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14 Aug 2007 01:44 PM
Capability reviews announced for two more Departments

CABINET OFFICE News Release (CAB/072-07) issued by The Government News Network on 14 August 2007

The Cabinet Office today announced a further two departments undertaking 'Capability Reviews'. These are HM Treasury and HM Revenue and Customs.

The reviews aim to improve the capability of the Civil Service to meet today's delivery challenges and to be ready for tomorrow's.

The reviews will consider capability in the Civil Service in three key areas - leadership, strategy and delivery. Each review aims to identify where departments need to improve and will include key actions which will address these areas.

In addition to these two further reviews, the National School of Government's Sunningdale Institute has been commissioned to undertake an Evaluation of the programme as a whole, exploring the process and impact and recommending how it might develop at the next stage.

The Cabinet Secretary Sir Gus O'Donnell said: 'We are well underway with the Capability Review programme now, and we remain determined to develop a world class Civil Service for the 21st century.

'We have already published the findings of 15 departments' reviews. As well as recognising the areas where departments do well these reviews demonstrated where we need to improve. The departments are now implementing challenging plans to address these areas. The Cabinet Office will continue to review progress and provide support to help ensure departments are on track to deliver and I expect the Sunningdale Institute's programme-wide evaluation to inform the future of Capability Reviews and the next phase of Civil Service reform'.

The review teams have been drawn from the private sector, the wider public sector and board-level members of other government departments.

HM Treasury's Capability Review will take place after the Comprehensive Spending Review 2007 and findings of both reviews announced today will be published this winter.

Note for editors:

1. More information about the Capability Reviews is available at.
http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/capabilityreviews.

2. Each review is carried out by the Capability Reviews Team in the Cabinet Office with a team of external reviewers.

3. The Capability Reviews for the Department for Constitutional Affairs, Department for Education and Skills, Home Office and Department for Work and Pensions, Cabinet Office, Department for Communities and Local Government and Department for Trade and Industry, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Ministry of Defence, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Department for International Development, Crown Prosecution Service, Department for Transport and Department of Health have all been published.

4. The Sunningdale Institute is a virtual academy of leading thinkers on organisation, management and governance offering practical wisdom on these matters to Government. Fellows of the Institute are from universities and business schools, think-tanks and other agencies. They provide a variety of interventions aimed at helping to improve public service and policy outcomes. The Sunningdale Institute is part of the National School of Government. http://www.nationalschool.gov.uk

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