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Originally Posted On: https://www.birdilaw.com/services/corporate/buying-and-selling-nurseries/

We are experts in buying and selling nurseries and generally deal with transaction values of between £100,000 – £10 million.

Running a nursery can be very rewarding, but it takes enormous commitment and is coupled with a range legal and regulatory issues to navigate through.

Whether you are selling your nursery due to retirement, proposing to acquire your first nursery or looking to make a series of nursery acquisitions, we offer specialist advice and representation that is tailored to your specific objectives.

It is essential to obtain specialist advice because we can offer insight based on our experience in the sector and other transactions we have worked on. It is particularly important to obtain legal advice as an early stage to ensure that your transaction is structured appropriately, before incurring legal and other professional costs.

Our unique selling point is that we understand what clients want from their lawyers. We will manage your transaction proactively, with careful attention to detail while never losing sight of the bigger picture.

While working with us you will have access to our strong network of other professionals such as accountants, brokers, independent financial advisers and bankers.

We offer a range of pricing options and will be happy to discuss these with you. As a client-centred law firm, we will be transparent with you about our pricing and actively manage this throughout your matter.

OFSTED Requirements

All nurseries must be registered with the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (OFSTED). As a future owner of a nursery business, any buyer is required to go through the registration process, which may take up a number of months to complete. Without the OFSTED registration in place, the nursery would be unable to operate after completion of the transaction. It is important to ensure all relevant applications are made as soon as possible, including for the setting itself (if required) and the change in the nominated individual.

We will factor the OFSTED registration requirements into the transaction planning stage, and check-in with you about this throughout your transaction. As part of this, we will discuss with you any desired handover arrangements to help with the smooth transaction following completion of your sale or purchase.

How we can help with Buying and Selling Nurseries

We have acted on a number of nursery sales and purchases and understand what clients want from their lawyers. We will give you expert advice and representation from the start-to-finish of your matter, while making sure that you understand the various stages along the way. We can guide you through matters including:

• Advising on the best way to structure your transaction from a legal perspective. We will work with your other advisors, such as accountants, to ensure that the deal structure works from other perspectives (such as tax).
• Drafting and negotiating the heads of terms with the other parties or their solicitors – this is frequently needed as each party will have their own preferences and considerations, and our expertise means that we can pre-empt what the other parties will want to include.
• Drafting and negotiating the sale and purchase, and other, documentation. Business sale and purchase transactions involve specialist legal documentation and instructing us will ensure you are receiving specialist advice in a cost-efficient way.
• Project managing your transaction, based on industry practice, to make sure that all relevant tasks are completed properly and allowing you to focus on day-to-day business matters in the knowledge that your advisers are protecting your interests.
• Ensuring all OFSTED requirements are considered and addressed at the outset of your matter, and including suitable provision in the legal documentation to protect your interests.