Law firm supported deals worth over £3bn

The corporate and banking teams at law firm Shakespeare Martineau supported deals valued at almost £3.4bn during 2022 –including £516m in the East Midlands.

Completing an average of seven deals a week, Shakespeare Martineau’s national team supported more than £400m worth of deals across technology and healthcare alone, and more than £300m in the energy and renewables space.

The average deal size was £10m for the firm, which has expertise in mergers and acquisitions, fast-growth businesses, start-ups, healthcare and medtech, energy, real estate finance and Islamic finance.

Outside of nearly £1bn worth of real estate financing, the firm’s single largest deal came in at £250m for an undisclosed manufacturer, with deals spanning a variety of sectors and regions across the UK.

Duncan James, head of corporate at Shakespeare Martineau and based in Nottingham, said 2022 wa a “really strong” year for his team.

“Despite various headwinds – increases in interest rates, the value of assets being tested more and concern around some forecasts –M&A activity did not tail off in the second half of the year as we had thought, and the pipeline has continued to be strong into the start of 2023,” he added.

“There is no doubt that debt funding has tightened up as some property prices have become uncertain, but there appears to still be a lot of cash in the system, with private equity and corporates still looking at opportunities.

“We are cautiously optimistic that any impact on the general M&A market will not be severe this year. We still see a lot of opportunities for ambitious businesses to grow their portfolios.”

Schools are facing financial difficulty

Schools across the UK are facing rapidly shrinking cash reserves, with energy costs up as much as 45% from 2021, a report co-authored by Duncan & Toplis reveals.

The Kreston Academies Benchmark Report 2023 analyses the financial situations of 320 academy trusts that represent 2,400 schools across the UK.

The report also reveals that:

•Energy costs per pupil are up 15% to 45%, an additional £11 to £84 per pupil

•Food costs for primary schools in single academy trusts (SATs) are up by £41, or 20%, per pupil

•Staff shortages and sickness have driven supply costs up 76% for primary SATs

•88% of schools expect cash reserves to worsen over the next three years

Co-authored by accountants from Duncan & Toplis, Bishop Fleming, Clive Owen LLP, BHP, Mitchell Charlesworth, James Cowper and Kreston Reeves for Kreston Global in the UK, the report offers a unique insight into the financial health of academy schools.

Key findings from the report reveal that surpluses are consistently down from the previous year and nearly all trust leaders expressed serious concern over the future financial position of their trust.

In contrast, last year’s report stated that many trusts were, for the first time, forecasting a budget surplus within the next three years.

Co-author, Rachel Barret, who leads the academies team at Duncan & Toplis said: “With trust leaders expressing serious concern over their future financial positions, this report should act as an early warning sign of an education sector at financial breaking point.”