High profile incidents remind individuals and organisations just how important it is to manage potential conflicts of interest. In March 2017, the Court of the Bank of England commissioned a review of the institution’s approach to managing conflicts of interest. The review was prompted by the resignation of Charlotte Hogg who had been Deputy Governor […]
The CQC, the independent regulator of health and adult social care in England, has made substantial progress but needs to recruit and train staff and build a new organisational culture.
The provision of adequate adult social care poses a significant public service challenge. Demand for care is rising while public spending is falling.
This page is part of our decommissioning toolkit. The table outlines what good practice should look like in some of the key areas relating to reviewing and evaluating decommissioning. It then identifies the risks of not following this good practice and looks at how these risks might be mitigated or what actions commissioners can take […]
This page is part of our decommissioning toolkit. It is important to understand how current services are actually delivered ‘on the ground’. The services specified to meet users’ needs must be realistically capable of being delivered by providers and provide a sound basis for decommissioning decisions. It is also important to have a good understanding […]
This page is part of our decommissioning toolkit. In a local Primary Care Trust (PCT), a review of referrals to a mental health inpatient unit for young people highlighted that the existing service was not meeting requirements. The service model provided poor value for money and was creating a cadre of service users who were […]
It is important that the services for vulnerable people at the Yarls Wood Immigration Removal Centre are delivered ‘right first time’ and this did not happen here. Steps are now being taken to address the problems but 35% of the recommendations from Her Majesty’s Inspector of Prisons’ 2015 inspection have not yet been implemented.
This page is part of our decommissioning toolkit. As part of a strategic approach to decommissioning it is crucial to know what the current and potential future needs are for a service, the existing usage patterns and any gaps and duplication in services. Decommissioning decisions are often made due to changing policy priorities. At this […]
This page is part of our successful commissioning toolkit. The general principles should be applied sensibly. In particular, think about: Simplicity and proportionality. Processes, including commissioning, should be as simple as possible and proportionate. Financial controls, monitoring and evaluation requirements and external inspection should be intelligently designed and implemented [Note 1] Transparency. The more you can be […]
The National Audit Office reported today that, four years into the 10-year NHS Cancer Plan, substantial progress has been made in meeting the Plan’s targets. The thirty-four cancer networks which have been established have achieved important improvements in delivering cancer services across England. However, the networks need to be more effective and to develop partnership […]
The Department of Health now needs to gain a better understanding of the different ways to commission personalised services for users, and how these lead to improvements in user outcomes.
This page is part of our successful commissioning toolkit. In many policy and service areas, the efforts of more than one provider are needed to achieve the desired outcome. For example, using the example given above, the quality of housing will have an impact on older people’s health. You should therefore consider joined-up outcomes. These could take two forms: […]
This page is part of our successful commissioning toolkit. Introduction A charity for blind people approaches a Primary Care Trust (PCT) with a proposal for a health support service in the area. Under this, staff and volunteers of the charity would greet blind people at NHS establishments and welcome them and show them around safely. For […]
This page is part of our decommissioning toolkit. The table outlines what good practice should look like in some of the key areas relating to understanding needs and making a decision to decommission. It identifies the risks of not following good practice and looks at how these risks might be mitigated and what actions commissioners […]
Financial management at the Ministry of Justice has improved considerably since the National Audit Office last examined this subject in 2010. However, in some important areas, such as income collection, the Ministry still has a great deal to do.
This page is part of our decommissioning toolkit. It is important to consider the potential impact of decommissioning early enough and thoroughly enough before a decision to decommission a service has been made. Even where full decommissioning does not take place, there will still be impacts on costs and the level and quality of service […]
The Comptroller and Auditor General, Amyas Morse, has qualified his regularity opinion on the 2012-13 financial statements of the Department for Communities and Local Government. This is in respect of two breaches by the DCLG of spending limits authorised by Parliament.
This page is part of our successful commissioning toolkit. Within a public sector organisation, commissioning and establishing good financial relationships with third sector organisations (TSOs) involves: people at different levels – from senior officials, acting as Senior Responsible Owners (SROs) of a programme, to staff responsible for programme implementation; and people with different functions – while […]
This page is part of our successful commissioning toolkit. Engaging with third sector organisations (TSOs) can provide a number of benefits. For you, it will increase your understanding of: The needs of your programme’s users and of the types of services that might best meet those needs. This will be especially effective in the case of […]