2 May 2024 - Leading Australian social impact investment fund manager For Purpose Investment Partners (FPIP) has acquired national meal delivery business Tender Loving Cuisine (TLC) through FP Ability Pty Ltd (FP Ability), its Disability Services platform. Primarily serving aged care customers accessing funding through Home Care Packages and the Commonwealth Home Support Programme, TLC complements FP Ability’s existing portfolio company, Able Foods. The strategic acquisition bolsters FP Ability’s presence in a growth market with quality products that support customer health and wellbeing.
FPIP Managing Director Victoria Adams said “We are excited to announce the acquisition of TLC. This represents an opportunity to grow the offering and impact of our meal platform with complementary companies that are focused on improving health outcomes and increasing choice for customers. With established operations and serving a customer base that includes seniors and people with disabilities, TLC is a highly values-aligned company that will continue to deliver strong outcomes into the future.”
Founded in 1995 by Jack Barker, TLC was established in Sydney and has expanded to national operations. TLC offers home-style, high-quality healthy meals delivered directly to customers and has steadily built a strong reputation and brand recognition.
Mr Barker reflected “for almost 30 years we’ve built a great business that supports people with a home-cooked meal when they can’t make it themselves. We’ve helped our customers as they recuperated following a hospital stay, or provided a service that meant people could better manage at home as they age. I am proud of what we have achieved, and I am confident that FP Ability is the right owner to take the business forward. I am excited about the opportunity that TLC now has under the FP Ability banner to grow and provide better access to healthy meals, including opportunities to work together with Able Foods.”
FP Ability is pursuing a goal of increasing access to high-quality, nutritious meals that will improve the health outcomes for vulnerable Australians including elderly people and people living with disabilities. TLC brings this goal closer with Able Foods, a business focused predominantly on serving National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) customers with a growing presence in the Home Care Package market, acquired in December 2022.
Victoria explains, “We know that improved nutrition and choice leads to better health outcomes which supports wellbeing, independence, and an overall better quality of life for individuals. For almost 30 years now TLC have been making a positive impact for customers, we are proud to build on Jack’s legacy and increase our presence alongside Able Foods.”
Funding for the acquisition will come from FPIP’s Social Impact Fund I. FPIP was advised by Hamilton Locke and BDO, while TLC were advised by HWL Ebsworth and EP Advisors.
About For Purpose Investment Partners (FPIP)
For Purpose Investment Partners is a not-for-profit social impact investment manager, created to pursue an important mission; bringing private sector capital and capabilities into sizeable businesses and projects to create significant social impact. Established in 2018 by pioneering impact investor Michael Traill AM, FPIP have grown to have $185m of funds under management.
Media contact
Enquiries@fpinvest.com.au| 0405 306 414
15 September 2026 - Australia cannot fix its early learning and housing shortfalls without stable policy and sophisticated models that draw private capital into social infrastructure, two of the country's leading advocates told an audience of investors and sector leaders in Sydney last week.
The Parenthood Chief Executive Officer Georgie Dent and Anglicare Sydney Group Executive, Housing and Chief Advocacy Officer Rob Stokes joined For Purpose Investment Partners (FPIP) Founder and Executive Chair Michael Traill for the panel discussion Purpose at Scale: Why social infrastructure investment is critical to our country's future. The event at Yirranma Place, Darlinghurst, on Thursday 10 September marked the launch of FPIP's Impact Report 2026.
Ms Dent said the way Australia funds and delivers early education and care has driven the problems families face today.
"Most families in Australia confront at least one of three barriers. Is there a place available where they live? Is there a place they trust is reliably high quality? Is it affordable? In the best case scenario at the moment, families get one of those," Ms Dent said.
She told the audience that more than 70% of long day care is now delivered by large for-profit providers, that around one in four Australians live in a childcare desert, and that the latest Australian Early Development Census shows almost half of children arrive at school developmentally vulnerable.
"If the early education and care isn't high quality, it's actually terrible for children. Without fundamental reform and a commitment to change how we fund and deliver early education and care, these problems will continue.
"We have to have sophisticated policy options that actually leverage some of the capital that we have in this country with some of the objectives that we have for the country," Ms Dent said.
Mr Stokes, a former New South Wales Minister for Planning, Education and Housing, said governments spend around 1% of their budgets on housing, against 16% to 28% on health and education.
"When you look at Maslow's hierarchy, shelter is right at the bottom. If you provide housing, that saves government money on health and on education," Mr Stokes said.
"Government cannot do it alone. But equally, we can't have policy instability. Once you learn how to do something, just keep doing it and provide that certainty. We take Medicare for granted now. We need a similar approach for housing."
Mr Traill said the discussion reflected FPIP's experience as investors in aged care, skills education, disability services and specialist disability accommodation, where policy and funding settings shape what capital can achieve.
"Our belief is simple. Long-dated investors who hold these assets over the long term, and who aim to make a difference to quality of life, can make a real difference and drive risk-weighted, institutional-grade returns," Mr Traill said.
"Government funding incentives need to be tied far more explicitly to quality outcomes. Where the pricing signals are sensible, as they are in specialist disability accommodation, mainstream capital follows. That precedent is how we get to scale in the sectors Australia needs most."
FPIP's Impact Report 2026, Meaningful Momentum, is the organisations fourth annual report. It shows more than 10,650 Australians received care, housing, meals or training in the past year from a business FPIP owns or invests in. The not-for-profit fund manager holds $200 million in committed capital across four platforms and is now assessing opportunities in early childhood education and care, and social and affordable housing. FPIP uses the evidence from its portfolio to advocate for change across the social services system.
The report is available at https://www.fpinvest.com.au/impact
The For Purpose Investment Partners skills education platform, Catalyst Education, has begun trading as For Purpose Education. The transition began on 1 July 2026 and brings the business into closer alignment with the wider For Purpose group.
A name that reflects the mission
FPIP invested in Catalyst Education in 2021 to build a not-for-profit skills education platform and strengthen the pipeline of skilled carers, educators, and support professionals that Australia needs. The new name states that purpose plainly. It also connects the business more visibly to the other organisations we back across aged care, disability support, and community services.
The rebrand changes the name and the look of the business. Its strategy, leadership, and commitment to quality training remain exactly as they were.
The same trusted training organisations
For Purpose Education operates three Registered Training Organisations (RTOs): Selmar Institute of Education, Practical Outcomes, and ARC Training. Together they deliver accessible, industry-relevant training across early childhood education and care, aged care, disability support, health and community services, and business.
In the 2025 financial year (FY25), the business supported 4,100 learners across four states and territories. Of these, 56% were based in regional and remote locations, and 85% of completed learners improved their employment position, compared with an industry average of 65%.
Why this matters
Australia faces a critical shortfall of care workers. Training providers that keep pace with the needs of employers, learners, and communities are central to closing that gap. For Purpose Education has a clear role to play, and we are confident the business is well positioned to grow its contribution.
No change for learners and partners
Nothing changes for enrolled learners, employers, or industry partners. Trainers, support arrangements, partnerships, and funding arrangements all continue as they are.
What comes next
The For Purpose Education website is now live at fpeducation.com.au.
We congratulate the For Purpose Education team on this milestone and look forward to the next chapter.
23 June 2026 - FP Ability is pleased to announce the appointment of Mark Powell as Chief Executive Officer of specialised meal delivery businesses Able Foods and Tender Loving Cuisine (TLC). Mark will commence in the role on 3 August 2026.
Mark brings more than 20 years of senior executive experience in the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector. His expertise spans sales, marketing, procurement, and supply chain. He joins FP Ability from NAFDA, where he served as General Manager Australia and New Zealand. In that role he drove growth, integrated new markets, and managed operations for the member-owned cooperative.
Throughout his career, Mark has scaled businesses, led high-performing teams, and built enduring customer relationships. His focus on consultative planning and his commitment to business development position him well to lead FP Ability through its next phase of growth.
'Mark's experience scaling businesses in the FMCG sector, combined with his alignment to our mission, makes him the right leader for FP Ability at this stage of its growth,' said Rob Blackwell, Executive Chair of FP Ability. 'Able Foods and TLC provide safe, nutritious meals to older Australians and National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) participants every day. Mark understands both the commercial discipline and the social purpose that sit at the heart of these businesses. We look forward to working with him as we continue to grow their impact across the aged care and disability sectors.'
'I am delighted to join FP Ability and to lead two businesses that make a real difference to people's lives every day,' said Mark. 'Able Foods and TLC have strong foundations and committed teams. I look forward to working with them to innovate, broaden what we offer, and reach more of the clients who rely on us.'
For Purpose Investment Partners acknowledges and pays respect to the past and present Traditional Custodians and Elders of this nation and the continuation of cultural, spiritual and educational practices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
We believe diversity, equity and inclusion are critical to creating social impact at For Purpose Investment Partners. A diverse team better reflects the range of experiences and perspectives in the communities we serve. It also creates a healthy, thriving workplace and delivers innovative, sustainable outcomes for our communities, our people, our investors and our partners.
