Palatine invests £21m in Westleigh

Following the transaction, which values the business at £65m, Westleigh will look to expand its activity across the UK. The company currently focuses on the Midlands region.

Westleigh's founders have made a partial exit via the transaction.

Upon completion of the deal, Westleigh’s business development director Ian Jones will take on the role of managing director, while founder Chris Beighton will remain as chairperson. Palatine partner Gary Tipper and investment director Richard Thomas will take a seat on the Westleigh board.

The investment marks the first investment led by Palatine’s Midlands office, which opened in December 2015. The firm is currently investing from its third fund, which held a final close in June 2015 on its £220m hard-cap.

Debt
European Capital and AIB provided debt facilities to support the transaction.

Company
Founded in 1985 and headquartered in Whetstone, Leicestershire, Westleigh is a builder of affordable homes to government-registered providers. The company has an additional office in Solihull and a total headcount of 300. It generated a turnover of £100m with EBITDA of £9m in the year to March 2016.

People
Palatine – Gary Tipper (partner); Richard Thomas (investment director); James Painter (investment executive).
Westleigh Partnerships – Chris Beighton (chairperson); Ian Jones (managing director).

Advisers
Equity – Catalyst Corporate Finance (corporate finance); Gateley (legal); RSM (tax); KPMG (financial due diligence); CIL (commercial due diligence); GK Strategy (regulatory due diligence); JLT (insurance due diligence).
Company – Clearwater International, Phil Burns (corporate finance); Austin Moore (legal).

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• Topics
• Buyouts
• UK / Ireland
• Industrials
• United Kingdom
• Palatine Private Equity