Audit Wales warned that the lack of a service user perspective in performance management arrangements would make it difficult for local authorities to secure value for money.
In a new report, it also called into question the robustness of the Welsh Government’s performance regime for councils, which has placed an increasing emphasis on local authorities’ own self-assessments.
The watchdog found few councils were putting the views of those who used local services at the core of their reporting and said reports tended to focus on outputs rather than outcomes.
Most local authorities also had “limited arrangements” to check the accuracy of their service user perspective and outcomes data.
“Apart from a few councils, councils provide limited performance information to enable senior leaders to understand progress towards the outcomes they are seeking to achieve, and the perspective of service users,” it said.
“This hinders councils’ ability to know if they are meeting the needs of local communities and providing value for money.”
It was vital that councils understood the impact of their activities and policies to know if they were using public money wisely and achieving what they set out to achieve, it went on.
“Whilst this review was not about councils’ performance management arrangements as such, our findings raise fundamental questions about the effectiveness of those arrangements,” it said.
“It is difficult to see how some councils are managing performance effectively if they do not report information on outcomes and the perspective of service users.”
The findings also brought into question the extent to which the Welsh Government and other stakeholders could rely on councils’ own assessments to understand how well they were performing, it said.
“We aren’t saying that Welsh Government needs to reinstate national performance indicators, but it does need to be aware of the limitations of the performance information currently being reported by councils,” it said.
Audit Wales said it recognised that some councils did not agree with the findings and had been critical about the scope of the watchdog’s work.
“The response from some councils suggests a lack of understanding about the importance of having service user perspective and outcomes information,” it said.
Auditor general for Wales Adrian Crompton said the views of service users were arguably the most important aspect of a council’s performance management arrangements, and he expected to find an improved position when the report’s recommendations were followed up.
“This review casts doubt on whether councils have proper arrangements to secure economy, efficiency, and effectiveness in the use of their resources,” he said.
“I hoped to find a more positive picture than we did, as the importance of understanding outcomes and the perspective of service users has been emphasised for years,” he said.
The Welsh Local Government Association said it welcomed the report’s findings and recognised the concerns highlighted.
A National Residents Survey to gather feedback from service users is underway and work would continue to provide additional support for improving council services, a spokesperson said.
“While gathering meaningful input from service users requires upfront resources—particularly challenging in the current financial climate—it can lead to more efficiently targeted services and ultimately improve council effectiveness,” he said.
