WIREDGOV

Public bodies will be able to achieve greater value for money from their use of consultants, as the National Audit Office recently launched an online assessment tool.

Both Sir Gus O’Donnell and the Public Accounts Committee have said that improving the way that public bodies use consultants is a top priority. Based on a report by the National Audit Office, the Public Accounts Committee said earlier this month that over £500 million in efficiency gains are possible across the public sector.

The NAO’s toolkit is based on the approach it used in its December 2006 report. Assessors answer a series of questions about the use of consultants in an online form. The interactive toolkit then responds with an analysis of areas of weakness, provides guidance on how to improve value for money and illustrates what good practice can look like through case studies.

Keith Davis, Head of Efficiency Practice at the NAO, said:

"Consultants can provide valuable expertise to government. But too often departments rush into using consultants before thinking properly about whether resources are available in-house. This toolkit can help all public bodies improve their use of consultants and help realise the £500 million of efficiency gains that are achievable in central government alone."

The toolkit is aimed at procurement or commercial teams, customers/buyers of consultancy, or audit staff. It can be applied to the use of consultants department-wide, or at a project-level and is designed to diagnose areas of weakness and raise awareness of where improvements can be made.

The toolkit is now launched on the NAO website and is available at www.nao.org.uk/efficiency.

Notes for Editors

1. Press notices and reports are available from the date of publication on the NAO website, which is at www.nao.org.uk . Hard copies can be obtained from The Stationery Office on 0845 702 3474.
2. The Comptroller and Auditor General, Sir John Bourn, is the head of the National Audit Office which employs some 850 staff. He and the NAO are totally independent of Government. He certifies the accounts of all Government departments and a wide range of other public sector bodies; and he has statutory authority to report to Parliament on the economy, efficiency and effectiveness with which departments and other bodies have used their resources.