Key Points
- Wrexham County Borough Council cancelled a £270,000 contract for city centre wardens just five months after it was awarded.
- The original provider was Ilford-based security firm Chase Services Group.
- The wardens were appointed to help enforce the city centre Public Spaces Protection Order.
- The council has moved to appoint a new provider, Manchester-based Radius Security.
- The new arrangement is reported to run until 31 May 2028 at a cost of £156,000.
- The existing wardens team has reportedly transferred to the new contractor to maintain continuity.
- The PSPO covers behaviour such as harassment, alarm, nuisance or distress, intoxication, street drinking, urinating or defecating in public, and other anti-social conduct.
Wrexham (Wales Times) August 05, 2026 – It has cancelled a £270,000 city centre wardens contract only five months after awarding it, according to reporting by Herald.Wales and tender records published on the public procurement portal. The decision comes after the council initially brought in two wardens to enforce the Public Spaces Protection Order in the city centre, before later moving to a different contractor.
As reported by Herald.Wales, the contract had originally been set to continue until August 2028 after being awarded in February 2026. The new contractor, Radius Security, was selected from the original competitive tender process, and the council said the move was made in line with procurement requirements.
What Did The Original Contract Cover?
As reported by Herald.Wales, the wardens were hired to support enforcement of the city centre PSPO, which is designed to curb anti-social behaviour. The order restricts conduct including harassment, alarm, nuisance, distress, public intoxication, street drinking, and urinating or defecating in public.
According to the tender notice on the UK Find a Tender service, the successful contractor was expected to supply two wardens for at least 80 hours per week, with the service delivered in collaboration with partners to identify and diffuse anti-social behaviour.
Who Is The New Provider?
Herald.Wales reported that Manchester-based Radius Security has taken over the contract after winning the work through the original tender process. The council said the existing team of city centre wardens transferred to Radius, which it said would help maintain continuity and a visible presence for residents, businesses and visitors.
The reported new contract runs until 31 May 2028 and is valued at £156,000. That figure is lower than the original £270,000 arrangement, although the published material does not fully set out every commercial reason for the change.
How Is The Council Framing It?
According to the statement quoted by Herald.Wales, Councillor Dave Bithell, the Deputy Leader of Wrexham Council, said Radius had been part of the original competitive tender process and had confirmed it was still willing to deliver the service in line with its original submission. He added that the award followed the necessary internal approvals and procurement rules.
The publicly available tender notice also shows that the contract went live in February 2026 after an award in November 2025, which places the cancellation within a relatively short period after mobilisation.
Background Of This Development
The city centre warden service in Wrexham sits within a wider effort to manage anti-social behaviour in town centres through Public Spaces Protection Orders. These powers are used by councils to regulate specific nuisance behaviours in designated areas and to support enforcement through visible patrols and intervention.
The procurement trail shows that the council first sought a contractor for the service in 2025, later awarded the work, and then ended the original arrangement in 2026 before replacing it with another provider from the same tender process.
What Could This Mean For Residents?
For Wrexham residents, shoppers and businesses, the practical effect is likely to be continuity rather than interruption, because the wardens are reported to have transferred to the new contractor. If that transition works as described, the city centre should retain a visible enforcement presence while the council changes suppliers.
For the wider audience interested in local government spending, the case may also draw attention to how quickly public contracts can be reshaped when councils decide a different delivery route is preferable. The key issue now will be whether the new arrangement delivers the same level of enforcement and reassurance at a lower cost.
