Authorities' staff can learn through dissemination of best practice

2.19  Only 27 per cent of authorities indicated that the department to which they belonged evaluates best practice in every contract. Where such an evaluation does take place, however, 90 per cent of departments disseminate this evaluation of best practice among its authorities.

19

 

Contractors' views on where additional skills would be helpful

 

 

 

 

Source: National Audit Office survey of contractors

 

20

 

How departments' PFI units meet their aims

 

 

 

 

 

Through the development and dissemination of guidance

 

 

Ministry of Defence
'MOD has set in place a joint working group with the CBI to allow partnering issues to be debated and guidelines to be produced and has made PFI teams aware of Treasury Guidance.'

Department of Trade and Industry
'Ensures that all relevant individuals are aware of the latest guidance on managing PFI contracts and receive appropriate training.'

National Assembly for Wales
'It is establishing a dedicated PPP/PFI web-site to increase accessibility to the latest guidance and project information with links to other relevant departments.'

Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions
'The Private Finance Unit is responsible for disseminating good practice guidance, and responding to queries raised by project teams, and seeing that projects have access to high quality advice under a framework contract.'

 

 

Through involvement of the private sector

 

 

Ministry of Defence
'Sponsored PFI and partnering courses for project teams. The partnering course is open to the private sector.'

National Assembly for Wales
'The Assembly ensures regular contact with PFI players within the private sector, involving them in consultations, sharing feedback and information and encouraging the development of their relationships with authorities.'

Her Majesty's Prison Service
'It is maintaining continuous contact with its private sector partners; regularly solving problems with them; and engaging in two way exchange of important/technical information.'

 

 

Source: National Audit Office Survey

2.20  Authorities considered the most important areas on which to disseminate best practice were: commercial partnership issues, trust, developing business cases for new IT spend, monitoring procedures, the use of technical, legal and financial advisers, and production of output specifications.

2.21  42 per cent of authorities indicated that they disseminated best practice to other authorities or departments. They did this principally through speaking at seminars and conferences, meetings and visits, writing articles for magazines, and informal contacts. The Office of Government Commerce could contribute to the dissemination of good practice by hosting workshops and other events for staff from all departments involved in managing PFI contracts. The CBI and the Business Services Association told us it would be helpful if private sector companies were involved with such workshops, partly as a learning process for the private sector and partly to allow the public sector to absorb private sector experience and ideas on good practice.