Branch at centre of the A4e fraud storm forced to close

A ruptured water tank is believed to have caused the offices, in High Street, to shut up shop on Monday morning.

The company had to turn people away at the door, sending customers to the nearest branch in Reading.

A spokesperson said: "There has been a flood in the offices and we had to temporarily close them.

"Customers who had an appointment have been referred to the nearest branch, which is mostly Reading."

The offices opened again this morning.

The centre made national news when Police visited the office on Friday, February 17, as part of fraud allegations referred to them by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

Four former employees were arrested on January 18 from addresses in the Thames Valley.

They have been released on police bail until mid-March.

After the allegations came to light the DWP stated it 'will not hesitate' to ditch its contract with A4e.

In a statement sent to The Observer, a DWP spokesperson, said: "We do not intend to comment about the current investigations.

"While these cases do not relate to current contracts including the Work Programme, we have reminded A4e of their contractual obligations and if there is evidence of systemic fraud in either current or past contracts, we will not hesitate to terminate our commercial relationship with them." A4e said they discovered the situation through 'internal systems' in November 2010. It reported the incident to the DWP within 48 hours, following an internal investigation where three staff members were suspended.

The other had already left the business.

Andrew Dutton, A4e Group chief executive, said: "A4e has zero tolerance towards fraud, and any instance of fraudulent or otherwise illegal activity is completely unacceptable. We take our responsibility very seriously, and we are committed to using taxpayers' money effectively and efficiently to deliver the best services to the public." The case was referred to police in May last year.