Social housing company buys loss-making maintenance business Jackson Lloyd

Mears has bought social housing maintenance firm Jackson Lloyd for 拢2.7m

JL has 450 employees based mainly in the North West of England, and in the 15 months to 31 March 2010 had revenues of 拢38.6m and lost 拢3.8m.

The company has recently been restructured and has a debt of 拢2.1m, which Mears will repay as part of the deal.

Mears said that it would impose 鈥渟ignificant cost and efficiency savings鈥 on JL, and that the acquisition would begin to be profitable after 2011.

In a statement Bob Holt, chairman of Mears, said: 鈥淭he acquisition of the JL business fits comfortably into our social housing division and broadens our footprint in the North West of England. I am delighted to welcome a further 450 employees into the group. We continue to seek to acquire businesses with the potential to meet the strategic objectives of the group.鈥