GSL is a provider of outsourced services for prisons, school and hospitals. We invested £207m in GSL with co-investors in June 2004. We sold GSL to G4S for £355m in December 2007.

• We appointed Alan Jones, former MD of TNT Express, to succeed the retiring CEO.
• Mike Welton’s experience of government outsourcing, as former CEO of Balfour Beattie, made him a good operating partner and chairman for GSL.

Three major operational changes took place under the leadership of Alan Jones:

1. 3 customer facing divisions were created, each with their own MD and P&L, bringing much greater focus and accountability to a diverse business.
2. A strong ethos of customer service was instilled, with new measures reported on a monthly basis.
3. Improved customer service, combined with a more commercial approach to bidding for new contracts, led to new business wins in each division.

• The number of employees grew by over 25%, turnover increased from £291m in 2005 to over £400m in 2007, and profits grew from £20 to £35m.

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