Employee who simultaneously worked for four different employers including three councils jailed

Bryn Howells of Ebley, Stroud, was employed by Tewkesbury Borough Council, South Gloucestershire Council and Publica Group at the same time, receiving salaries and other benefits totalling approximately £236,000.

Publica Group is a 'teckal' company providing services on behalf of Cotswold District Council, West Oxfordshire District Council, and Forest of Dean District Council.

Howells was Strategic Housing and Enabling Officer at Tewkesbury, Senior Development Surveyor at South Gloucestershire and a Valuer and Estates Surveyor at Publica Group.

He failed to disclose his multiple employments to each organisation when taking up the positions and submitted false timesheets, misrepresenting the hours worked for each employer, Tewkesbury said.

It also claimed he provided inaccurate information on declaration forms regarding secondary employment.

In addition, Howells held a fourth role with another council via an agency during this period, earning further income. However, this employment was not included in the prosecution case.

The fraud was uncovered through a review of payroll data by the Counter Fraud and Enforcement Unit (CFEU), as part of the Cabinet Office’s National Fraud Initiative (NFI).

At a hearing ahead of his sentencing, Howells told the court he did not set out to deceive or act with dishonest intent, Tewkesbury said.

He told the court that he was not motivated by greed or money, but a strong desire to work as many hours as possible to support local authorities when skilled staff were in short supply.

Simon Dix, Executive Director of Resources at Tewkesbury Borough Council, said: “We welcome the conclusion of this case and the sentencing handed down today.

“Mr Howells’ actions represented a serious breach of trust and a misuse of public funds. His conduct fell far short of the standards expected of public servants and undermined the integrity of the organisations he served. 

“As soon as concerns were raised, we acted swiftly and worked closely with the Counter Fraud and Enforcement Unit to investigate the matter thoroughly. We are committed to recovering the public money lost through this fraud and have reviewed our internal procedures to strengthen safeguards against similar incidents.”

Adam Carey