Audit Commission defends CAA

The Audit Commission has defended its inspection regime after council leaders warned they must ‘up their game’.

The new inspection system, rating the performance of local agencies, was criticised in an LGA survey of council leaders for poor co-ordination and perceived as an extra burden.

The Audit Commission defended the Comprehensive Area Assessment (CAA) but was open bout teething troubles from the first year.

Officials described CAA as ‘a big step’ and admitted problems were inevitable ‘as it beds in’.

The commission also pointed out that the survey was conducted barely three months after CAA was launched in April.

Steve Bundred, the commission’s chief executive said: ‘We are engaged in a pioneering effort to join together the assessment of local services and value this feedback from both elected members and officers.’

His defence was in response to the survey by the LGA Improvement Board.

It found the majority of elected members feel there is still a long way to go before comprehensive area assessments drive improved outcomes in their areas.

The research found only one in 10 think it is reducing the overall burden and seven in 10 said CAA is not being effectively coordinated between inspectorates.

Just under two thirds believe it is not sufficiently focused on future outcomes.

Cllr David Parsons, chairman of the LGA Improvement Board, said: ‘Whilst we recognise that it is too early to draw definitive conclusions about CAA these results question its relevance and longevity.

‘Despite the considerable effort we are putting in to respond to endless requests for information it’s not clear that the Inspectorates' assessment of the area is going to tell us anything we don’t already know. In an era of financial constraint CAA is going to have to demonstrate its value for money - and at the moment we are not convinced.’

A CLG spokesman said: ‘The new CAA is already making a difference with more than 1000 targets cut, the number of inspection days reduced by a third (18,000), while the cost of inspection has been cut by 30%.’