Hello & Welcome

Hello and welcome to the very first edition of the Oxford Investigation Service monthly newsletter. I hope this e-mail finds you well as we approach the end of the strangest year any of us have ever known.

 With the conference now over a month behind us, I wanted to reflect on what was a successful and well-received event. Thank you to all who completed our feedback survey; your responses and comments were incredibly helpful in helping us understand what was great about the event, and what we might be able to do better for next time.

 You’ll have seen that there was an Amazon Echo Dot up for grabs for one lucky survey completionist.. if that is even a word….and that lucky individual is Stefan Mann of Bury Council. Well done Stefan!

We had 320 delegates registered to attend the 5th Annual Fraud Conference on 12th November and at its peak, the event was running with 250 online which is incredible. It makes it the most well-attended event we have delivered so far and leads us to conclude that perhaps an exclusively physical conference may not be the best approach for the future.

 Yes, we all enjoy rubbing shoulders (remember that?!) with colleagues from other organisations, enhancing our professional network, scooping up freebies from exhibitors and crossing fingers for all the prize draws. But in terms of accessibility, there’s no substitute for logging on from the comfort of your own home without the need for travel on a cold, rainy day in November.

 So it’s likely, when things return to normal, whenever that may be, that we will be looking to deliver a hybrid event to ensure as much inclusivity and accessibility as possible.

 If you were one of the 70 who registered to attend but was unable to do so on the day, all is not lost! We recorded the entire event and each speaker session is now available in the “Exclusive AFC content” area of our website.

 Use the password AFC2020 to access the area which is available to registered delegates only. Not only will you find our live sessions from the day there, but there are also some really interesting sessions from Dr Rasha Kassem of Coventry University, Rachael Tiffen from CIFAS, and Tony Machin from Trust ID.

 I wanted to keep this introduction brief but I’m aware I’ve already failed in the regard, so I’ll sign off by saying that whether you are in tears about your tiers or listening to Buble in your bubbles, I hope you and your family are able to safely enjoy the holidays and take a well-earned break.

 Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and I look forward to seeing you in 2021, preferably in person.

 Scott Warner.