Kids Planet acquires Church House Day Nursery in Kidderminster

Established in 1982, Church House Day Nursery has an operating capacity of up to 70 children aged from babies to five years old, and is open for 51 weeks a year, from 7am to 6pm. The setting sits on Brook Street in the densely populated suburb of Kidderminster, Worcestershire, with the town centre, hospital and key transport links within walking distance.

The nursery was started by Gwen Spencer who was joined by her daughter Clare. They worked together until Gwen retired and then Clare went on to run it. Under her stewardship, taking a hands-on approach, she built on her mum’s legacy of high-quality care and education, creating a setting which has achieved Ofsted ‘Outstanding’ ratings for three consecutive inspections and plays a key role in the community.

The business has now been purchased by Kids Planet, one of the fastest growing nursery groups in the Midlands.

Clare Smith comments, “Allowing Church House to be taken on by another provider was a very hard and emotional decision as it has been loved and cherished in my family, and especially by me, for 40 years and it is very much my mum’s legacy. Therefore, it had to be an established, highly reputable company who will continue to lovingly nurture it, with the same attention to high-quality care and education, and where the children, families and staff remain at the centre of the setting. I believe Kids Planet has this same ethos and I trust they will allow Church House to live on with its own history and flavour whilst encapsulating it within their own high-quality brand." 

CEO of Kids Planet, Clare Roberts, comments, “I am thrilled that Church House has joined the Kids Planet group this week. Church House is a dedicated provider with large focus on quality learning experiences and paying special care and attention to every child, and I see lots of synergies between Church House and Kids Planet’s own ethos. I look forward to what I hope to be a seamless integration into our growing group; We are well supported by committed teams and looking forward to supporting the Kidderminster nursery in our Kids Planet family.”

Jassi Sunner, Associate Director – Childcare & Education at Christie & Co, who assisted with the sale, comments, “Clare Smith is a dedicated operator in Kidderminster, and I am delighted to have achieved this result for her. Kids Planet will always look at quality settings in key locations and, when the opportunity presented itself, I knew this would be a great fit for them and the vendor. This is yet another successful acquisition for Kids Planet in the Midlands, in a key commuter spot right on the edge of suburban West Midlands. We wish the seller all the best with retirement and look forward to working with Kids Planet again.

“This is the twenty-seventh transaction in the Midlands alone over the last 18 months which shows that the demand in the region is strong. Large group operators, smaller regional groups as well as first-time market entrants are keen to acquire in part of the country which is showing strong occupancy and, with quality childcare, there is scope for a sound business basis to grow further.”

Church House Day Nursery was sold for an undisclosed price.

For further information on this press release, contact:
Phoebe Burrows, Corporate Communications Executive
P: 020 7448 8849 or E: phoebe.burrows@christie.com

Contact the agent:
Jassi Sunner, Associate Director – Childcare & Education
P: 07791 979 343 or E: jassi.sunner@christie.com

Visit Christie & Co’s Business Search page to find out more about current childcare listings.