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The Insolvency Service

Criminal Investigator

Hybrid

London, United kingdom

Full Time

24-02-2026

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Job Specifications

Birmingham, Cardiff, Exeter, Ipswich, Leeds, London (Croydon & Stratford) Manchester, Newcastle, and Nottingham

Job Summary

The Insolvency Service is a leading Government agency which plays a crucial role in providing essential services to the public and to business. The work we do is important to the proper functioning of markets, the economy in general and support for thousands of people each year who are in financial difficulty.

Investigation and Enforcement Services (IES) Directorate aims to deliver and promote a range of investigation and enforcement activities, both civil and criminal in nature, to support fair and open markets. We do this by effectively enforcing the statutory company and insolvency regimes, maintaining public confidence in those regimes, and reducing the harm caused to victims of fraudulent activity and to the business community.

Inclusive and diverse teams are important to us. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including groups underrepresented in our workforce. The Insolvency Service strives to ensure that the agency is a safe, inclusive, and welcoming place for everybody to bring their true self to work and to help the agency to achieve its diversity objectives. We have 9 active employee network groups available to join or become an ally, these include, Carers Network, Disability network group, Employee Assistance, Representatives, FACES Network Group, LGBT+, Mind Matters, Part Time Workers, The Shed - Men’s Network Group and Women’s Network Group.

We offer full-time, part-time, job share and flexible ways of working. We value capability, technical skills and experience and we place great emphasis on lifetime development to support our people. We encourage our employees to become more involved in areas they feel strongly about, whether it be for the benefit of the agency, though our Engagement network or in their own local communities via volunteering opportunities.

The Insolvency Service is a great place to work, learn and grow your career!

Job Description

The Criminal Investigation Team is responsible for conducting criminal investigations concerning insolvency and corporate related criminal offences, which support the Agency’s objective to tackle financial wrongdoing. The team works closely with civil investigation teams, our Legal Services Directorate internally, and other Law Enforcement partner organisations, to ensure that we fulfil our role in delivering Governmental strategies. We strive to target offences under the Companies House Reform Legislation, along with others, including misuse of government backed Covid recovery funds.

We are recruiting experienced criminal investigators for our Criminal Investigation Teams in offices around the country, who will play a key role of investigating offences under the Insolvency Act 1986, Companies Act 2006, Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986, Fraud Act 2006, Theft Act 1968 and Economic Crime and Transparency Act 2023.

You will report to the Investigation Manager and the Chief Investigator, based at one of our various offices.

Regular attendance will be required in your selected office in accordance with the hybrid working model of 60% office attendance.

Some travel to obtain witness statements and interview suspects will be required, in addition to attending meetings with stakeholders and other regulators. Occasional overnight stays may be required.

The jobholder must be flexible regarding the length and timing of the working day to meet the demands of the business.

Occasional evening/weekend work may be necessary – to be worked in compliance with the European Working Time Directive.

Responsibilities

The main duties of the role are to:

Investigate a range of criminal offences. These include complex fraud, bankruptcy, insolvency and Covid related offences
Obtain detailed statements from witnesses in accordance with provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 1967, Magistrates Court Act 1980 and the Criminal Justice Acts of 1988 and 2003
Interview persons suspected of offences under the provisions of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE)
Prepare case files with detailed evidence-based reports on the findings of investigations, in accordance with the management of disclosure material under the Criminal Procedures and Investigations Act 1996 (CPIA). These will be to a high standard suitable for testing in Criminal Courts, often to tight timescales
Work closely with line management to effectively manage your caseload, reviewing the progress of cases, maintaining quality and meeting legislative demands
Ensure quality in the preparation of cases, leading to criminal proceedings or disclosure to other regulators
Work closely with the Agency’s prosecution and advisory lawyers and counsel
Take the lead and drive follow up actions arising from criminal cases
Contribute to discussion with lawyers and counsel, being a witness in appropriate cases and attending court as a witness/disclosure offi

About the Company

The Insolvency Service exists to provide the framework and the means for dealing with financial failure in the economy and with the misconduct that is often associated with it. To achieve this we will maintain and develop a world-class insolvency law and regulatory framework; deliver key public services to support that framework; deliver and promote an effective investigation and enforcement regime; and ensure an organisation devoted to continuous improvement. Know more