About this guide
The purpose of this guide is to help public services respond to the reductions in their funding in a thought-through and systemic way. Our fundamental goal is to help support public services to make robust and sensible choices about reducing costs while minimising the impact on people, particularly the most vulnerable, and, where possible, also improving services.
Who is this guide for?
This guide is aimed at a varied audience. We intend it help the people responsible for managing the consequences of cuts: political leaders and managers. We want this guide to help those whose role is to scrutinise the decisions being taken: politicians on committees, members of public services' boards and committees. We also intend that local groups, citizens and service users can use the guide to engage with and contribute to the process of designing and delivering an effective response to public sector budget cuts.
Why are we launching this guide?
This guide is part of our wider Efficiency and Innovation work, including our Good Practice Exchange. We have worked closely with the pan public sector Efficiency and Innovation Programme. The Auditor General has an Observer on the Efficiency and Innovation Board and the Wales Audit Office had a representative on the Board of each of the work-streams. That Programme has now come to an end, but we intend to continue to work closely with the new Public Services Leadership Group, which will take forwards the work of the Efficiency and Innovation Programme.
To find out more about the purpose of this guide and how it can help you, click here.
A Framework for Cost Reduction
We have created the following model, which we think is a mature, systemic, participative model for cost reduction with a sustained focus on value, outcomes and improvement.
Click on each circle to learn more about each point.
