£18m turnover software firm sold to rival

An £18m turnover software firm with offices in Manchester has been sold to a rival firm for an undisclosed sum.

Safe Computing, which is headquartered in Leicester with offices in Manchester, Derby, London and Hertfordshire, is Access’s biggest acquisition to date.

£85m-turnover Access, which is based in Colchester and employs more than 700 staff, said Safe will add to its existing recruitment sector capabilities with its Tempest ‘Pay and Bill’ solution.

Safe’s other products in the Human Capital Management and Financial Management Systems space focus on functionality and market segments that compliment the existing Access portfolio, it added.

Chris Bayne, chief executive of Access Group, said: “The addition of Safe to The Access Group is a game-changer for us and greatly increases the value we can deliver to our customers. Safe have a number of best-in-class solutions, an excellent customer base and an experienced team, and there’s a great alignment in our cultures and the way we do business.

“Access is a high growth company and we’re confident that this acquisition will help us further accelerate, particularly into markets where Safe has particular strength, like recruitment. Our customers tell us that they need capabilities in these domains so with Safe on board, we’ll be extremely well placed to help them.”

Sandy Scott, Safe chief executive, is leaving the business and Paul Vogel, who has more than 30 years in the enterprise software industry, has joined Access as managing director of the Safe subsidiary.

Scott said: “The Access Group is a natural fit for our culture and capabilities and throughout the acquisition process I have been impressed with the team and their vision. I am immensely proud of Safe and what we’ve built together and though I have taken the decision to move on I am confident I leave our customers in good hands.”