£1bn sale of the Priory is back on
THE American owner of a drug rehabilitation centre that once treated supermodel Kate Moss could be about to revive a £1 billion sale of the scandal-hit Priory Group.
Acadia Healthcare said in March it had been forced to halt the sale of the business following the market turmoil caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
However, City sources said Acadia is preparing to recommence the auction in September as it has been desperate to get rid of the controversial rehabilitation group for several years.
Bankers from merchant bank NM Rothschild are working for Acadia on the Priory Group deal.
Several predators, such as Germany’s Schoen Klinik, are understood to be circling after previously showing an interest in the business.
Sources said Acadia is hoping to re coup between £1 billion and £1.5 billion for the business.
Australia’s Ramsay Health Care and private equity firm CapVest are also said to be keen.
The Priory Group was founded in 1980 with the purchase of its first hospital in Roehampton, SouthWest London.
It has grown into one of Britain’s largest privately owned treatment centres for people with mental health issues and holds more than £500,000 of NHS contracts.
Other celebrities who have been treated by the Priory Group include singer Robbie Williams and socialite Lady Isabella Hervey.
However, the Priory Group has also hit the headlines for the wrong reasons. Last year, the company was fined £300,000 after admitting guilt in a 14-year-old girl’s death.
The Priory Group declined to comment on the sale.