H.I.G. Bayside provides £90M refinancing for UK care provider Lifeways
What's the deal? H.I.G. Bayside Capital Europe, the special situations arm of $75B alternative investment firm H.I.G. Capital, has completed a £90M unitranche term loan to refinance Lifeways Group, the UK's largest provider of high-acuity support services. The five-year facility replaces Lifeways' existing debt structure.
Lifeways, backed by Fidera Group and Barings, serves over 4,000 individuals with learning disabilities, autism, mental health conditions, and other complex needs across roughly 1,100 locations in the UK.
Why now? Lifeways has undergone what its leadership calls a "significant operational transformation," with improved governance, investment in digital infrastructure, and strong EBITDA growth. The new facility gives the company a stable platform to expand its supported living and mental health services.
"This new financing provides a stable and flexible capital structure that will enable us to continue delivering high-quality outcomes for the people we support," said Andrea Kinkade, Lifeways' chief executive officer.
The signal: The deal reflects continued private credit appetite for essential services businesses in the UK care sector — a space with structural demand tailwinds driven by ageing populations and underfunded public provision. H.I.G. Bayside's willingness to provide a sizeable unitranche facility signals confidence in the resilience and growth trajectory of high-acuity care providers, even in a challenging economic environment.
It also underscores how alternative lenders are stepping into refinancing roles traditionally filled by banks, particularly for mid-market companies with complex capital structures.
Read more: hig.com
