthcare finance from Growth Lending, get in touch with a member of our expert team