OakNorth provides £8m funding for nursery acquisitions

ICP Nurseries Ltd – which cares for over 400 children in six locations – will use the funds to continue building the group and acquire further nursery settings.

The deal follows ICP’s launch in 2016 which involved its founder and CEO Tracey Storey and private equity firm Innervation Capital Partners.

Priya Chauhan, debt finance director at OakNorth Bank, said: “ICP Nurseries has a proven track record of acquiring and integrating nursery businesses, and a well-defined strategy for growth.

“Tracey Storey has extensive experience of running nursery groups and a number of contacts in the industry.

“With increasing demand and over 1.4 million under five-year-olds in London and the South East, we have no doubt that ICP Nurseries will achieve its ambitious growth plans, and look forward to working with them in building a market-leading group.”

The UK nursery market is worth approximately £3.9bn per year, having reported annual growth of 5% a year since 2008.

The use of private childcare is now expected to increase following changes to government subsidies, such as employer-led vouchers and individual tax breaks.

Tracey added: “The team at OakNorth took a very pragmatic and flexible approach – there was no box-ticking, no off-the-shelf solutions and we genuinely got a loan structure that works for our business.

“We now have six nurseries in our portfolio and aim to selectively expand on this number over the coming years, acquiring well-located nurseries with strong OFSTED ratings, and passionate staff and management.”