Foot Anstey advises family business, John Fowler Holidays, on multimillion-pound acquisition of iconic Devon holiday park

National law firm Foot Anstey has advised John Fowler Holidays on its acquisition of the well-known Ruda Holiday Park in Croyde, North Devon, from Parkdean Resorts.

The purchase includes the 300-acre holiday park and Croyde’s blue flag beach – a significant addition to John Fowler Holidays’ growing portfolio of coastal destinations across the South West and South Wales. Ruda becomes the 14th park in the company’s ownership, joining a group that now employs more than 800 people and welcomes over 400,000 holidaymakers annually.

Foot Anstey advised John Fowler Holidays on all legal aspects of the acquisition. The transaction drew on expertise from the firm’s corporate, banking and property teams, with Partner Duncan Sykes leading the deal alongside Legal Director Tim Young, Principal Director Philip Parrott and Partner Katie-Jane Rees.

Duncan Sykes, Partner at Foot Anstey, said: "It has been a real pleasure to work alongside the John Fowler Holidays team on this major transaction. Ruda is one of the UK’s best-known parks and its acquisition marks a key milestone for the business. Our multi-disciplinary team brought together specialists from across the firm to ensure a smooth and commercially sound deal. We are delighted to have supported such a strong, values-led business in its continued growth."

Ollie Steer-Fowler, Director at John Fowler Holidays, said: "We are delighted to finalise the purchase of such an iconic piece of British real estate, which will sit perfectly within our wider family run group. The team at Foot Anstey has been fantastically supportive throughout what has been a complicated process. They retain a wonderfully personal approach, which resonated with our values, whilst ensuring that the breath of specialist knowledge was at hand when dealing with a large transaction such as this."

Foot Anstey has a strong track record in the leisure, tourism and real estate sectors. The firm has previously advised on a number of high-profile real estate acquisitions, including advising Fragrance Group on its acquisition of a 72-bedroom seafront hotel in Weston-Super-Mare and advising Blacksand on the purchase of the Signature London, The J Marylebone Hotel.