Thomsett Lockey advises founder-owners on the sale of their businesses, and acquisitive groups on buying well. Buy-side and sell-side, two principals in every room, from first conversation to completion.
Education and training has never been stronger, or more fragmented. Thousands of founder-run providers face succession risk, rising quality demands, and consolidating buyers.
Private equity platforms, strategics, universities and awarding bodies are all acquiring at once. Owners with a genuinely good business have real choices, provided they prepare for them. Acquirers with a clear thesis can build platforms of lasting value. Thomsett Lockey exists for both.
Read our insightsSell-side mandates for owners preparing to exit. Buy-side mandates for groups building by acquisition.
Verified education and training transactions tracked across 35 countries, from 279 distinct acquirers.
No junior team, no handover. The people you meet are the people who negotiate.
| Date | Target | Acquirer | Sector |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 2026 | E.Quality Training | Leep Holdings Limited | Vocational training |
| Jun 2026 | Nova Centric Limited | Nottingham Trent University | Vocational training |
| Jun 2026 | Mainstream Training Limited | Logikal Group Limited and Navajam Group Limited | Vocational training |
| Jun 2026 | Net Natives | EducationDynamics | HE services |
| Jun 2026 | Get Set UK | Palladium International | Employability |
| Jun 2026 | Educational Vistas | Banyan Software | Student systems |
The six most recent entries on the public layer of the map, which runs to 359 verified transactions. We map M&A across the global education and training market continuously; this is intelligence, not a client list. The live map, including who is in market today, is maintained privately.
We position the business, run a discreet and controlled process, and bring the right acquirer to the table on terms worth taking. You commit very little to start, and only move forward when there is something genuinely worth moving forward for. No buyer is approached without your sign-off.
Start a conversationWe sharpen the acquisition thesis, originate targets quietly, including those not on the market, and steer the deal to completion at the right price. Diligence is managed by a principal, and the structure reflects what it finds.
Start a conversationTwenty years advising leaders across education and training, and one of the sector's most connected networks of operators, investors and acquirers. Alex has built, run and sold businesses himself, and brings an operator's judgement to positioning, buyer strategy and negotiation. Counsel from someone who has sat on the owner's side of the table.
LinkedInA chartered accountant with deep corporate finance and due diligence experience across a career of transactions. Joe reads the accounts before the pitch, defends value through diligence, and structures terms that stand up to scrutiny. Steady, exacting counsel from first conversation to completion.
LinkedInA read of 359 verified deals across 24 months: where the money is going, who is buying, and what it means for owners.
ReadThe mindset of a sale, what to expect from the process, and a scorecard to grade yourself honestly before you speak to anyone.
ReadThe Thomsett Lockey read on education and training M&A. No noise.
The first conversation is confidential, costs nothing, and commits you to nothing. We typically work where enterprise value is £2m or more.