Mitie, the strategic outsourcing and energy services company, is pleased to announce that it has acquired a majority stake in the UK’s leading access and disability consultancy company Direct Enquiries Holdings Ltd (“Direct Enquiries”).
Direct Enquiries provides a range of services to major companies and public sector organisations, allowing them to minimise their risk and maximise the benefits of embracing equality. Direct Enquiries provides Part M and BS 8300 audits around access for disabled people, supported by compliance reviews covering fire risk and health and safety.
The company also operates free to use online directories, Directenquiries.com, Inclusivebritain.com and Inclusivelondon.com - the Mayor of London’s official information portal for the 2012 games and its legacy. These sites provide access information for people with specific access requirements such as disabled and older people and parents with children.
The acquisition provides a strong platform for growth in the compliance, risk assessment, disability and access industries, as well as providing significant cross-selling opportunities within Mitie’s existing service offering.
Direct Enquiries has an annual turnover of approximately £1.4m from a wide range of public and blue chip private sector clients, including John Lewis, Birmingham Children’s Hospital, Intercontinental Hotels Group and the Metropolitan Police. The initial consideration is £0.3m, paid in cash on completion, with further consideration payable in cash up to a maximum of £8.3m depending on financial performance over a five year period.
Mitie’s investment has been financed through its Entrepreneurs Fund and provides the management team with an incentive linked to future performance based on the Mitie model. More information on Mitie’s Entrepreneurs Fund can be found at www.mitie.com/entrepreneurs.
Ruby McGregor-Smith, Chief Executive, Mitie Group PLC, commenting on the acquisition, said: “We are all delighted to have acquired a majority shareholding in Direct Enquiries through our Entrepreneurs Fund. This acquisition demonstrates our continued commitment to and interest in disadvantaged groups, whilst recognising the increasing importance of building compliance legislation and risk management to our clients.”
“We are very pleased to welcome the management team and all the employees to Mitie.”
Grant Kennedy, Managing Director of Direct Enquiries added: “We are very pleased to have joined Mitie, a company with the vision and passion for excellence to support our future growth. I look forward to an exciting future as we integrate Direct Enquiries’ services within the rest of Mitie and deliver added value to its clients.”
-ENDS-
For further information, contact:
Mitie Group PLC
John Telling, Group Corporate Affairs Director
D: +44 20 3123 8673
M: +44 7979 701006
E: john.telling@mitie.com
Mitie Group PLC
Erica Lockhart, Head of Investor Relations and External Affairs
D: +44 20 3123 8675
M: +44 7979 784488
E: erica.lockhart@mitie.com
Bell Pottinger
Samia Yakub
D: +44 20 7861 2507
E: syakub@bell-pottinger.co.uk
Notes for editors
What is Mitie?
We’re the strategic outsourcing and energy services company. What does that mean in practice? We manage facilities, energy and properties for our clients across the UK and beyond.
We work with our clients in three ways; some take full advantage of our whole range of expertise, others may only need one aspect of what we do:
Strategy and consultancy
+ Facilities and energy management
+ Service delivery
Our strategic input can add value at the highest level by helping clients to manage their assets, while our practical management expertise can save customers money and reduce their carbon emissions. We work with a vast number of clients in every industry across both the public and private sectors and deliver the broadest range of services that can be found in one place: from integrated facilities management to engineering maintenance to lifecycle energy management and much more.
There’s a lot more to Mitie than you probably think. We’re a big company with big ambitions – a leading FTSE 250 support services business, with more than 62,000 people, revenues of £1.9bn, and a reputation for being the best.
Visit us at www.mitie.com
Direct Enquiries
Direct Enquiries Ltd is the UK’s leading provider of access and disability consultancy services developing a range of lean solutions in response to a changing compliance framework and variable economic conditions. The consultancy’s mission is to help businesses minimise risk and maximise revenue from dealing with people with disabilities and specific access requirements.