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In recent years, substantial changes have been implemented to the audit regimes for local authorities in several countries. Following the abolishment of the Audit Commission, a unique regime for the audit of local authorities has emerged in England, with external audit now fully conducted by private sector audit firms. Auditor appointments for the vast majority of local authorities are now managed by a new organisation, Public Sector Audit Appointments Limited (PSAA). Drawing on the determinants of audit credibility developed by Funnell, Wade and Jupe (2016), this paper examines how local authority stakeholders in the transformed landscape of local public audit in England perceive audit credibility, including the role of PSAA and other audit stakeholders. Findings show that the impact of current arrangements is positively perceived by stakeholders in relation to auditors' technical competence and independence, at least in the short term, however significant concern is found amongst stakeholders regarding the usefulness of local public audits. Compared to Funnell et al. (2016), we ascribe these differences to the different context of audit in English local government and suggest the relative weighting of determinants of audit credibility are contingent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The abolition of the Audit Commission in England raises questions about how a major reform was achieved with so little controversy, why the agency lacked the institutional stickiness commonly described in the literature on organisational reform and why it did not strategise to survive. In this paper, we apply argumentative discourse analysis to rich empirical data to reveal the pattern and evolution of storylines and discourse coalitions, and the ways in which these interact with and affect the practices of Parliament, the media and the Audit Commission itself. Our analysis shows that the politics of administrative reform are as much about discursive framing and the ability of pro-reformers to gain discursive structuration and institutionalisation as they are about the material resources available to a newly elected government and its ministers. Questions of technical feasibility are unlikely to derail a reform initiative once its promoters gain discursive ascendency. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article considers the implications for local public audit of the abolition of the Audit Commission and its audit practice (District Audit). The audit regime of NHS foundation trusts, where the Audit Commission is not responsible for auditor appointments or their oversight, is investigated to provide insights for the future of local public audit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the role of regulators in the UK in integrating sustainable development into public services. In particular, how can we explain the different ways in which different regulators engage with sustainable development? Drawing on insights from rational choice and sociological institutionalism, this paper explains the responses of the three regulators operating in local government, schools and healthcare. It finds that, central government's failure both to send out clear signals about how to promote sustainable development and to create incentives to ensure it happens has left the integration of sustainable development mediated by regulators' organizational norms and professional identities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article evaluates the recent regulatory relations of the English Audit Commission with local government. The commission's Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA) initiative, which was central in defining this relationship, is taken as the key policy object. The appraisal explores the commission's performance on its own positivistic terms, focusing on the behavioral and cultural theories, institutional assumptions, and rational presumptions underpinning CPA measurement. These three yardsticks are used to trace the overall consequences of CPA's eight judgmental years on the local government polity. Noting the tenacity of positivist thinking in English government, the argument examines two counterfactual regulatory possibilities based on the diverging readings provided by interpretivism and relational materiality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the enactment of New Labour's sustainable development agenda in 1999, English local authorities have been placed at the helm of a variety of devolved localism initiatives designed to foster sustainable communities that contribute to a high quality of life for existing and future generations. This paper considers the scale of the challenge that confronts local authorities in terms of attaining these outcomes, by drawing attention to their current quality of life situation. The baseline conditions in question are measured by reference to the Audit Commission's local quality of life indicators dataset, which it compiled in 2005 from a range of existing local government performance indicators. The dataset is subjected to k-means clustering and principal components analysis to assess how far English local authorities measure up to Labour's sustainable communities ideal and to highlight the type and degree of quality of life disparity that exists between them. The results from the analysis are used to evaluate the feasibility of Labour's devolved localism approach to sustainable community formation and to provide important insights to local policy makers responsible for fostering sustainable communities. The implications of the findings for future research are also considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Audit Commission has produced a review of the Supporting People programme covering the period 2005-2009. This article summarises the review, which covers the impact of the Supporting People programme, a review of the Government's response to the Audit Commission's 2005 report, an assessment of ongoing and new challenges and options for overcoming identified barriers. Although there is evidence of poor understanding and implementation in some areas, overall the benefits of good housing-related support services and their preventative value remain important. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the role of the Audit Commission (AC) in local government collective bargaining. While the AC has no official role in such bargaining, it has a role in monitoring the performance of local government services. In this role the AC has a clear potential, in the context of the government's 'modernization' agenda- as manifested in its 'Best Value' regime, for influencing both the content of collective agreements, and the process of collective bargaining, where these are seen to conflict with other Best Value objectives- particularly in relation to external competition. The research conducted involved a content analysis of AC inspection reports on human resource services and longitudinal case studies of two local authority union branches' experiences of Best Value and the role of the AC. The findings from the inspection reports indicate that, while the AC is actually acting to promote activities that could be seen as supportive of union bargaining agendas, notably in relation to equality type issues, they are also supporting service externalisation and thereby acting to limit the scope of their impact. The reports also indicate that, despite there being prescribed 'best practice' for local government employment relations ('social partnership' with unions), the AC is not promoting any such engagement with unions. Evidence from the case studies add weight to these observations: the AC, in one case, was deeply suspicious of an attempted union management agreement on procurement, while in the other, the AC made no criticism of the costly effects that externalization had on union-management relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the findings of the recent Audit Commission report. Crime and disorder reduction partnerships (CDRPs) need a sound understanding of what makes people safe in a particular area. The report identifies some positive achievements and ways in which agencies can improve further in the light of new policy developments in neighborhood policing and community safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reflects on the findings of a questionnaire survey of senior local government internal auditors. The questionnaire elicited views of the internal auditors on the usefulness of the comparative performance information and national reports produced by the Audit Commission. It also asked about perceptions of the emerging audit regime proposed under best value. The findings suggest that internal audit is not wholly convinced about the usefulness of the outputs of their external audit counterparts and do not expect to see major positive impacts as a result of the extended role of external monitoring proposed under best value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights the role played by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), The Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA), the Treadway Commission, and other professional organizations in furthering the establishment of audit committees in the USA. In the international arena, the UK Cadbury Committee, the Australian Borsch Committee, and the Canadian Macdonald Commission have influenced the widespread use of corporate audit committees in their respective countries. The guidelines on audit committees set by the IIA, AICPA, SEC, and the Treadway Commission have had a tremendous impact worldwide. Cultural differences may, however, limit the formation and effectiveness of audit committees globally even though auditing is a relatively homogeneous profession. The Institute of Internal Auditors, as an international professional association, may wish to consider the cultural dimensions of corporate governance in formulating professional internal auditing standards dealing with the structure and functions of audit committees internationally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents abstracts of articles discussed within the issue including "Personal Intelligences--The Fourth Pillar of School Principalship?," by Alex Schneider and Neil Burton, "Researching Academies in England," by Helen Gunter, Philip Woods and Glenys Woods, and "Supporting Governing Bodies With Effective Clerking," by David Sassoon.