TWO Southampton-based IT companies have combined in a deal which creates a group with a turnover of more than £10million operating in the private and public sectors.

Aura Technology – which has former England rugby coach Sir Clive Woodward on its board – and Amicus ITS have become sister businesses.

The combined company will trade as Aura Technology Group.

Each business will retain its own identity and client bases while sharing expertise and more products and services.

Aura Technology, whose mission is to “redefine the relationship between business and IT”, works with private companies, with a focus on mid-market firms with more than 50 users. Amicus ITS, founded in 1988, focuses on the public sector and healthcare.

Tim Walker, managing director at Aura Technology, becomes group managing director, while Steve Jackson, his counterpart at Amicus ITS, will stay on in a non-executive board role. Both sets of directors remain in position.

The group’s team of more than 100 specialists will be based at the existing sites operated by Amicus ITS, headquartered in Totton.

The announcement comes after two years of sustained growth for Aura Technology since the company was launched in 2017 by co-founders Tim Walker and Pete Hughes. Earlier this year the company appointed Sir Clive Woodward to the board in a non-executive role.

Mr Walker said: “Amicus ITS is established as a leader in IT services in the public sector and shares the values that we have built Aura Technology upon. It is unusual to find such a mid-market and enterprise-focused business in the sector, and I am pleased to welcome the Amicus team into the Aura Technology Group and look forward to working together to build on our success in delivering outstanding IT solutions to existing and new customers.”

Mr Jackson said: “Tim and the team at Aura Technology have a passion for excellence and for working in close partnership with customers to provide solutions that meet their strategic goals. The two businesses complement each other perfectly and the team at Amicus are excited to be driving into the future in what I believe will be a formidable force.”

Sir Clive Woodward said: “I joined the board of Aura Technology because I recognised it as a leader in strategic IT solutions with huge growth potential. The integration with Amicus ITS creates a group of two companies with outstanding teams, synergy and shared values alongside the ability to deliver outstanding service and solutions to organisations in both the public and private sectors.”

The deal was privately funded. Peter Jeffery from the corporate team at Moore Blatch acted on behalf of Aura Technology, and Oliver Kelly from BDB Pitmans advised Amicus ITS.