LDC, a private equity investment firm and part of the Lloyds Banking Group, has backed the management buyout of Taking Care, an Exeter-headquartered provider of technology-enabled care products and services, from AXA Health.
Founded in 1985 , Taking Care provides personal alarms, smart home monitoring products and associated monitoring and emergency call response services for elderly people to enable them to live safely and independently in their own homes. The company supports over 150,000 end customers across the UK, has excellent customer ratings and is the exclusive telecare provider to Age Co which is further testament to the quality of its services.
Taking Care has demonstrated impressive and consistent growth, with revenue increasing 87% from 2020-2024. The UK telecare market is expected to continue to grow strongly, driven by an ageing population, more independent living in later life and greater use of accessible digital technology.
LDC is backing Taking Care’s management team, led by CEO Steve Gates, to further expand its services and support more people to live independently at home. LDC’s investment will also support Taking Care in targeting complementary acquisitions that broaden its range of products and services.
The investment was led by Investment Director Oliver Schofield and Investment Manager Vera Kuehne from LDC’s South West and Wales team, with support from Partner, Dewi Hughes. Following the investment, Oliver and Vera will join Taking Care’s board as Non-Executive Directors, alongside Gary West as Chair.
In the last decade, LDC has invested £409m into 18 healthcare businesses, with a combined enterprise value of £920m. It has made successful investments across key sub sectors including healthcare services, pharma services and MedTech & devices. In 2024, LDC invested in healthcare equipment and service provider, Medray Group and in dispensing appliance contractor, Bullen Healthcare. In 2025,
LDC was named Private Equity Investor of the Year at the HealthInvestor Awards.
LDC was advised by Quantuma (lead advisory), Osborne Clarke (legal), BDO (financial & tax), PMSI (commercial), Coppett Hill (go-to-market), Grant Thornton (M&A review), Alvarez & Marsal (IT), Collinson Grant (operations) and Mactavish (insurance).
