Sovereign Capital backs deal to create £40m education staffing business

The acquisition by Sheffield-based Synarbor Group will create a staffing business with a turnover of more than £40m.

Just Teachers, which has branches in Yorkshire, North West, Midlands and London, places teaching and support staff into primary, secondary and special educational needs schools throughout the UK.

David Jones, managing director, said: “We have established a trusted and reliable service for UK schools delivered by experts in the sector, which will benefit Synarbor Group’s ambitions to build a truly national business.

“This is an exciting development for Just Teachers as the enlarged business will help strengthen our position in the market, whilst accelerating future growth.

“We very much look forward to working with the team at Synarbor.”

Mr Jones, the operations director Caroline Cafferty and the existing management team will stay on and help expan the business into new locations and markets over the coming years. Two non-operational shareholders have sold their interest.

Just Teachers had revenues of £15.5m and core earnings of £2m in the year ending March 2015.

Robyn Johnstone, chief executive of Synarbor Group, said: “Just Teachers is a highly complementary acquisition that will support Synarbor Group’s strategy to create a market leading education staffing business.

“Synarbor Education and Just Teachers will together be the cornerstone of the group, which will further enhance the company’s existing UK presence.”

Sovereign Capital, which invested in Synarbor last November, provided funding for the transaction while Lloyds Banking Group provided the debt.

Sovereign is a buy-and-build specialist and typically invests in UK-based companies in the support services, education and training and healthcare services sectors. It manages funds of nearly £1bn.

Michael Needley, partner at Sovereign, said: “Synarbor and Just Teachers are both first class businesses with excellent synergies and complementary geographies.

“Teacher recruitment is an attractive area for investment with strong macro drivers which include the rising number of school age children and the increasing use by schools to outsource recruitment.

“We look forward to further developing the business in the coming months.”

Rycroft Glenton Corporate Finance, Ward Hadaway, Grant Thorton and CMS advised on the deal.