Private practice setup · step 1 of 7
Funding and lender packs
Most consultants are turned down not because the venture is weak but because the submission does not answer what a credit committee actually asks. We build the business plan, the forecasts to the lender's own template, and the security and covenant narrative that sits alongside them.
What this involves
- Business plan and integrated financial forecasts built to the specific lender's template rather than a generic format, because a broker will not re-key your numbers and an underwriter will not fill gaps in your favour.
- Capital requirement broken down properly: fit-out, equipment, working capital to breakeven, professional fees and contingency, with the equipment split between purchase, lease and hire purchase because that split changes both the tax position and how the lender scores the facility.
- The security and covenant narrative: what stands behind the borrowing, personal guarantees, how exposure reduces as the facility amortises, and how it is matched against reserves.
- Direct handling of the broker and lender questions, so the queries land with us rather than interrupting your clinic list.
The mistake that costs the most
Treating the forecast as an optimism exercise. Underwriters read hundreds of these and discount hockey sticks automatically. A plan that models a slower ramp, states the assumptions behind the referral pipeline, and shows the venture still services the debt at a pessimistic case is more fundable than one showing a better headline. Lenders are not buying your upside, they are pricing your downside.
Why this workstream matters
Debt is the difference between opening in nine months and opening in three years out of retained earnings. It is also the workstream with the longest lead time, so it should start before you have signed anything, not after.
Common questions
Can a consultant borrow to set up a private practice?
Yes, and lenders are generally comfortable with clinician-led healthcare ventures because the covenant is strong and the earnings are demonstrable. What decides the outcome is usually the quality of the submission rather than the strength of the borrower. Expect to evidence personal income, any existing corporate track record, the capital requirement in detail, and a forecast that survives a pessimistic case.
What do lenders want to see from a new private clinic?
A credible capital requirement broken down line by line, forecasts built on stated assumptions rather than a target, evidence of the referral pipeline or existing patient base, the security available, and clarity on which entity is borrowing and which is trading. Vagueness on the last point is one of the more common reasons a promising application stalls at credit.
Should equipment be bought, leased or on hire purchase?
It depends on the asset and on the position you want your balance sheet in when the lender looks at it, and it is worth deciding deliberately rather than by default. Purchase, lease and hire purchase have different tax treatments and are scored differently in a funding application. Model all three before you commit, because reversing the decision after drawdown is expensive.
Reviewed 22 August 2026. Nothing on this page is legal, tax or financial advice, and regulatory requirements change. We work alongside your solicitor and accountant rather than in place of them.
The rest of the programme
These overlap heavily. Running them in sequence rather than in parallel is what adds months to an opening date.
See the full practice setup overview, or our CQC and Ofsted registration support and Provider Selection Regime guide.
Where are you up to?
A director replies, and the first conversation is about sequencing rather than fees.
Funding and lender packs
What is your specialty, do you have premises or partners in mind, and what stage are you at?