Review of a sample of the data systems underpinning the input and impact indicators in the Department for Education’s Business Plan, Common Areas of Spend and wider management information.
This review was carried out on the 2012-15 Business Plan. Revised Business Plans were issued in June 2013.
With the number of further education (FE) colleges in financial difficulty expected to rise rapidly, there are fundamental structural problems which might require decisions at a regional or sector-wide level.
A plan by the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills to reduce complexity and administrative burdens in the further education and skills sector, despite improving some processes, has had only limited impact on providers’ costs.
The Education Funding Agency has fulfilled most of its day-to-day responsibilities, but faces increasing expectations from the Department for Education.
BIS will not be well-placed to secure value for money on student loan repayments until it has a more robust strategy to improve collection performance.
The rapid expansion of the programme has been a significant achievement, but the DfE was unprepared for the scale of the financial implications.
The Department is not able to demonstrate the effectiveness of how it and others intervene in underperforming maintained schools and academies.
In its sale of the 4G radio spectrum the Office of Communications (Ofcom) achieved its objective of maintaining a competitive market with a number of competing providers.
Review of a sample of the data systems underpinning the input and impact indicators in the Department for Education’s Business Plan, Common Areas of Spend and wider management information.
The C&AG has qualified his audit opinion on the 2011-12 financial statements of the Young People’s Learning Agency and its sponsor department, the Department for Education.
The Department for Education is not meeting its objectives to improve the quality of care and the stability of placements for children in care.
The Comptroller & Auditor General has given a qualified audit opinion on the 2011-12 accounts of the Skills Funding Agency in relation to how the Agency has accounted for further education colleges.
This Departmental Overview is one of 15 we are producing covering our work on each major government department. It summarises our work on the Department for Department for Business, Innovation and Skills during 2011-12.
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Skills Funding Agency are pursuing a range of initiatives to simplify funding, qualification and assurance systems in further education. However, they do not know the scale of the problem faced by further education colleges and other providers.
Improvements have been made to the running of the Regional Growth Fund, but there is still a significant amount of public money to allocate through the Fund.
The Department has increased funding for new school places, but there are indications of real strain, with 256,000 new places still needed by 2014/15.
The Comptroller and Auditor General, has limited the scope of his audit opinion on the 2010-11 accounts of the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC).
This Departmental Overview is one of 15 we are producing covering our work on each major government department. It summarises our work on the Department for Education during 2011-12.
The NAO has published its report on the 2010-11 accounts of the Skills Funding Agency.
Course outcomes for young people aged 16-25 receiving special educational support are improving. However, a lack of understanding of the relationship between needs, costs and outcomes can lead to students not getting the right support, and risks compromising value for money.