Nursery World has learned that a deal is likely to be completed within the next couple of months and certainly before the summer.
Asquith is owned by venture capitalists Lyceum Capital, formerly known as West Private Equity, who backed a management buyout in May 2001.
Rothschild, the investment bankers, is managing the sale on behalf of Asquith.
The winter issue of Nursery World's supplement Nursery Chains showed Asquith owning and managing 115 nurseries and offering more than 6,700 places.
In the past few months the group has undergone a national re-branding campaign as part of an 8m investment which also focused on refurbishments, new equipment and staff training.
It is understood that there is keen interest in the company from a small number of private equity groups and other nursery providers, including international groups.
Any potential buyer is likely to want to consolidate and continue to expand the number of nurseries.
If another nursery group bought Asquith, industry insiders are unlikely to be surprised if it turned out to be the Australian-based ABC Learning Centres, the biggest childcare operator in the world.
ABC entered the UK market last December with the acquisition of Busy Bees'
48 nurseries and childcare voucher business for 68m.
At the time, ABC's chief executive Eddy Groves said, 'It would be nice just if we can find a few more (in the UK), it doesn't have to be huge or large.' He added that the Busy Bees deal was 'a starting point for further expansion into the fragmented UK market and throughout Europe'.
