BPP

Repositioning as a diversified international platform

A leading provider of professional and vocational higher education in UK, Canada and Australia.

BPP is a leading provider of professional and vocational higher education, providing training and qualifications in a diverse range of professional verticals including law, accountancy & tax, business & finance, data analytics & technology, actuarial and nursing, both to corporates and directly to consumers, with a strong presence in the UK and recent entry into Australia and Canada.

At a glance
Status: Unrealised
Deal Type: Private Sale
Sector: Education
Initial Investment Date: July 2021
Website: www.bpp.com

Transaction

We started monitoring the education space on the back of our interest in traditional sectors that are ripe for digital disruption. We also identified a strong growth opportunity for vocational training providers given the trend in many European economies to reskill parts of the workforce to drive labour productivity. We were attracted to BPP given its strong position in the corporate training space with an unrivalled reputation, scale and breadth of content. We identified an opportunity to partner with BPP’s ambitious management team to pursue a number of growth initiatives. Following a bilateral negotiation, we acquired BPP in July 2021.

Since TDR’s investment

Strong organic growth across BPP’s core schools, with particularly strong performance of the Business School with a highly attractive proposition for international students
Accelerated growth of new high-growth verticals, particularly School of Technology, through add-on M&A and organic initiatives
Investment into transformation of BPP’s digital capabilities with a build-out of a digital team and new infrastructure
Entered strategic markets of Canada and Australia through the acquisition of three private higher and vocational education providers. Significant step in repositioning BPP as an international education platform