SFO were prepared for lockdown

A report from Her Majesty’s Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate (HMCPSI) found that the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) had contingency plans in place ahead of the national lockdown.

HMCPSI carried out an inspection to look at the organisations handling of the pandemic crisis following the Prime Minister’s announcement that the UK was going into lockdown.

The SFO had to continue to operate within the restrictions imposed to ensure there was no disruption to its investigations, and inspectors were pleased with the SFO’s response. Inspectors found that the SFO had a business continuity plan and command structure in place which was successfully initiated on the 12 March 2020, when its offices were closed following a small number of suspected COVID-19 cases.

Inspectors praised the SFO for its commitment to health and wellbeing, and the report found that advice and guidance was provided to staff through formal updates, and via staff blogs. Advice and tips on a range of topics were also made available, including advice on the importance of exercising, proper working from home techniques, balancing childcare, creating a new daily routine and taking care of mental health. Staff welcomed this guidance, and also informed inspectors that they received regular and clear messaging from senior managers and were happy with the amount and quality of communications.

Prior to the lockdown the SFO was not an organisation where large numbers of staff worked from home and their IT was not designed for that purpose. Despite that, the SFO successfully moved to a position where the vast majority of staff were working from home. However, although inspectors found that the SFO made reasonable adjustments in ensuring that equipment needs were quickly put into place to work from home, staff did express disappointment about the decision not to provide peripheral IT equipment or any other office equipment to staff and this has had a potential impact on their health and wellbeing.

Unlike a number of other organisations, inspectors found that the SFO did not have video conferencing facilities, which was a source of significant frustration for staff who were interviewed.

Commenting on the report, HM Chief Inspector Kevin McGinty, said:

“The pandemic crisis proved a significant challenge for the SFO but on the whole it is one they have dealt with effectively. Plans were already in place, and implemented successfully ahead of the national lockdown.

“It is encouraging to see that the health and wellbeing of staff has been taken seriously, with regular and clear messaging from senior management.

“The SFO has not relied on remote working to any extent in the past and struggled to move immediately to a position with nearly all staff working from home. Despite capacity being greatly stretched at times the work of the office continued. The SFO is working quickly to improve IT capacity.”

Note to editors

1. HMCPSI inspects prosecution services, providing evidence to make the prosecution process better and more accountable. We have a statutory duty to inspect the work of the Serious Fraud Office.
2. The full inspection report can be found here: SFO response to COVID-19: 16 March to 8 May 2020
3. The inspection covers the period of 16 March to 8 May 2020.
4. Inspectors virtually visited the SFO, and carried out interviews via telephone conferencing between 29 June and 6 July 2020.