A KNUTSFORD care home, that has been open for more than 50 years, has been taken over in a multi-million pound deal.

Care homes operator Kingsley Healthcare announced this week that it had agreed the purchase of two properties including one in Knutsford.

The acquisitions of Sharston House nursing home, as well as Redwalls nursing home in Sandiway, add 92 beds to the company’s portfolio.

The home in Manor Park South celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2011, with the Guardian launching a campaign to learn more about the building’s Victorian history.

It is believed that Lord Leverhulme opened Sharston House in 1961.

Before that it is thought that it was a home for retired vicars and was originally part of the Egerton estate.

Daya Thayan, chief executive at Kingsley Healthcare, said: “I am delighted to announce the acquisition of these homes in prime locations and I also want to highlight the role played by our long-standing banking partner Coutts & Co in assisting us.

“We are pleased to welcome the residents and staff in these homes into our Kingsley family.

“Kingsley is looking to acquire further quality homes in prime locations as well as moving forward with a new-build programme to complement our property portfolio.

“The two homes we have acquired have all privately funding clients with a very high average fee.

“Kingsley is working through its strategy of acquiring new homes with the multi-million pound support of our finance partners.”

The first new build for the firm, a specialist dementia care home in Partington, Greater Manchester, is under construction and scheduled to open in July 2016.

The company, which started off with one care home in Lowestoft, Suffolk, 16 years ago, now has 26 homes as far afield as Dorset and the north west.