Civica (company)
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Software |
| Founded | 2002 |
| Founder | Simon Downing (management buyout leader) |
| Headquarters | London , United Kingdom |
Area served | Global (including Australia, Singapore, North America) |
Key people | Simon Downing (CEO at founding) |
| Products | Public sector software solutions including local government, social housing, parking enforcement, libraries and education, mobile fleet and asset management, pension administration, health and social care, legal software |
| Owner | Blackstone Inc. |
Number of employees | 3700 (2017) |
| Website | www |
Civica Group Limited is a global software enterprise with its main office located in London, United Kingdom, and additional regional branches situated in Australia, Singapore, and North America.
History
The origins of Civica trace back to a 1999 management buyout of the Sanderson Group, supported by Alchemy Partners and spearheaded by CEO Simon Downing. The formal creation of the Civica Group occurred in 2002, followed by its listing on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange in 2004. In 2008, the company was privatized after being acquired by 3i for £190 million.
From 2009 through 2016, Civica pursued growth through a series of acquisitions aimed at broadening its public sector software offerings. These included in4tek (specializing in community health and social care record systems), Cave Tab (focused on document and records management), PSCAL (providing NHS financial management solutions), Gateway Computing Ltd (document management software), Corero Business Systems (education sector software), Coldharbour Systems (healthcare software), Healthcare and Keystone Asset Management (housing asset management), Asidua (contact management for local government), Norwel Legal, IPL Information Processing, and SFW Ltd, a government digital services firm that became Civica’s offshore development hub in India. In December 2016, Civica further expanded by acquiring Abritas, a provider of social housing software.
In July 2017, Partners Group purchased Civica for £1.06 billion when the company employed around 3,700 staff members. The following year, Electoral Reform Services was acquired and subsequently rebranded as Civica Election Services.
In November 2023, Blackstone Inc., an alternative asset manager, agreed to acquire Civica from Partners Group for approximately $2.5 billion. This transaction was finalized in May 2024.
Operations
Civica operates across several primary sectors including:
- Local Government
- Social housing
- Parking enforcement and public protection
- Libraries and education
- Mobile fleet and asset management
- Pension administration
- Health and Social Care
- Legal
Education and libraries
The company delivers IT solutions and software tailored for education and learning services. This encompasses shared learning platforms, library management systems, and frameworks for software licensing. Additionally, Civica supports virtual learning environments (VLE) for schools located in Sheffield and Luton under the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) initiative.
External links
- https://web.archive.org/web/20101127064512/http://www.guardianpublic.co.uk/civca-survey-council-managers Coverage of Civica conference, The Guardian
- https://web.archive.org/web/20101127234310/http://www.guardianpublic.co.uk/public-private-sector-partnerships Interview with Civica CEO Simon Downing on public-private partnerships, The Guardian
- https://web.archive.org/web/20101214141917/http://www.civicaplc.com/NR/rdonlyres/2E6C2C25-581F-45FF-8078-4075386FE54E/1725/CivicaBrochure.pdf Brochure detailing Civica’s services
- https://web.archive.org/web/20110722194851/http://www.localgov.co.uk/index.cfm?method=news.detail&id=66168 Company profile on Localgov.co.uk