Business Weekly - Cambridge, UK

The businesses now acquired are Pritchard Wood, pps Acit, the internal audit and counter-fraud division of Supporta Services and part of pps Consulting.

John Bennett, senior partner at Bentley Jennison’s Milton Keynes office, said: “Our acquisition of these businesses will considerably strengthen our internal audit, risk management and consulting teams.

“Our internal audit workload has doubled as a direct result and we will be working with a number of local district councils, county councils and organisations, including the University of Hertfordshire, Aylesbury College, Bedford-shire County Council, Luton and Dunstable Hospital, and St Albans and Harpenden PCT.”

Already a leading professional adviser to over 550 public sector bodies, Bentley Jennison is seeing a substantial increase in the firm’s client base, regionally and nationally, and the newly-acquired businesses will provide the firm with a major Scottish office.

Pritchard Wood currently works with over 80 public sector bodies throughout England and Scotland with annual fees in the region of £1.8 million. Founding partner Peter Wood joins the enlarged Bentley Jennison group as a partner, together with 35 internal audit staff.

A specialist in local government work, pps ACIT provides internal audit, counter fraud and investigation services to a prestigious list of city councils, police authorities and boroughs. Chris Harris, Managing Director of pps ACIT, joins Bentley Jennison as a Partner and brings with him a team of more than 50 internal audit professionals.

The acquisition of the internal audit and counter fraud division of Supporta Services Limited further strengthens Bentley Jennison’s already-dominant position as the provider of such services to the health sector nationally.

The acquisition of part of pps Consulting not only brings specialist public sector consulting skills to Bentley Jennison, but heralds the opening of the enlarged firm’s first major office in Scotland in Edinburgh city centre.