Barber Review

Sir Michael Barber published his report into how central government can ensure it is delivering maximum value for every pound spent on our hospitals, schools and other essential services.

Sir Michael Barber is an educationalist whose own academic background and career reflects those of other recent ‘skills advisers’ to occupy the space: Baroness Wolf, Lord Sainsbury and Sir Philip Augar.

Barber’s review sets out a practical, new approach to the understanding of public sector productivity and how it can be addressed in government. It aims to ensure that ongoing improvements in the delivery of public services become firmly embedded in daily working practice.

Announced at Spring Budget 2017, Sir Michael and the project team have explored how government understands and measures impact for each taxpayer pound spent on public services. The Public Value Review advises on the best ways to encourage ongoing improvements and better, more productive public services.

The central recommendation is for government to introduce a new Public Value Framework, that will be used by government to measure the likelihood that public spending will turn into results that improve people’s lives. This Framework will set the agenda for dialogue between Treasury and departments.

The report also recommends:

• Further improvements in data systems so that departments are better able to monitor the impact of public expenditure
• Embedding incremental improvement or marginal gains in the way government works
• Encouraging departments to put forward innovations that could improve outcomes at no extra cost, through, for example, the application of technology