December 01, 2004

Cognita buys Asquith Court schools

Cognita, the new education company chaired by Chris Woodhead, the first Chief Inspector of Schools from 1994 to 2000, has purchased the schools' division of Asquith Court, the UK's leading provider of nursery childcare.

Cognita's vision is to build a portfolio of top quality schools with an absolute commitment to Teaching Excellence.

Cognita now has 18 schools in its portfolio and is the largest independent schools business in the UK.

Asquith Court and its investor West Private Equity have developed a group that includes some very prominent schools, but they have now decided to sell their portfolio of schools in order to focus on their thriving nursery business.

Cognita's management combines education with business skills. Rees Withers, Chief Executive, has successfully developed companies in regulated markets where quality is of pre-eminent importance. Rees works alongside Chris Woodhead and Gill Lumsdon, Chief Education Officer, the former Chairman of the prestigious Incorporated Association of Preparatory Schools and a very experienced former headmistress. Cognita intends, in addition, to work with an external advisory board of successful head teachers.

Cognita was created in October 2004 and is backed by Englefield Capital, a private equity firm with in excess of €700m (£500m) of funds for buyout and development capital transactions. Edmund Lazarus, a Founding Partner of Englefield Capital, has been working with Chris and Rees on the establishment of Cognita for the last year. Bank of Scotland Corporate is Cognita's debt provider and has previously enjoyed a longstanding relationship with Asquith Court.

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