25 Years of Teaching Experience
Genius Solutions Limited t/a
Languages Training & Development
ESF Project – Boosting Skills for Business
The organisation requires all staff at all times to act honestly and with integrity and to safeguard the resources for which they are responsible. Fraud is an ever-present threat to these resources and hence must be a concern to all members of staff. The purpose of this statement is to set out your responsibilities with regard to the prevention of fraud.
No precise legal definition of fraud exists; many of the offences referred to as fraud are covered by the Theft Acts of 1968 and 1978 & the Forgery & Counterfeiting Act 1981. The term is used to describe such acts as theft, deception, bribery, forgery, corruption, false accounting and conspiracy to commit these offences. For practical purposes fraud may be defined as the use of deception with the intention of obtaining an advantage, avoiding an obligation or causing loss to another party.
The Directors are responsible for:
• Developing and maintaining effective controls to prevent fraud.
• Carrying out vigorous and prompt investigations if fraud occurs.
• Taking appropriate legal and/or disciplinary action against perpetrators of fraud.
• Taking disciplinary action against supervisors where supervisory failures have contributed to the commission of the fraud.
Managers and Directors are responsible for:
• Identifying the risks to which systems and procedures are exposed.
• Developing and maintaining effective controls to prevent and detect fraud.
• Ensuring that controls are being complied with.
Individual members of staff are responsible for:
• Acting with propriety in the use of official resources and in the handling and use of corporate funds whether they are involved with cash or payments systems, receipts or dealing with contractors or suppliers
• Reporting details immediately to (their line manager or next most senior manager) if they suspect that a fraud has been committed or see any suspicious acts or events.
Should staff members or learners have any concerns regarding practices at work, they should be raised with their Supervisor. These concerns are usually easily resolved.
Where these concerns are matters of unlawful conduct, financial malpractice, danger to the public or environment or harassment and misbehaviour at work, they should be raised with the Directors.
Individuals with genuine concerns of malpractice, which are raised in good faith, will be entitled to full confidentiality and their position and opportunities for further development will be protected. This protection does not extend to malicious or unsubstantiated allegations.
Any concerns received by the Directors will be investigated. Individuals will also be entitled to prompt feedback at each stage of an investigation, except where, in the opinion of the Directors, this prejudices the investigation or violates the confidentiality rights of others.
The ESF beneficiary (Genius Solutions) will report to the MA (Managing Authority) at the earliest opportunity any fraud or suspected fraud they identify in their project.
The ESF beneficiary will co-operate with the MA and DWP/Treasury in the investigation of fraud and related offences.