CARD Financial service - Panel for Forensic Accounting and Audit & Assurance, including post 16 funding audit

This is a BAU procurement for audit capacity to support our annual assurance programme and Investigation support.

We need 3 different "lots". Lot 1 to cover the annual programme of outsourced post-16 funding assurance reviews (post-16 funding audits). We will seek a panel of up to 5 audit firms to deliver this for us, with outputs being an audit report using the DFE/ESFA assurance tests and an audit opinion from the firms. These require detailed knowledge and experience of post-16 funding rules applicable to funding paid for adult skills,16-19 study packages or apprenticeships training.

Lot 2 to cover the combined post-16 and pre-16 general assurance reviews and frameworks support. We will seek up to 10 firms to work with across both the pre-16 and post-16 sector. For this lot before we allocate work to firm(s) we will select the firm most able to deliver the services required through a mini-competition / rota to secure best value and to ensure the specific sector skills and expertise is demonstrated.

Lot 3 to provide suitable firms capable of delivering forensic accounting and investigation support services nationally. We will seek up to 10 suppliers who will be awarded work on a rota basis. The output for this work will be an evidence-based findings report which can be shared with the provider in scope.