Alantra advises Acton Banks on investment from Maven Capital Partners

Aug 2018

Sell-side advisory

Alantra has advised the shareholders of Acton Banks Limited (“Acton Banks”), a market leading UK healthcare staffing business, on their management buyout, which is backed by Maven Capital Partners (“Maven”), one of the UK’s most active private equity houses.

The transaction, which includes an equity investment from Maven and a significant reinvestment from the senior management team, will enable Acton Banks to continue to roll-out its highly efficient operating model, further enhance its breadth and depth of service offering to existing clients, as well as expand into new territories outside the Midlands and the North West.

Alantra Director, Emmet Keating, who is based in Birmingham and advised on the deal said: “Recruitment can traditionally be a tough sector for securing private equity investment. However, Acton Banks’ reputation for reliable service, speed of response, breadth of candidates and bespoke training coupled with systemic demand for agency healthcare workers, has made it a highly attractive investment for Maven. With their support and committed capital, Acton Banks is very well placed to build on this momentum and expand to become a nationwide healthcare service provider with a broader service offering.”

Emmet Keating added: “An ageing population, care home occupancy levels of over 90% and lengthening NHS waiting lists are all driving demand for health and social care workers, and this is set against just 0.5% annual growth in the number of NHS nurses. As a result, the use of agency nurses and healthcare assistants in Midlands-based care homes alone has grown by around 22% per annum in recent years.”

Dharsa Mander, CEO of Acton Banks, added: “We are really pleased to have an experienced private equity team with sector experience supporting the business; one which supports our vision of creating a much larger leading healthcare services business with an expanded geographic footprint. We are well-positioned to invest in our staff and candidates with a view to expanding our offering to the market. We have been impressed with Maven and look forward to working with them over the coming years.

Acton Banks operates a 24 hour a day, 7 day a week service, placing registered nurses and healthcare assistants throughout the Midlands and North West into nursing homes, NHS hospitals, care homes, residential homes and rehabilitation centres in both the public and private sector. Established in 2006, Acton Banks has grown to become one of the largest healthcare staffing providers in the region.

The business has seen an increased demand for its services as supply pressures and an ageing population drive the need for experienced healthcare professionals. Acton Banks’ dedicated in-house recruitment team has built-up a strong network of healthcare professionals across a range of specialisms, and has won a number contracts across both the public and private sectors.