Hadland Care Group purchased the Nursery Group of Noah’s Ark in Plymouth and Torquay and the stand alone nursery of Yeovil Day Nursery this month, supported by NatWest.
The nurseries will join the “Tops Day Nurseries” and “High 5’s” Out of School Club brands in a process which will see the Hadland Care Group employing over 750 staff across Devon, Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire, Hampshire and the IOW. To compliment and improve the existing nurseries, more eco-sustainable operations and purchasing will be introduced and more training and apprenticeships will be put in place through Tops and also Aspire Training Team Ltd., which is also owned by the Hadland Care Group.
Tops Day Nurseries opened in 1990 with just 4 children and now provides care for more than 3000 children in 27 nurseries across the South and the South West of England. Cheryl Hadland, founder and CEO of the group, and winner of “the most influential person” Award in the Early Years Sector 2018 said “We are delighted to be welcoming more colleagues, children and their families into our Group. Each nursery has its own environment, community and heritage and we will be working with each one to celebrate where they are already. We will also enhance and support what each does best along with embarking on a fresh journey of continuous improvement. I am particularly excited to be able to share the advantages we have offered to my own children, and currently grandchildren, to many more children, including encouraging their natural love of learning and not so natural respect for their environment, resources and each other! The advantages to colleagues of joining a bigger family of nurseries include being able to learn from and with each other and to engage in wider career and development opportunities. And in turn to offer the best possible environment and teaching for children in their early years, which is a tremendously fulfilling and responsible vocation.”
The sizeable acquisition required a number of parties to be involved, including Lacey’s Solicitors, a local and leading law firm and Saffery Champness LLP, one of the UK’s Tops 20 accountancy practices with an office based in Bournemouth, whom assisted and advised Tops Day Nurseries throughout the process. Nick Fernyhough, a partner in the firm said “We were very pleased to be able to help Cheryl Hadland and the Tops Day Nurseries family with these exciting new opportunities. We have been able to assist and advise at each stage as the group has grown through its dynamic leadership, high quality service provision and highly effective management from its local Bournemouth roots to a substantial regional service provider. Incorporating these latest nurseries will be good news for both the Tops group and for the parents and children in the new nurseries who will benefit from the significant expertise and experience of the Tops team.”
A number of extra benefits will be offered to the new families joining Tops. As well as flexible booking, Tops will also be introducing Tops Forest School, Tops Cooking School, Boogie Mites and much more. As part of the Potty Training Academy, the nursery will also be supporting both parents and children to excel with potty training.
Tops Day Nurseries take great pleasure in welcoming all of the Noah’s Ark nurseries to the family and look forward to an exciting and positive future.