Sir Peter Rigby
Responsible leadership.
Fifty years of putting back.
“I have always believed that success in business should go hand-in-hand with giving back to society.”
Sir Peter Rigby
The facts
Five decades, in numbers.
1975
Founded with approximately £2,000
£4bn
Approximate group turnover
9,000
Employees worldwide
1992
Year the Rigby Foundation was established
About
Sir Peter Rigby founded the Rigby Group in 1975 with approximately £2,000 and the conviction that technology would reshape the economy. Five decades on, he remains Chairman of a privately owned group active in technology, technology investments and real estate, operating in the United Kingdom and internationally.
About
Sir Peter Rigby founded the Rigby Group in 1975 with approximately £2,000 and the conviction that technology would reshape the economy. Five decades on, he remains Chairman of a privately owned group active in technology, technology investments and real estate, operating in the United Kingdom and internationally.
The three principles
Stewardship. People. Place.
1.Stewardship
Building for the long term.
Patient, family-owned capital. Decisions made inside the business, never under pressure from the quarterly cycle.
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2.People and skills
Nine thousand people, worldwide.
Long tenure, promotion from within, and a conviction that people are everything.
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3.Place and community
Anchored in the West Midlands.
Five decades of philanthropy, anchored in the West Midlands and extending nationally. Education, healthcare, the arts and opportunity.
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Giving Back
Where success goes hand-in-hand with giving.
The Rigby Foundation, established in 1992, has supported hundreds of causes - from Birmingham Children's Hospital Charity to the Royal Shakespeare Company, FareShare, Navy Wings and the University of Liverpool. Its 2025 programme, Inspiring Futures, focuses on social mobility for young people across the West Midlands.
The journey
From a small house in Liverpool to here.
The opening years of a fifty-year story, in order.
1965
First job in computing
At 17, joins NCR in Liverpool as a district assistant - passing up a coveted place in the RAF to help support his family - and a career in technology begins almost by accident.
1970
Frankfurt and the world stage
Recruited by the New York consulting firm John Diebold and posted to Frankfurt; at 22, presenting large-scale database-management solutions to audiences across Switzerland and Germany.
1975
Business founded
Sir Peter founds Specialist Computer Group with approximately £2,000, a recruitment company chosen because it needed little capital and could generate the cash to fund what followed.
1983
Midland Computer Company (later SCC)
Becomes the first distributor of IBM's personal-computer technologies in the UK; the recruitment cash-cow turns into a technology bureau, and the bureau into Europe's largest privately owned IT services business.
…
Fifty years of milestones.
From the founding of the business in 1975 to the Battle of Britain salute and beyond.
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Latest
The story, as it happens.
Recent news, each part of an ongoing journey. Follow a strand to see how it unfolds.
15 July 2026
A report to improve young people's futures in Birmingham
New research for the Trust and the Foundation finds 'starter' jobs for young people in Birmingham have fallen 49% in a decade — and sets out four ways to turn that around.
Inspiring FuturesJuly 2026
Back to Cranfield to collect an honorary degree
Sir Peter returned to Cranfield University to collect his honorary degree, joining the Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor and senior academic leaders for the ceremony.
Honours & Appearances9 July 2026
Inspiring Futures marks its first year
At Millennium Point, Sir Peter gave the closing address at Inspiring Futures' first-anniversary celebration, presenting Student of the Year awards — each with a recycled laptop.
Inspiring Futures