Wed, 02 Apr 2025 | BUSINESS SALE
Listed group Spire Healthcare has bought peer Acorn Occupational Health Limited for £3.3 million.
Cheshire-based Acorn provides occupational health services to a wide range of corporate clients in multiple industry sectors; as well as public-sector clients, including the NHS. Acorn's services support the safety and overall well-being of employees, through mental and physical health assessments, and providing solutions designed to protect employees from work-related ill health and sickness absence.
Acorn, founded by Andrew and Isabel Burrows in 2004, generated EBITDA of £0.63 million in 2024. A potential small further deferred consideration payment may be payable to Acorn management dependent upon EBITDA in the 12-month period after acquisition. The core management team will be staying with the business post-acquisition.
London-based Spire runs 38 hospitals and over 50 clinics, medical centres and consulting rooms across England, Wales and Scotland. It provides diagnostics, inpatient, day case and outpatient care in areas including orthopaedics, gynaecology, cardiology, neurology, oncology and general surgery. It also operates a network of private GPs, delivers private, NHS and corporate mental health, dermatological and musculoskeletal services, and provides occupational health services to over 800 corporate clients. It is the principal independent provider by volume of knee and hip operations in the United Kingdom.
Spire said that the Acorn deal expands its national footprint in Occupational Health Services alongside Vita Health Group and Spire Occupational Health.
It said that Occupational Health is a £1.5-2 billion market opportunity in the UK, growing at around 6% per year. The acquisition will provide Spire with further capability to win new nationwide contracts and support organic growth through the development of a wider range of services across the group, the sharing of best practice models to accelerate performance and more efficient clinical resourcing.
Spire said Occupational Health Services are a core component of its Primary Care Services business, a fast-growing vertical that grew revenue by 15 per cent to £121 million in 2024, with EBITDA of £10.3 million.
Its ambition is for Primary Care to become a £40 million plus EBITDA business in the medium term, delivered through further contract wins in Mental Health/Occupational Therapy, more new clinic openings and small M&A.
“The acquisition of Acorn represents another step in working towards this ambition,” it said.
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