Nursery tech firm secures contract renewals worth £2.5m

A Lancashire-based childcare management software specialist has secured contract renewals with four of the UK’s top nursery providers – worth up to £2.5m over the next three years.

Connect Childcare, which was launched in 2005 and has 51 staff, has retained Busy Bees, Kids Planet, Partou UK, and The Old Station Nursery Group.

The tech company works with around 1,000 customers, including four of the UK’s top five nurseries and half of the top 50.

Chris Reid, CEO of Connect Childcare, said: “It’s with great delight that we continue long-standing relationships with some of the largest groups in the UK.

“In today’s digital-first world, more nursery chains are turning to technology in a bid to streamline operations, centralise processes, and manage staff more efficiently.

“It’s an exciting time for the business as we continue to improve our software over the next 12 months.

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“Following our latest round of investment and the announcement of our new chairman (Paul Kennedy) back in June 2023, we’re committed to supporting early years professionals through the continuous development of our platforms.”

Connect’s head of commercial, John Pickup, said: “As we continue to develop our nursery management platform at pace, our aim will always be to continue providing support to our customers in the best possible way, helping them to reduce the time spent on manually intensive admin tasks and focus on what they do best: child development.”

In 2023 the company secured additional funding from Seascape Capital Holdings. It followed an earlier investment of £4m from Mobeus Equity Partners.