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National Audit Office

@nao.org.uk

370 followers 490 following 120 posts

We're the NAO, the UK's independent public spending watchdog. We help Parliament hold government to account. Stay updated with our latest work here. https://linktr.ee/nationalauditoffice

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National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · 1d

As last night's Panorama illustrated, our 2024 report found the current SEN system does not deliver for children and young people; it is financially unsustainable and in urgent need of reform.

Read our report here ⬇️
www.nao.org.uk/reports/supp...

Support for children and young people with special educational needs - NAO report

The NAO's report highlights that England’s special educational needs system is not delivering better outcomes for children and young people.

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · 7d

Our 2024-25 Home Office overview looks at:

• where & how the Home Office spent £27.8 billion
• risks identified within its financial management & reporting
• progress in improving productivity and resilience

Read our overview for more ⤵️
www.nao.org.uk/overviews/ho...

Home Office 2024-25 - NAO overview

Information and insights from our examination of the Home Office and from their annual report and accounts.

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · 8d

This good practice guide completes our five-part series all about improving financial management in government.

Read the whole series here: www.nao.org.uk/topics/comme...

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Commercial and financial management Archives - National Audit Office (NAO)

Sub-topics: Asset sales and privatisation, Commissioning services, Corporate finance, Efficiency and savings, Financial sustainability, Infrastructure finance, Private finance, Procurement and contrac...

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · 8d

Our guide shows how real-time, high-quality reporting can inform better decision-making that delivers value for money.

We set out key principles, practical tips and questions to ask, along with some case study examples.

Take a look here: www.nao.org.uk/insights/fin...

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Financial management in government: reporting for decision-making - NAO insight

Insights and good practice on how information can be reported to make better financial management decisions.

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · 8d

Are you a senior finance leader in government or the public sector?

We have a new guide for you all about financial reporting and how this impacts decision-making.

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Encourage positive behaviours

Improve reporting by integrating finance into day-to-day operations

Support proactive management of long-term reporting

Communicate clear and consistent messages that connect reporting to goals

Encourage and reward innovation

Modernise reporting systems and processes

Assess current systems and processes to identify issues

Identify opportunities for automation

Optimise systems for real-time reporting

Influence system design early to get better outcomes

Set the standard for quality data

Standardise data collection by unifying formats, storage and access systems

Set data assurance procedures

Define ownership of data across the organisation

Establish data governance and management frameworks

Understand the purpose of reporting

Define the purpose and value of reporting and link it to strategic priorities

Collaborate with users across the organisation to understand their needs

Develop analyses consistent with strategic objectives

Standardise reporting templates for all users

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · 13d

To cut running costs, many government departments and bodies are reducing staff numbers.

Our new good practice guide outlines our expectations for how employee exits & redundancies should be carried out. Read it here ⬇️

www.nao.org.uk/insights/gov...

Government exits and redundancies - NAO insight

A guide to help government departments assess how employee exits and redundancies in government are being conducted.

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · 16d

We recently published our 2024/25 audit certificates for:

• Department for Energy Security and Net Zero
• Department for Business and Trade

You can find all of our published financial audits on our website: www.nao.org.uk/report_types...

2024-25 Financial Audits

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero
Department for Business and Trade

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · 20d

Getting the right mix of skills and staff is challenging. How could government do it better?

Our latest framework helps organisations of all shapes and sizes think about their workforce planning and provides some key questions to ask ⬇️

www.nao.org.uk/insights/gov...

Government workforce planning - audit framework - NAO insight

This guidance is intended to help government organisations, audit teams and others to test the quality of workforce planning in government.

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · 22d

It's your chance to take a look inside our iconic London office, as part of Open House London.

We'll be open to the public from 11 until 15:30 on Saturday 20th September.

You can just drop in on the day. More info here ⤵️
programme.openhouse.org.uk/listings/119

National Audit Office

A Grade II listed building that is home to the NAO, the UK's independent public spending watchdog. We support Parliament in holding government to account and help improve public services through our audits. Opened in 1939 by Imperial Airways, subsequently BOAC and then British Airways as an airport terminal.

programme.openhouse.org.uk

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · 23d

Government organisations can provide better services by knowing the detailed costs associated with different stages of the customer journey.

We make a number of recommendations to government departments and arm-length-bodies in our latest report ⬇️
www.nao.org.uk/reports/impr...

Improving government's productivity through better cost information - NAO report

Government departments often lack insight into what drives cost in individual activities that make up an overall end-to-end service.

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · 26d

We recently announced upcoming reports, including:

• Planning for school places
• Investigation into the MoD’s management of economic crime and misconduct

Find out more ⤵️
www.nao.org.uk/work-in-prog...

Work in progress - National Audit Office

Our schedule of future publications.

Reposted by National Audit Office

Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 26d

Between 2019/20 & 2023/24, the local authority costs of supporting children in residential care nearly doubled to £3.1 billion but with only a rise of 10% of numbers. Our new @nao.org.uk report on a very important issue
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article... (full report here www.nao.org.uk/reports/mana...)

Cost of children's homes doubles but care can be poor

Huge sums spent on children's residential care in England do not represent value for money, says spending watchdog.

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · 26d

Many children in residential care homes aren't in the right setting for their needs, and costs for these homes have doubled in five years.

DfE should improve its oversight of providers with real-time data on costs, profits, staffing, and capacity.

More: www.nao.org.uk/reports/mana...

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · 28d

The Ministry of Defence runs two major military programmes for Saudi Arabia.

The NAO has reviewed the MoD's current arrangements and activities for managing the two programmes.

Read our investigation ⤵️
www.nao.org.uk/reports/mana...

Management of contracts by the MoD on behalf of Saudi Arabia - NAO report

The MoD's current controls for how it manages two major military programmes on behalf of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are clear.

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · Sep 5

We recently announced upcoming reports, including:

• Investigation into Access to Work
• Affordability of the MoD’s investment plan

Find out more ⤵️
www.nao.org.uk/work-in-prog...

Work in progress - National Audit Office

Our schedule of future publications.

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · Sep 3

The MoD does not know the exact cost to date of the Afghanistan Response Route scheme to resettle people in the UK following a 2022 data breach.

An estimated 7,355 people will be resettled through the scheme as a result of the breach.

Read our report: www.nao.org.uk/reports/the-...

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · Aug 27

Ever wanted to see what an airport terminal looked like in the 1930s? Our office building in London is open for the public to drop in on Saturday 20th September, as part of Open House London.

Don't miss out! More info here ⤵️
programme.openhouse.org.uk/listings/119

National Audit Office

A Grade II listed building that is home to the NAO, the UK's independent public spending watchdog. We support Parliament in holding government to account and help improve public services through our audits. Opened in 1939 by Imperial Airways, subsequently BOAC and then British Airways as an airport terminal.

programme.openhouse.org.uk

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · Aug 22

We recently announced an upcoming report on investment in research infrastructure.

Find out more here ⤵️
www.nao.org.uk/work-in-prog...

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · Aug 15

We recently announced an upcoming report on implementing climate-related reporting in central government.

Find out more here ⤵️
www.nao.org.uk/work-in-prog...

Implementing climate-related reporting in central government - NAO work in progress

Our upcoming report will provide insights on government’s approach so far to implementing climate-related reporting into the public sector.

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · Aug 8

We recently announced upcoming reports on:

• Government exits and redundancies
• New Hospital Programme update
• Financial resilience of DCMS-sponsored museums and galleries
• Government’s understanding of its service costs
• Update on government shared services

➡️ www.nao.org.uk/work-in-prog...

Work in progress - NAO

Our schedule of future publications.

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · Jul 30

We've published our annual Transparency Report on our audit quality. It provides an overview on:

• our governance and accountability arrangements
• how we safeguard our independence
• the quality of the audit work we do

Read it here ⬇️
www.nao.org.uk/corporate-in...

NAO Transparency Report 2024-25

The report gives details on the quality of all our audit work, including findings from our internal & external quality inspection programmes.

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · Jul 30

Our Diversity & Inclusion Annual Report outlines the progress we have made and where we will focus our efforts.

Our gender pay gap reduced from 8.3% in 2021 to 1.7% in 2024. We are on course to eliminate it by 2027.

Read our D&I Annual Report ⬇️
www.nao.org.uk/corporate-in...

NAO Diversity and Inclusion Annual Report 2024-25

Achievements from the final year of our D&I Strategy (2021–25) including case studies that show our priorities in action.

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · Jul 28

We recently published 2024-25 audit certificates for:

• HM Treasury
• DVLA
• Department for Transport
• Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
• Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government

Find all our financial audits on our website: www.nao.org.uk/report_types...

2024-25 Financial Audits

• HM Treasury
• Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA)
• Department for Transport
• Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
• Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government

National Audit Office

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · Jul 25

We recently announced upcoming reports on:

• Resilience to severe space weather
• Sizewell C
• Afghanistan resettlement schemes
• Tackling harm from drug use in prisons

Find out more ⤵️
www.nao.org.uk/work-in-prog...

Work in progress - National Audit Office (NAO)

Our schedule of future publications.

National Audit Office @nao.org.uk · Jul 21

We recently reported that water regulators - including Ofwat - have failed to manage the rising tide of risk associated with the sector, which is facing significant environmental, supply and infrastructure challenges.

Read our report 🚰⬇️
www.nao.org.uk/reports/regu...

Regulating for investment and outcomes in the water sector - NAO report

This report examines water regulators effectiveness in ensuring the nation's future water supply and attracting necessary investments.