Octopus Real Estate has entered the specialist care market with a £100m sale-and-leaseback deal.
The real estate lender and investor has bought six assets from healthcare operator and developer the Hamberley Group.
The deal is focused on facilities for residents with complex care requirements, and includes the state-of-the-art Inspire Neurocare neurological rehabilitation centre in Worcester.
The deal marks Octopus’s first standalone investment in the specialist healthcare sub-sector.
Mike Toft, head of care homes at Octopus Real Estate, said: “Entering this nascent investment sector within the healthcare real estate market was the natural next step for Octopus and our healthcare strategy.”
The 35-year deal will allow the Hamberley Group to accelerate the growth of its Inspire Neurocare business and its luxury elderly care operator Hamberley Care Homes.
The partnership between the Hamberley Group, which is backed by Patron Capital, and Octopus will also fund the construction of three new Inspire Neurocare sites in Southampton, Camberley and Basingstoke.
Toft added: “These assets in particular are the pre-eminent portfolio of purpose-built neuro rehabilitation facilities in the UK. With Hamberley, we know we have a fantastic opportunity to positively disrupt the specialist care market and improve the lives of those with neurological conditions.”
The partnership will also see Octopus take ownership of Hamberley Care Homes’ first home, Caddington Grove, in Bedfordshire, and a new luxury care home to be built in Southampton, alongside the Inspire Neurocare service.
Hamberley director Tim Street said the partnership with Octopus was key to the firms’ plans to develop its operating businesses. “This funding will ensure we can expand our operational businesses and continue to offer more of the highest-quality care.”
The deal is the second major sale-and-leaseback completed by Hamberley this month.
The new deal will account for a total of 334 beds across Inspire Neurocare and Hamberley Care Homes. The Hamberley Group will have a total of 28 homes, with 1,939 beds, by 2024.
In addition to the six assets within the Octopus partnership, the group has a development pipeline of sites in Cambridge, Dorking, Hindhead, Bristol, Keynsham, Cofton Hackett and Edwalton.
The Hamberley Group is also actively acquiring land and existing operating businesses and has more than £170m of equity capital allocated for healthcare investment.
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