Day nursery sold to childcare entrepreneur

Griffin Nursery

A children’s day nursery on Merseyside has changed hands following the completion of a deal arranged by Abacus Day Nursery Sales, a specialist division of Bury-based Blacks Business Brokers.

The Griffin Nursery in Sefton has been sold to a West Midlands-based operator by Maitland Nurseries Limited.

The new owner is Stepping Stones (Grange) Limited, a Stoke-on-Trent childcare business owned by day nurseries entrepreneur Shakila Ali.

In addition to Stepping Stones, Mrs Ali also owns two nurseries in Birmingham: Hannah Daycare and Birchfield Nursery.

The Griffin Nursery has operated on a site next door to Grange Primary School in Netherton, Bootle, since 1978.

It was acquired by Maitland Nurseries in 2008 and placed on the market with Abacus Day Nursery Sales at the end of 2018 to enable the company’s owner, Geoffrey Maitland, to retire.

Before the sale Mr Maitland was not involved in the day-to-day operation of the nursery, which employs a full-time manager, another full-time employee and 10 part-time members of staff who transferred with the business. He did, however, oversee its management.

The business, which was marketed by Abacus Day Nursery Sales with an asking price of £99,950 to take over the lease, reported turnover of £173,460 in its most recent financial year and is registered with the childcare regulator, OFSTED, for 35 places. The property in which the nursery is located is owned by Sefton Borough Council.

The nursery was rated “good” at its most recent OFSTED inspection, which took place under its previous ownership.

All of the childcare settings owned by Mrs Ali, the new proprietor, are also rated “good”.

With the addition of The Griffin Nursery, Mrs Ali’s businesses now have the capacity to provide more than 170 full-time childcare places.

Chelsea Melnyk, sales negotiator at Abacus Day Nursery Sales, said: “I am really pleased we were able to secure a rapid sale for our client, which means not only can he get on with his retirement plans but also that parents and children will also be able to continue to access high-quality childcare.

“I am also happy we have been able to help Mrs Ali grow her portfolio and expand into a new region – she is building a really exciting business and I look forward to seeing it progress.”

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