Wikipedia

Local Authority Investigation Officers Group

Local Authority Investigation Officers Group (LAIOG) was a British organisation involving Local Authority investigators. It ceased to operate on 1 December 2016.[1]

LAIOG was recognised as a representative group in providing information and statistics to, for example, the UK parliament.[2] The organisation was considered of sufficient importance to be mentioned by name in the fraud prevention policies of many Local Authorities[3] and Department for Work and Pensions newsletters.[4]

Although referred to under Fraud Squad in this encyclopaedia as an investigation unit, this was not strictly the case, although members did liaise during investigations.

Composition

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There were a number of regional groups within the national 'umbrella' organisation. The official regional groups, that is those represented on the executive committee[5] were :

  • Northern
  • Midlands
  • Wales (Welsh Benefits Investigation Group) WBIG
  • Eastern
  • LBFIG (London Boroughs' Fraud Investigators' Group)
  • Southern
  • South-Western

Other groups also met, such as Northern Home Counties.

Membership

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At its peak, around 400 Local Authorities across England, Scotland and Wales were members of LAIOG.[6] Membership was for the authority, rather than individual members.

Administration

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The organisation was run by a committee[5] of elected and representative members, made up of :

  • Chair
  • Vice Chair
  • Secretary
  • Treasurer
  • 6 Executive Officers
  • Website Officer
  • Representatives from the following regions :
    • Eastern
    • LBFIG (London)
    • Midlands
    • Northern
    • South West
    • Southern
    • Wales

Activities

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LAIOG's main functions and activities were:[6]

  • provision of access to information relevant to the field of investigations ;
  • a communication network, via the website ;
  • dissemination of information to members ;
  • local and national representation on policy, training and various legislative issues ; and
  • a national conference, combined with an AGM.

LAIOG was also involved in setting up a number of qualifications for investigators, working with ITS Training (UK) Ltd.[7] and Bond Solon.

The regional groups also held AGMs and some offered training days for members.

Other Organisations

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LAIOG became part of TEICCAF on 1 December 2016.[1] TEICCAF has now ceased to operate and its website redirects to the IRRV Investigation Faculty.[8][9]

The National Investigation Officers' Group (NIOG) was set up on 2019 and includes on its steering committee a number of people who were involved in LAIOG before it ceased to operate.[10]

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References

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  1. ^ a b LAIOG
  2. ^ [1]Hansard 11 March 2008 Website accessed 27 May 2008
  3. ^ North Warwickshire BC Policy Archived 16 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine Website accessed 27 May 2008
  4. ^ HB Direct - May 2007 Archived 10 June 2007 at the Wayback Machine Website accessed 27 May 2008
  5. ^ a b LAIOG Executive Archived 4 November 2007 at the Wayback Machine Website accessed 24 May 2008
  6. ^ a b LAIOG web site Accessed 24 May 2008
  7. ^ ITS Training (UK) Ltd. web site Archived 2 April 2015 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 24 May 2008
  8. ^ "The IRRV - Institute of Revenues Rating and Valuation Home Page". www.irrv.net. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  9. ^ "The IRRV - Institute of Revenues Rating and Valuation Home Page".
  10. ^ "WhoDunnit – National Investigation Officers' Group". March 2021.
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