Best Value 2 Pathfinder consultation
Accounts Commission response to the independent review of the BV2 Pathfinder process
November 2010
The Accounts Commission's response to the independent review of the BV2 Pathfinder process can be found here. This document summarises the Commission's consideration of the Ipsos-MORI BV2 Pathfinder review report and includes a series of improvement actions which Audit Scotland will be taking forward on behalf of the Commission. These include changes to the new BV2 judgements and further refinement of the approach to peer involvement in BV2.
- Response to the evaluation of the BV2 Pathfinder process (PDF | 150KB)Opens in new window
- Response to the evaluation of the BV2 Pathfinder process (RTF | 545KB)Opens in new window
Background
The Commission published its consultation, which ran from 31 March to the 31 May 2009, and a wide range of organisations responded. About half the responses were from councils and the remainder from other bodies with an interest in best value in local government.
In June, following the closing date for consultation returns, the Commission held three meetings at Perth, Motherwell and Edinburgh to discuss its BV2 proposals. These meetings were well attended, with most councils represented by leaders and chief executives. Representatives from other scrutiny bodies also attended.
In July and August, meetings were also held with COSLA, SOLACE, Consumer Focus Scotland and the Scottish Government to discuss their responses to the BV2 consultation process.
The consultation process provided an opportunity for Scotland's local authorities and other interested parties to influence how BV2 develops. The feedback received on the consultation documents helped shape the development of BV2.
In spring 2009, the Accounts Commission published its response to the BV2 consultation exercise and set about testing its proposals for BV2 by undertaking five Pathfinder audits. The councils chosen for the Pathfinder audits were:
- Angus Council
- Dundee City Council
- East Ayrshire
- Scottish Borders
- The Highland Council
The Accounts Commission made a commitment to conduct an independent review of the Best Value 2 (BV2) Pathfinder audits as part of a wider body of research concerning the implementation of BV2. Ipsos MORI were commissioned by Audit Scotland, on behalf of the Accounts Commission, to undertake this work. Their independent review work drew primarily on interviews with chief executives, senior officers and elected members in the Pathfinder councils, but also involved feedback from key national stakeholders and engagement with Audit Scotland staff who were involved in the Pathfinder audits.