Finance for Nursery Expansion, Fit out and Furniture

Background

In 2013, Hestia Education (trading as Nest) expanded their nursery operations with the launch of a second site in Royal Wharf, London Docklands.  

The vision was to create a modern, high-quality environment for working parents, supporting children aged 6 months to 5 years in a space designed to help them thrive.

To deliver this, the project required a full internal fit-out, including specialist furnishings, equipment, and purpose-built staff and learning areas, all designed with children at the centre.

Building on this, Hestia secured a third nursery site in London in 2025, with fit-out works commencing in February 2026 and completion scheduled for June 2026.

Challenge

Delivering a high-quality nursery fit-out requires significant upfront investment, often before income begins to flow. For Hestia the challenges they faced across their projects included:

• Funding a complete nursery fit out without putting pressure on cashflow

• Coordinating staged payments to contractors and suppliers

• Preserving working capital for day-to-day operations  

As the nursery group expands, these challenges became more critical when securing and developing additional sites.

Solution

Bluestone worked closely with Hestia to structure funding aligned to both the build timeline and the nursery’s cashflow requirements.

Royal Wharf, London (2013):

• Secured funding across multiple lenders to support the full nursery fit-out

• Released funds in line with project milestones

• Worked alongside the client and project manager to deploy funds to BB Contracts

Embassy Gardens, Nine Elms, London (2025–2026):

• Secured asset finance to cover internal refurbishment and furnishings

• Funded contractor costs for the fit-out (BB Contracts)

• Arranged a revolving credit facility to support ongoing cashflow

A revolving credit facility provides flexible access to funds as needed, helping manage short-term cashflow gaps without committing to a fixed-term loan.

By structuring funding around each project and cashflow requirement, Bluestone enabled Hestia to deliver high-quality nursery environments while continuing to expand without the need for significant upfront capital.  

For nursery operators planning new sites or refurbishments, finance can help you move forward sooner, spread the cost of investment, and keep cash available to run and grow your nursery.

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