News
Stonbury enters new phase of growth with major new investment
30 Sep 2026
Stonbury, the leading UK water and environmental sustainability specialist, has secured a new round of investment from private equity investor LDC alongside new minority co-investor Federated Hermes, to accelerate growth through organic expansion and a significant buy-and-build strategy.
Headquartered in Bedfordshire, Stonbury delivers innovative, low-carbon solutions to maintain, repair and refurbish critical assets, from drinking water provision to wastewater treatment.
In the four years since LDC’s original investment in December 2022, Stonbury has delivered strong growth, with revenue up 74% to £78 million and headcount growing from 281 to 443 people (58%) across 10 locations.
Stonbury’s growth reflects both organic expansion and M&A. The business has broadened its service offering beyond clean water, diversifying revenue streams across wastewater, environment and technology-enabled services and now secures work across 37 customer frameworks – up from 25 at the time of LDC’s initial investment. In 2024, Stonbury acquired Panton McLeod, the industry-leading advanced inspection and cleaning specialist, adding 50 specialists and strengthening the company’s end-to-end water asset capabilities.
Stonbury has invested in new IT and finance systems and significantly improved its digital presence, working with LDC’s team of Value Creation Partners to deliver these improvements. The company has also expanded its management team, bringing in CEO Colin Perry-Davis and experienced Non-Executive Director Sarah McMath, working alongside fellow Non-Executive Directors Ian Burnett and Trevor Hoyle, who led the business when LDC invested in 2022 and retired in 2025.
In addition, Stonbury has made strong progress on its commitments to reduce Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 50% by 2030. The company has already achieved a 24.9% reduction in emissions intensity since 2019, transitioned over 85% of its company car fleet to low emission or electric vehicles and cut office energy consumption by 10%.
The backing will support continued investment into people and services in order to meet growing demand driven by ageing UK water infrastructure and increasing regulatory focus on leakage and pollution reduction. It will also support a buy-and-build strategy targeting further service expansion.
Colin Perry-Davis, CEO of Stonbury said: “This is an exciting moment for Stonbury. The foundations we’ve built position us well for the opportunities ahead and we’re focused on delivering sustainable solutions that help our customers protect water supplies and assets while managing the wastewater and environmental challenges they face.”
With LDC’s continued backing, and the support of Federated Hermes, we have the firepower to pursue both organic growth and strategic acquisitions in a market where demand for our services continues to grow.”
Trevor Hoyle, Non-Executive Director at Stonbury, said: “Stonbury has successfully grown over the last four years, and LDC’s partnership has been instrumental in our growth. I’m delighted to see the business fulfil its potential and I’m sure it will go on to deliver further growth.”
The transaction was led by LDC’s David Bains, Partner and Head of East Midlands and East of England, and Investment Executive Lucy Lagrosse.
Stonbury has delivered impressive growth over the past four years whilst simultaneously building a stronger operational platform and it is now well-positioned for future growth in a market driven by increasing regulatory requirements.”
David continues: “We have already identified a number of potential acquisition targets and are looking forward to continuing to support Colin and his team through this next phase.”
Cameron Payne, Co Head of European Investment, Private Equity, Federated Hermes adds: “Stonbury plays a crucial and growing role in ensuring that essential water infrastructure remains safe, resilient and efficient. The business is closely aligned with our lower mid-market focussed strategy and our resource resilience investment theme. We are delighted to be co-investing alongside LDC and we look forward to working together to support Colin and the management team as they grow the business.”
LDC was advised by Provantage Corporate Finance, Clearwater Debt Advisory, Browne Jacobson, Howes Percival, KPMG Transaction Services, CIL Strategy Consultants and Armstrong.
Management was advised by Shoosmiths.
Federated Hermes was advised by Morgan Lewis (legal) and Alvarez & Marsal (tax).