£2.1m loan enables property investor to acquire eight nurseries

Young girl playing with educational toys
Commercial property investor and developer, The Harkalm Group, has secured a £2.1m loan from digital bank, OakNorth, to acquire eight nurseries across the UK.
The loan will support the acquisition of eight nurseries located across the UK, including in Devon, Hampshire, Walsall, and Birmingham at a time when the UK’s childcare market is set to grow by 10.7% from 2023-27 and reach £10.8bn in size.
The sites, situated in popular residential areas, will be fully let to the award-winning nursery operator, Old Station Nursery Group.
Established in 2002 by Sarah Steel when it opened its first site in Farringdon, the group now comprises of 78 exceptional nurseries across the UK, with each site offering its core promises of regular parent communication and partnership between nursery and home.
Adam Harvey, chief executive and co-founder of The Harkalm Group, said: “Harkalm has a proven track record in both sale-and-leaseback transactions and the day nursery sector, making this portfolio an ideal fit with our strategic vision.
“This transaction exemplified the seamless collaboration between our acquisitions team and our in-house professionals, allowing us to efficiently navigate a relatively-complex deal.”
Greg Manson, director of debt finance at OakNorth, added: “This transaction represented an exciting opportunity to support a company that we’ve been hugely impressed with for several years now.
“The combination of an award-winning and experienced operator in Old Station Nursery Group, 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 them on future growth projects.”