Growth Lending has unveiled a £150 million strategy to support the expansion of healthcare and social care providers across the UK, pledging to deliver flexible capital to a sector grappling with rising demand and tight access to finance.
The specialist lender, best known for backing high-growth B2B businesses, will target ambitious operators in social care, primary care, education, and health-led community services. Funding will be deployed through debt facilities starting from £2 million, with a focus on businesses often overlooked by traditional lenders.
To lead the initiative, Growth Lending has appointed Dan Hewitt as Director of Debt Finance, specialising in healthcare. Hewitt brings more than 20 years’ banking experience, including a decade in health and social care finance. “The funding landscape for care operators has long been restrictive, hampering the sector’s natural entrepreneurial spirit,” he said. “Our approach looks at future cash flows to determine borrowing capacity, rather than just LTVs, enabling us to provide larger, more flexible funding. The sector faces many challenges, but finance shouldn’t be one of them.”
Growth Lending has already deployed over £15 million from the new fund. Arishta Ltd, a healthcare group focused on AI-led care home transformation, secured £10 million to begin its buy-and-build strategy, starting with two South London acquisitions. In the North West, children’s care provider YourCare received £5.5 million to expand from five to nine homes, creating eight new beds and 25 jobs.
The commitment comes against a backdrop of severe pressures across the health and care system, including bed shortages, workforce gaps and limited specialist placements. While the Government invests £6 billion annually in hospital infrastructure, community-level providers often struggle to access the capital they need.
Adam Brinn, Managing Director at Growth Lending, said the new fund aims to plug that gap: “We’re backing the operators that are building the future of care. These are well-run businesses solving real problems, which are often overlooked by mainstream lenders. This initial £150m commitment sets out to provide the capital that gives ambitious care businesses the headroom to grow, hire and deliver better outcomes.”
Growth Lending expects to close several more healthcare transactions before the end of 2025, building a dedicated portfolio focused on sustainable, community-first care. With Hewitt leading the initiative, the lender is positioning itself as a major player in financing the next wave of UK health and social care providers.
