By Paul Dicken
The audit watchdog for Wales has produced its three-year strategy to support public bodies through the economic downturn and help them achieve their environmental targets.
The audit watchdog for Wales has produced its three-year strategy to support public bodies through the economic downturn and help them achieve their environmental targets.The paper, Sustained impact in a time of change, said it would help authorities produce efficiency gains and beneficial environmental impacts, as well as providing support to organisations that had to ‘respond to changing patterns of demand and funding’.
Over the last three years since its creation, the Welsh Audit Office said it had focused on several themes, including collaborative and partnership working. As well as continuing this work, the WAO will support the development of shared budgets and governance arrangements.
This will include evaluating and sharing lessons from emerging models and focusing on ‘whole systems reviews’. Whole systems work will be undertaken to ‘follow the public pound, especially where new service models are being used’.
The WAO also said it would maximise its impact by undertaking fewer but bigger projects in the future, while continuing to identify and promote good practice.
The 2009/2012 strategy was opened for consultation on March 16 and will be finalised at a conference in May.
