Working to make government more effective

In-person event

Measuring productivity in the public sector

This seminar looked at measuring activity and productivity within a sector, an organisation and at a programme level.

The state of the public finances will create greater pressure to identify and address low productivity spending. In meeting this challenge, we need better information on public sector productivity, including on how the quality of public services can be protected even if overall spending is falling. And crucially the appropriate information needs to be available and used by those making decisions, whether they are cabinet members thinking about how much money to put into different sectors of the public service; civil servants devising plans to improve particular programmes; or organisational leaders thinking about changing their operational model.

This seminar looked at how measuring activity and productivity within a sector (education), an organisation (a Foundation Trust) and at a programme level (community safety) might lead to productivity improvements. It also considered how changes in performance feed through to public perceptions and could translate into political pay-offs.

The panel:

Robert Arnott, Head of Value for Money & Productivity Unit, Home Office

Sir Peter Gershon, former Chief Executive of the Office of Government Commerce

Joe Grice, UK Centre for the Measurement of Government Activity

Ben Page, Ipsos MORI UK

Publisher
Institute for Government

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