While the impact of the Pupil Premium will take time to become clear, it has the potential to bring about a significant improvement in outcomes. However, the Department for Education and schools have more to do.
A programme to sell enough government land by March 2015 to build a potential 100,000 homes did not collect information on the amount of money raised or how many homes have actually been built. In future land sales, responsibility for monitoring what happens to land after disposal should be made clear.
This Departmental Overview is one of 17 we are producing covering our work on each major government department. It summarises our work on the Department for Communities and Local Government during 2013-14.
The Government did not meet its goal of transferring by 1 June 2014 all people with learning disabilities and challenging behaviour, for whom it was appropriate, from mental hospitals into the community.
There is wide variation in the extent to which £79 billion in central funding allocated to local health bodies differs from target allocations that are based on relative need.
• This is NAO’s first report on funding since the 2013 health reforms took effect. Where possible comparisons have been made with funding under the previous system set out in a 2011 NAO report.
Local authorities have worked hard to manage reductions in government funding, but the DCLG needs to be better informed about the situation across England.
The Help to Buy equity loan scheme is improving access to mortgage finance, but the scheme’s costs will be substantial.
In June 2011, the National Audit Office reported on the system for enforcing consumer law and the Government subsequently made a series of reforms to the consumer landscape. This update report summarises recent changes and sets out the proposed benefits to consumers, businesses and taxpayers as well as the possible risks to be managed.
The Department for Education is not meeting its objectives to improve the quality of care and the stability of placements for children in care.
This report outlines the importance of recognising and adequately managing conflicts of interest.
Local authorities have worked hard to manage reductions in government funding, but the DCLG needs to be better informed about the situation across England.
This briefing on the NHS and sustainability in England has been prepared for the Environmental Audit Committee. It focuses on identifying potential good practice, opportunities and challenges and draws on the NAO’s good practice criteria.
Police forces have successfully reduced costs since 2011, but do not have a clear understanding of the demands placed upon them or of the factors that affect their costs.
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.
It has not yet been demonstrated that funding mechanisms for supporting local economic growth are capable of delivering value for money.
Review of a sample of the data systems underpinning the input and impact indicators in the Department for Communities and Local Government’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.
This Departmental Overview is one of 17 we are producing covering our work on each major government department. It summarises our work on the Communities and Local Government during 2012-13.
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.
We recommended that the Department for Communities and Local Government improve its evaluation of the impact of funding changes on local authorities’ financial sustainability.
This NAO impacts case study represents one example where there has been some beneficial change, whether financial or non-financial, resulting from our involvement.
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.