Allica Bank,  a business bank serving established small and medium enterprises (SMEs), is aiming to lend £100 million to the care home and day nursery sectors in 2025.

Allica has cut its commercial mortgage rates for care home properties across the board and enhanced its maximum loan-to-value for new entrants. This will allow it to support more operators, including experienced professionals and new entrants to the market.

Mark Hickman, from specialist care sector broker firm Chandler & Co, has worked closely with Allica’s healthcare team to support several care home businesses. He said: “The care sector continues to be a vital part of the UK SME market and, while the sector faces headwinds, there are also significant opportunities. It’s critical that brokers and lenders have the right expertise to be able to help operators source the best funding options.”

Anthony Newman, Allica Bank senior specialist relationship manager for South England, said: “Allica has seen significant demand from both care home and nursery businesses, and we don’t see this slowing down next year. The challenge for many of these businesses is that there’s so few lenders willing to speak to them. It’s why brokers are able to add so much value here, with a full view of the market and who might be able to help.” 

He added: “We have high hopes for 2025 as we continue to expand our proposition and enhance our criteria to support as many care businesses as we can.”