Specialist UK healthcare provider Priory is the only realistic buyer for troubled care-home operator Four Seasons Healthcare Group, a source close to the deal has said. The likely bid comes as Four Seasons fast approaches its deadline to restructure its £1.3bn (€1.33bn) outstanding debt.

Four Seasons currently has a standstill, where the banks have given a temporary break from repayment, on the its £1.3bn debt repayment. However, the standstill will expire on 22 January next year, meaning that "only one option" remains on the table, according to the source.