Annual Efficiency Statements - 2007-08 Backward Look

As part of the local government efficiency agenda, during the 2004 Spending Review period (2005-06 to 2007-08), all councils in England have been required to submit Annual Efficiency Statements to Communities and Local Government. These submissions were formed of two parts; the Forward and Backward look statements.

The Forward Look was for authorities to set out their general strategy for making efficiency gains; an estimate of the value of new gains expected to be achieved during the forthcoming financial year; and the key actions planned to realise them.
The Backward Look was for authorities to set out the value of ongoing gains sustained from previous years; the value of new efficiency gains actually achieved during that financial year; and the actions that were undertaken to release them.

The documents that are published here are the 2007-08 Backward Look statements and spreadsheets which set out the efficiency gains achieved in each sector by each local authority and the quality crosschecks provided to demonstrate that service quality has not deteriorated as a result. The published items are unedited by the Department and the results are not subject to review or endorsement by the Department.

The spreadsheet of gains achieved also shows, for each council, the target for cumulative efficiency gains to be achieved by the end of 2007-08. The target is equivalent to 7.5 per cent of councils' 2004-05 baseline expenditure (and at least half of this amount was required to be cashable, ie directly release cash resource that could be reallocated to meet local service priorities or hold down council tax).

As part of the transition to the next spending review period, councils are allowed to carryover the value of any ongoing cashable efficiency gains achieved in excess of the 7.5 per cent target for total gains. The spreadsheet shows the value of gains eligible to be carried forward by each council on that basis and the net total for gains to be recorded as achieved in the 2004 Spending Review period.

These statements are the last Annual Efficiency Statements to be submitted by councils; during the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review period (2008-09 to 2010-11) councils will instead report the total net value of ongoing cash-releasing gains forecast and achieved through National Indicator 179.