Publication: Accounts Commission Annual Report 2023/24
Chair's foreword
This is my first annual report as Chair of the Accounts Commission, in a year that marks the 50th anniversary of the first Commission meeting.
The Commission was formed at a time of significant upheaval across local government in Scotland, with the Commission’s core purpose remaining true to today – scrutiny of the financial audits of councils, to enhance accountability and integrity. In the decades since, its role and remit has been strengthened, to include performance reporting and local authorities’ duty to secure Best Value.
True to the Commission’s founding principles, my priority as chair is to ensure we deliver effective scrutiny of Scotland’s local government bodies. But in 2024 and beyond this must also include highlighting good practice, supporting councils as they transform how they deliver services, and underlining where services and financial pressures are impacting services and service users.
Jo Armstrong
Chair of the Accounts Commission
Who we are
The Accounts Commission holds councils and other local government bodies in Scotland to account and helps them improve by reporting to the public on their performance, including sharing good practice. We are impartial and operate independently of councils and the Scottish Government.
Our work includes:
- securing and acting upon the external audit of Scotland’s councils, Integration Joint Boards (IJBs) and other joint boards and committees
- assessing the performance of councils in relation to Best Value and community planning
- carrying out national performance audits and related work to help councils and IJBs improve their services
- requiring councils to publish information to help the public assess their performance.
Our impact
In 2023/24, we agreed and published Public audit in Scotland, our shared statement of purpose between us, the Auditor General and Audit Scotland.
This shared statement sits alongside the Accounts Commission Strategy 2021-26, to give a complementary view of our strategic priorities and the impact we want to have on public services and the lives of people and communities in Scotland.
To support this, we have finalised our new approach to evaluating our impact, setting out the early impact of our work and then a wider evaluation over time.
Reporting on individual bodies
Best Value
Councils have a statutory duty to demonstrate Best Value – essentially, ensuring there is good governance and effective management of resources, with a focus on continuous improvement, to deliver the best possible outcomes for people.
In 2023/24, we reported on five individual councils:
Local government overview reports
We published two Local government overview reports in 2023/24:
Other national reports
We published three other national reports in 2023/24:
Blogs
Alongside our performance audits and briefings, we published four blogs in 2023/24:
Engaging with others
Over the last year we continued to promote our work to communities, local government stakeholders and the wider public.
All Accounts Commission meetings are open to the public, both online and in person. We have welcomed members of local communities, alongside officers and elected members from councils across Scotland. We regularly record a short video after Commission meetings, sharing on social media a brief summary of our monthly business and upcoming reports. Recordings of all our monthly meetings are also available.
We work hard to make the key messages in our work relevant to local communities. On our website and across social media, we highlight the impacts of our work on services and the people who use these services. We do this through short animations, videos and exhibits. Sharing our reporting with national and local media is vital in communicating our reports with communities, politicians and those working across the public and third sectors.
Our members
The Accounts Commission members are appointed by Scottish ministers. The Commission meets monthly, and its meetings are open to the public.
