The manager of Standard Life Investments' £1.3 billion fund is leaving the firm to join Artemis.

Artemis has appointed Standard Life Investments' Ed Legget to its UK equity team.

Legget will be joining the UK investment manager later this year after a 13-year spell at Standard Life Investments, where he managed the £1.3 billion ($2.05 billion) UK Equity Unconstrained Fund.

Based in Edinburgh, he will replace Tim Steer, who manages the £737 million Artemis UK Growth Fund and will be retiring at the end of this year.

“Tim has had a long and distinguished career in fund management. His skill as a stockpicker has seen the Artemis UK Growth Fund produce excellent returns for its investors, and his forensic accounting techniques have been appreciated by our whole UK equity team,” said Artemis’ senior partner, Mark Tyndall, in a statement.

“We are delighted that Ed Legget will be joining us as a partner. Ed’s record speaks for itself. We are sure that investors in the Artemis UK Growth Fund will agree with us that, in Ed, Tim has a very worthy successor.”

Replacing Legget on the UK Equity Unconstrained Strategy Fund is Standard Life Investments' investment director in the UK equities team, Wes McCoy, who launched the strategy in 2005 and ran it until his departure three years later. McCoy rejoined the business in 2012.

Over the past five years, the fund returned 145.7 per cent, more than double the average of 72.1 per cent, according to FE Trustnet. Legget's departure has seen The Adviser Centre drop the fund from its recommended list.

“Ed was part of our highly successful UK equities team and we would like to wish him well and thank him for his positive contribution to the UK equities team, and the business, over the last 13 years,” said a spokesperson for Standard Life Investments.

The spokesperson added that there would be no change to the fund's management style, philosophy or process, and that McCoy would be supported by a 15-strong UK equities investment team.