A LUXURY Lake District holiday cottage provider is seeking to capitalise on the growing trend of 'staycations' thanks to a financial boost.

Lloyds Development Capital (LDC) Limited has backed the management buyout of Lakelovers, which has its headquarters in Windermere.

The value of the deal is undisclosed but it is hoped that the investment from LDC will help to drive the business forward.

Paul Liddell, CEO of Lakelovers, said: “Our business is founded on trust and a genuine understanding of the region’s tourism sector and it is the strength of our relationships with homeowners, combined with a focus on quality and service that has underpinned our growth journey to date.

"Whilst these factors remain at the heart of our strategy, the new partnership with LDC will provide the financial firepower and strategic support needed to further scale the business."

The management buyout was led by Mr Liddell, who has overseen the growth of Lakelovers since acquiring the business in 2000.

Since then, Lakelovers has successfully built a reputation for managing and letting premium holiday cottages in sought-after locations across the Lake District, and now accommodates thousands of new and repeat customers every year.

The business now manages more than 500 holiday properties, providing an end-to-end property management service.

LDC's investment will provide the capital to launch an 'acquisition trail' that will further expand the Lakelovers portfolio, helping it to capitalise on the staycation trend.

In 2016 Visit England reported 6.9m Britons were planning an overnight stay in the UK, up from 5.1m in 2015.

And the latest ONS statistics also show record levels of overseas tourism with 37.6m overseas visitors spending a total of £22.5bn during 2016.

The deal was led by investment directors Simon Braham, John Clarke and senior director Ged Gould.

Mr Braham and Mr Gould will join the board as non-executive directors alongside Gary Fletcher who is the former CEO of Forest Holidays.