Northgate Public Services Acquires i2N Ltd

By Dipo Olowookere

A wholly owned subsidiary of NEC Corporation (NEC), Northgate Public Services (NPS), has acquired i2N Limited, which supplies specialist software to the UK’s Ministry of Justice’s HM Prison and Probation Service and the Youth Justice Board.

A statement by the firm disclosed that the deal will significantly increase NPS’ offering across the entire criminal justice process.

NPS is the market leader for policing IT solutions in the UK with 15 forces currently using NPS’ crime, custody and intelligence management system, CONNECT.

Recent contract wins with West Midlands Police and the Metropolitan Police Service mean that over 50 percent of police officers in England will be using NPS technology.

The i2N acquisition presents an opportunity for greater visibility across the criminal justice system enabling users throughout the process to work collaboratively to deliver better outcomes and reduce reoffending.

Stephen Callaghan, chief executive officer of NPS, which is owned by the NEC Corporation, Japan, said, “We see a good synergy between NPS and i2N in the area of local authority youth offender management. NPS provides a range of product and services to 168 local authorities in the UK. This acquisition will boost our offer in the important justice sector whilst providing a strong opportunity for growth for i2N.”

Jim O’Connor, CEO of i2N said, “Joining the NPS team opens up new and exciting markets for both businesses in the development of critical software that spans the entire justice sector.”

Founded in 1999, i2N is ranked in the top 25 SME IT service providers on the government G- Cloud by Government Digital service and is a key supplier to the Ministry of Justice.

In recent years, i2N has been expanding cloud ready platforms as Software as a Service (SaaS) via G-

Cloud on the GOV.UK Digital Market Place.

Following completion of the transaction, i2N will continue to operate under their existing name and the key management team and all operational staff will remain in place. i2N will operate as a business unit within NPS’ Safety Division with further integration into the business as customers’ requirements for integrated software and services within the justice system develop.