Fertile ground for growth after £60m deal

Care Fertility Group has four full-service IVF clinics, including one in Sheffield, which employs 31 people, and nine satellite centres.

Bowmark bought the profitable business from General Healthcare Group (GHG), which trades as BMI Healthcare and operates 67 hospitals.

A spokeswoman for the buyout firm told the Yorkshire Post: “Care employs the largest team of consultants, clinical specialists and embryologists in the sector, and is the market leader in the development of new techniques and technologies.

“As a result, it delivers superior fertility success rates and offers the broadest range of treatments available.

“The UK market for fertility services has grown significantly in recent years driven by favourable demographic trends, increasing acceptance and awareness of IVF procedures (pictured above), improving outcomes and an increase in the addressable population.

“With the backing of private equity, Care is now seeking to capitalise on this strong growth in demand by opening several new clinics, the first of which is scheduled to open in Dublin later this summer. Thereafter, it is looking to further enhance its geographic coverage, particularly in the South East of England.”

GHG and three clinicians founded the business in Nottingham in 1997.