--- title: "Provision of Independent Fraud Risk Assessment Services" ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-06f0b8" canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06f0b8" markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f0b8.md" json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f0b8.json" source: "Find A Tender Service" current_stage: "Planning" buyer: "Wrexham County Borough Council" published: "2026-09-02" --- # Provision of Independent Fraud Risk Assessment Services Buyer: Wrexham County Borough Council Current stage: Planning OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-06f0b8 [View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06f0b8) [Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f0b8.json) ## Summary Wrexham County Borough Council is considering buying independent fraud risk assessment services for its organisation. The work would review counter-fraud governance, policies, strategies, reporting and oversight; assess fraud and corruption risks across services including procurement, contract management, finance, payroll, HR, council tax, business rates, housing, grants, adult and children’s services, direct payments, ICT, suppliers and insider activity; and evaluate existing prevention and detection controls. It would involve interviews and workshops with senior officers and relevant teams, including Internal Audit, Finance, HR, Procurement, ICT, Legal Services and service managers. Expected outputs are a detailed assessment report, fraud risk register, good-practice benchmarking, prioritised recommendations and an action plan. Delivery is planned across Wales on a hybrid basis. This is an initial market engagement exercise at the planning stage, not an invitation to tender. The Council expects to start the procurement in October 2026, award the contract in November 2026 and commence the review in November 2026. The market engagement period is expected to run from 2 to 15 September 2026, with supplier responses of no more than three pages requested by 5pm on 15 September 2026. The anticipated contract period is 2 November 2026 to 31 March 2027. The estimated value is £20,000 excluding VAT, or £24,000 including VAT. There is one lot. The procurement is below the applicable threshold, and the Council may hold supplier meetings while developing the final specification. The work is suited to small and medium-sized enterprises and voluntary, community or social enterprises with specialist counter-fraud, internal audit or public-sector assurance capability. Suppliers should have experience delivering fraud risk assessments for UK local authorities, understand local-government fraud risks and public-sector governance and assurance frameworks, and be able to present findings to senior managers and elected members. Independence from Wrexham Council and effective management of conflicts of interest are essential. Relevant expertise includes the CIPFA Code of Practice on Managing the Risk of Fraud and Corruption, the Fighting Fraud and Corruption Locally Strategy, the Fraud Act 2006 and Bribery Act 2010. Useful qualifications include ACFS, CFE, CIPFA Counter Fraud, CCAB, CIA or CMIIA. ## Notice Proc-26-173 | Provision of Independent Fraud Risk Assessment Services - Initial Market Engagement ### Planning Information Purpose of this Notice Wrexham Council is seeking to engage with the market regarding the potential future procurement of an independent fraud risk assessment. This Notice is issued to: • Inform the market of the Council's intentions. • Identify suitably qualified suppliers. • Gather information regarding market capability, methodology, and indicative costs. • Inform the development of the procurement strategy and specification. The Council is seeking an assessment that not only identifies fraud risks but also benchmarks the organisation's counter-fraud maturity against the CIPFA Code of Practice on Managing the Risk of Fraud and Corruption and the Fighting Fraud and Corruption Locally Strategy, with practical recommendations to achieve good practice." This notice is for market engagement purposes only and does not constitute a call for competition. Background The Council is committed to maintaining high standards of governance, integrity, and accountability and seeks independent assurance regarding its exposure to fraud and corruption risks. Scope of Services The successful provider will be expected to undertake a comprehensive fraud risk assessment that may include: Governance and Strategy Review • Review of counter-fraud governance arrangements. • Assessment of the Council's alignment with relevant good practice. • Review of policies, strategies, reporting arrangements, and oversight mechanisms. Fraud Risk Assessment Assessment of fraud and corruption risks across key service areas, including but not limited to: • Procurement and contract management • Accounts payable and receivable • Payroll and HR • Council Tax and Business Rates • Housing and homelessness services • Grants and subsidy administration • Adult Social Care • Children's Services • Direct payments and personal budgets • ICT and cyber-enabled fraud risks • Contractor and supplier fraud • Insider fraud Control Evaluation • Review of existing fraud prevention and detection controls. • Assessment of fraud awareness and reporting arrangements. • Identification of control gaps and vulnerabilities. Stakeholder Engagement The assessment may include: • Interviews with senior officers. • Workshops with key stakeholders. • Engagement with Internal Audit, Finance, HR, Procurement, ICT, Legal Services and service managers. Reporting The provider will be expected to produce: • A detailed fraud risk assessment report. • A fraud risk register. • Benchmarking against recognised good practice. • Prioritised recommendations and action plan. Experience and Expertise Required Suppliers should be able to demonstrate: Essential • Experience of undertaking fraud risk assessments within UK local government. • Knowledge of fraud risks affecting local authorities. • Understanding of governance and assurance frameworks in the public sector. • Experience of presenting findings to senior management and elected members. • Independence from the Council and absence of conflicts of interest. Desirable Knowledge and application of: • CIPFA Code of Practice on Managing the Risk of Fraud and Corruption. • Fighting Fraud and Corruption Locally Strategy. • Public sector governance and assurance standards. • Fraud Act 2006. • Bribery Act 2010. Professional Qualifications Suppliers should identify relevant qualifications held by proposed personnel, such as: • Accredited Counter Fraud Specialist (ACFS) • Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) • CIPFA Counter Fraud qualifications • CCAB accountancy qualifications • Internal Audit qualifications (CIA, CMIIA or equivalent) Information Requested from Suppliers The Council would welcome responses covering: 1. Organisation profile. 2. Relevant experience with local authorities during the last five years. 3. Proposed methodology for conducting a fraud risk assessment. 4. Examples of deliverables produced for similar assignments. 5. Team structure and qualifications. 6. Approach to maintaining independence and managing conflicts of interest. 7. Indicative timescales. 8. Indicative pricing model and estimated fee range. 9. Suggestions on how the Council can maximise value from the review. Indicative Procurement Timetable Activity Indicative Date Notice Issued 02/09/2026 Market Engagement Period 02/09/2026 – 15/09/2026 Procurement Commencement Anticipated October 2026 Contract Award Anticipated November 2026 Expected Commencement of Review Anticipated November 2026 Contract Information • Estimated contract value: £TBC • Contract duration: TBC • Location: Wales / Hybrid delivery • CPV Code: 79212200 (Internal Audit Services) Supplier Engagement Suppliers interested in this opportunity are invited to submit a response of no more than 3 pages by no later than 17:00 (5.00pm) on Tuesday 15th September 2026. The Council may conduct supplier engagement meetings to inform the final specification. Participation in this engagement process will not confer any advantage in any future procurement exercise. ## Key Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication source | Find A Tender Service | | Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/083227-2026 | | Notice type | UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice | | Procurement type | Standard | | Procurement category | Services | | Procurement method | Not Specified | | Procurement method details | Not specified | | Tender suitability | SME, VCSE | | Awardee scale | Not specified | | All stages | Planning | ## Dates | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication date | 2 Sep 2026 | | Submission deadline | Not specified | | Future notice date | 30 Sep 2026 | | Award date | Not specified | | Contract period | 2 Nov 2026 - 31 Mar 2027 | | Recurrence | Not specified | ## Values | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender value | £20,000 | | Lots value | Not specified | | Awards value | Not specified | | Contracts value | Not specified | ## Status | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender status | Planning | | Lots status | Planning | | Awards status | Not specified | | Contracts status | Not specified | ## Buyer | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Main buyer | Wrexham County Borough Council | | Locality | WREXHAM | | Postcode area | Llandudno | | Postcode | LL11 1AR | | Country | Wales | | ITL 1 | TLL Wales | | ITL 2 | TLL3 North Wales | | ITL 3 | TLL34 Flintshire and Wrexham | | Local authority | Wrexham | | Electoral ward | Grosvenor | | Westminster constituency | Wrexham | | Delivery location | TLL23 Flintshire and Wrexham | ## CPV Codes ### Divisions - 79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security ### Codes - 79212200 - Internal audit services ## Release History - 2 Sep 2026 at 17:06 - PlanningUpdate - UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/083227-2026 - 2 Sep 2026 at 16:58 - Planning - UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/083224-2026 ## Documents - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/083227-2026 2nd September 2026 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/083224-2026 2nd September 2026 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender ## Notice URLs - https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents - https://www.wrexham.gov.uk/ ## Provenance This Markdown file is an alternate public rendering of the D3 Tenders contract record. The canonical page is https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06f0b8. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f0b8.json.