Recommendations & Conclusions
14 items
2
Conclusion
Twenty-Sixth Report - The BBC’s impleme…
Accepted
The BBC has not assessed how the changes it has made to the scope of Across the UK will affect the overall shape of the programme and the benefits it is intended to deliver. Since the BBC’s announcement in March 2021, it has changed the composition of projects that make …
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The BBC has not assessed how the changes it has made to the scope of Across the UK will affect the overall shape of the programme and the benefits it is intended to deliver. Since the BBC’s announcement in March 2021, it has changed the composition of projects that make up the Across the UK programme. For example, it has removed from the scope of the programme its original plan to build a network of 100 digital community reporters, as well as the planned relocation of the BBC Concert Orchestra outside London. The BBC will need to find other ways to move its audio spend in order to compensate for these decisions and hit its target to spend 50% of its audio expenditure outside London. But the BBC did not understand well enough the risks and impacts of these changes in scope and so the nature of the expenditure it moves outside London by the end of the programme could look quite different from what it planned at the outset. Changes the BBC is making to services locally could also disadvantage certain groups. In particular, and although no longer part of Across the UK, we are concerned that the BBC’s reallocation of budgets from local radio to local online services and more sharing of weekday programmes will, in effect, reduce services for people who are older or less able to access digital online platforms. Recommendation 2: Where the BBC has made changes to Across the UK by bringing activities in and out of scope, it should compare current delivery and future forecast delivery against its original plan so that it can spell out any differences in the overall benefits to be delivered. It should refresh this analysis on an ongoing basis.
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Government response AI summary
The BBC agrees, stating that ATUK programme benefits are updated monthly as part of programme reporting, with significant changes managed through a control process and all forecasts and actuals compared to a programme baseline.
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HM Treasury
4
Conclusion
Twenty-Sixth Report - The BBC’s impleme…
Accepted
The BBC’s reporting of Across the UK does not provide Parliament nor the public with a complete picture of progress with the programme, and risks causing confusion. The BBC considered its internal governance of programmes to be tight and specific, but in its public communication of its progress with Across …
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The BBC’s reporting of Across the UK does not provide Parliament nor the public with a complete picture of progress with the programme, and risks causing confusion. The BBC considered its internal governance of programmes to be tight and specific, but in its public communication of its progress with Across the UK it sets out its ambitions and how it meets its public purposes more broadly. The BBC told us it considered the relocation of its Birmingham premises from The Mailbox to Digbeth as a separate project from Across the UK yet it included its benefits as part of Across the UK in its 2022–23 Annual Report and Accounts. The BBC stands by its presentation of activity in this way. We are concerned that the BBC is claiming benefits for Across the UK publicly when it is favourable for it to do so for activities that are not part of the programme, compared with dissociating other activities from the programme when they could be seen as a bad news story, such as cuts to local radio. Recommendation 4: To improve transparency, in future public reporting on Across the UK, including its next Annual Report and Accounts, the BBC should align its reporting of progress on implementation so that its external and internal reporting on Across the UK are consistent with each other.
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Government response AI summary
The BBC has already implemented the recommendation by making changes to its 2023-24 Annual Report and Accounts, including clearly labelling Across the UK Programme content and separating it from other activities, and adding new performance data.
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HM Treasury
5
Conclusion
Twenty-Sixth Report - The BBC’s impleme…
Accepted
The BBC’s plans for evaluating Across the UK are incomplete and it does not have in place an overall approach for assessing impact. To assess Across the UK, the BBC planned to measure changes to audience perception as well as additional economic benefits such as jobs created. However, it lacked …
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The BBC’s plans for evaluating Across the UK are incomplete and it does not have in place an overall approach for assessing impact. To assess Across the UK, the BBC planned to measure changes to audience perception as well as additional economic benefits such as jobs created. However, it lacked a comprehensive framework that pulled together its different measures to give the overall picture of the programme’s impact. At this stage of the programme, we would have expected the BBC to already have a benefits management strategy and plan in place. Despite starting the programme in 2021, the BBC did not expect to develop its evaluation plan until the second phase of the programme and would not evaluate until 2025. This will be too late for it to understand the impact the programme is having, to make any changes it may need to make, and to realise the benefits from any changes. The BBC has not articulated what success will look like, nor does it have standardised measures of success for its regional hubs in terms of local impact and generating economic growth. The BBC spoke of the recent publication of an evaluation of Doctor Who’s economic impact in Wales following its re-launch in The BBC’s implementation of Across the UK 7 2005 in Cardiff. That was not part of Across the UK, but the BBC would not commit to undertaking comparable evaluations of economic impact for the regional hubs where Across the UK is focused. Recommendation 5: The BBC should urgently set out a framework that brings together how it will consistently measure all of the tangible, beneficial impacts of Across the UK for audiences and in generating local economic growth.
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Government response AI summary
The BBC states it has adapted its benefits tracking into an integrated tracker and, since Phase 2 commenced in April 2023, has approved full measurement frameworks for audience and economic impact, sharing them with the NAO. It continues to gather economic impact data and will …
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HM Treasury
6
Recommendation
Twenty-Sixth Report - The BBC’s impleme…
Accepted
The BBC has not fully grasped the significance of the other bodies and communities it needs to work with effectively and which are crucial to the success of Across the UK. As part of Across the UK, the BBC has established partnerships with local authorities, combined authorities and local industry …
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The BBC has not fully grasped the significance of the other bodies and communities it needs to work with effectively and which are crucial to the success of Across the UK. As part of Across the UK, the BBC has established partnerships with local authorities, combined authorities and local industry bodies. The BBC highlighted the value of local partners to the delivery of Across the UK and the work it does, but its evidence is contradictory. The BBC said it wanted partners to bring in investment but also insisted it could deliver Across the UK without them. It also claimed its plans are unaffected by the cancellation of the planned HS2 train line between Birmingham and Manchester. Several local authorities are close to declaring themselves bankrupt and may have to withdraw some local services, yet the BBC did not understood the full impact of these financial pressures and lacked contingency plans if local partners have to pull out. Furthermore, although Across the UK is designed to change the culture of the BBC and will have a significant impact on many staff, the BBC did not collect data on what its staff think about the programme. Recommendation 6: As part of its response to this report, the BBC should set out: • how it will identify and monitor the impact of any sudden or unexpected changes to commitments from its external partners, and what contingency plans it has for such uncertainties. • how it will engage more fully with its staff to understand and take account of their views to make its implementation of Across the UK a success. 8 The BBC’s implementation of Across the UK 1 The intended benefits of Across the UK
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Government response AI summary
The BBC committed to engaging with staff by analysing staff survey results by location, engaging with divisional teams and regional leadership as part of a midpoint review, and conducting post-implementation reviews for relocations. It clarified that specific ATUK questions are not included in the main …
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HM Treasury
1
Conclusion
Twenty-Sixth Report - The BBC’s impleme…
Accepted
On the basis of a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, we took evidence from the BBC on its implementation of its Across the UK programme.1
Government response AI summary
The BBC responded by stating its confidence that the Across the UK programme will exceed its financial and economic benefit targets, detailing existing success and benefits measures, and describing the positive impact on programming and regional economic growth.
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HM Treasury
9
Conclusion
Twenty-Sixth Report - The BBC’s impleme…
Accepted
In June 2023, the BBC announced that its Concert Orchestra would not be moving outside London as it had originally planned. The relocation would have transferred £23 million of audio expenditure outside London. The BBC will need to find other audio expenditure to transfer if it is to meet its …
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In June 2023, the BBC announced that its Concert Orchestra would not be moving outside London as it had originally planned. The relocation would have transferred £23 million of audio expenditure outside London. The BBC will need to find other audio expenditure to transfer if it is to meet its target to increase its audio expenditure outside London to 50% and its overall target of £700 million. The NAO found in November 2023 that the BBC was developing a phase two business case with plans to address these challenges and ensure it would meet its targets, but that these were not yet finalised. We therefore asked the BBC whether it still expected to be able to deliver the overall shape of the £700 million as it originally planned. The BBC told us that, while it was behind on its audio target, it was still holding its radio, music and audio teams to its target to deliver 50% of expenditure outside London. It told us that it was confident that this would be addressed and that it would achieve its headline target for audio expenditure. It explained that changes to the scope of this element of the programme had allowed it to announce new plans, such as those for the additional audit hub for Glasgow and Belfast.15
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Government response AI summary
The gap in the program expenditure caused by the decision to not relocate the BBC Concert Orchestra has been closed as a result of additional activity included in the Radio & Music business case approved in May 2024.
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HM Treasury
12
Conclusion
Twenty-Sixth Report - The BBC’s impleme…
Accepted
The BBC met many, but not all, of the specific targets that it set for phase one of Across the UK to the end of March 2023. By March 2023, the BBC had already commissioned 110 new and returning drama and comedy programmes reflecting communities outside London, against a target …
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The BBC met many, but not all, of the specific targets that it set for phase one of Across the UK to the end of March 2023. By March 2023, the BBC had already commissioned 110 new and returning drama and comedy programmes reflecting communities outside London, against a target of 100 commissions by March 2028. Of these, 68 programmes have already been aired on television, 29 of which specifically portray the devolved nations, including Sherwood, Happy Valley, Control Room, Bloodlands, Two Doors Down, and The Outlaws. The BBC achieved its phase one target for transferring employment outside London, moving jobs equivalent to 291 full-time posts against a target of 288.5. It also agreed two published memoranda of understanding (with West Midlands Combined Authority and Create Central) setting out how to better serve local audiences and creative economies.20 The BBC described its transfer of TV production expenditure as “a good result”, increasing the percentage of its budget spent outside London from 50% in March 2021 to 58% by March 2023, against a target of 60% by December 2027. However, the BBC missed its interim target for its key measure for the programme of transferring £700 million outside London. The BBC planned to transfer £87.5 million outside London by the end of March 2023, transferring £67.5 million by this date.21
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Government response AI summary
The response states that because of the £700 million financial benefit created by the programme, Licence Fee payers have seen significant changes to programming, and 60% of network television spend is already outside London.
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HM Treasury
13
Recommendation
Twenty-Sixth Report - The BBC’s impleme…
Accepted
The BBC’s initial lack of planning resulted in unrealistic timelines for some areas of the programme, such as moving roles and local recruitment. It took three months for it to catch up and meet its target for transferring overall expenditure outside London, achieving its target by the end of June …
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The BBC’s initial lack of planning resulted in unrealistic timelines for some areas of the programme, such as moving roles and local recruitment. It took three months for it to catch up and meet its target for transferring overall expenditure outside London, achieving its target by the end of June 2023.22 We therefore asked the BBC how confident it was that it would meet its targets for the remainder of the programme. The BBC repeatedly told us that it was confident of hitting its targets for Across the UK, in particular its overall target of transferring an additional £700 million of expenditure outside London between 2021 and 2028.23 The BBC explained that it was confident because delivery of its transfer expenditure target was in its gift and it had enough time to achieve this. It also explained that, since meeting its phase one target to transfer overall expenditure, it had continued to accelerate its delivery against this. The NAO found that the BBC planned to over-deliver against its transfer of television production outside London, and had identified £90 million of additional television production expenditure which it would transfer by March 2028. The BBC had yet to include this additional £90 million in its forecasts.24
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Government response AI summary
The BBC has accelerated delivery of the programme, including the realization of financial benefits, and met its Phase One financial benefit target by June 2023, just one quarter behind plan. Target implementation date is December 2025.
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HM Treasury
14
Conclusion
Twenty-Sixth Report - The BBC’s impleme…
Accepted
The BBC recognised that it was behind schedule with its plans to transfer audio expenditure outside London. By March 2023, the BBC spent 41% of its expenditure on network audio production outside London, an increase of just 1 percentage point compared with 40% in March 2020. Having transferred 1 percentage …
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The BBC recognised that it was behind schedule with its plans to transfer audio expenditure outside London. By March 2023, the BBC spent 41% of its expenditure on network audio production outside London, an increase of just 1 percentage point compared with 40% in March 2020. Having transferred 1 percentage point of expenditure in 4 years, it needed to transfer a further 9 percentage points of spend in the next 5 years to reach its target expenditure of 50% by March 2028. The BBC said it was working through its plans for how it would get back on track with its planned transfer of audio expenditure and it did not expect to have these plans in place until early 2024–25.25 20 C&AG’s Report, paras 2.5, 2.11, 2.14, 2.18, Figure 6 21 Q 18; C&AG’s report, paras 2.5–2.6, 2.8 22 Qq 18, 70; C&AG’s report, para 2.6 23 Qq 18, 26, 45, 69, 73 24 Qq 69–70; C&AG’s report, paras 2.6, 2.8 3.5 25 Q 18, 26, 72–73; C&AG’s report, para 2.9 The BBC’s implementation of Across the UK 13
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Government response AI summary
The BBC states that its Radio and Music business plan was approved in May 2024 and is on track to deliver its contribution to the programme, including achieving 50% of network spend outside of London.
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HM Treasury
18
Recommendation
Twenty-Sixth Report - The BBC’s impleme…
Accepted
We asked the BBC if it understood why there was public confusion about what Across the UK did, and did not, include. We observed that a member of the public might think that when something related to the decentralisation of activity brought benefits, the BBC claimed the benefits as part …
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We asked the BBC if it understood why there was public confusion about what Across the UK did, and did not, include. We observed that a member of the public might think that when something related to the decentralisation of activity brought benefits, the BBC claimed the benefits as part of Across the UK, but when, for example, radio shows were being cancelled, the BBC appeared not to want to associate this with Across the UK as it was a bad news story. The BBC said it could understand the risk, and that these were valid concerns, but told us that it thought that it had made the right calls in these areas. The BBC acknowledged that there was a difference between how it communicated about Across the UK externally and its internal management, which it considered to be tight and specific with Across the UK managed separately from other change programmes. It explained that it considered its management and governance of programmes to be clear so that it could demonstrate the change in benefits or scope of individual programmes, but that when it communicated broadly, using tools such as its Annual Report, it aimed to set out its “overall ambitions and how we are meeting the wider public purposes”. It recognised, however, that its approach might cause confusion regarding what projects are included in Across the UK and which are not.30 28 Qq 29, 39, 40; BBC0001 Written evidence submitted by National World plc, 19 February 2024; BBC0002 Written evidence submitted by News Media Association, 19 February 2024 29 Qq 38–39, 60; C&AG’s report, para 2.4 30 Qq 38–41, 60 The BBC’s implementation of Across the UK 15 3 Challenges for the future Evaluating benefits and impact
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Government response AI summary
The BBC has made changes to the BBC Annual Report and Accounts for Financial Year 2023-24 to clearly label narrative and statistics that relate to the Across the UK Programme and separate these from other pan-UK activity, and has included additional performance data.
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HM Treasury
19
Conclusion
Twenty-Sixth Report - The BBC’s impleme…
Accepted
In October 2021, the BBC agreed a phased approach to evaluating Across the UK. According to this plan, the BBC would not develop its methodology for evaluating Across the UK until phase two of the programme (April 2023 to the end of March 2025) and would not start measuring impact …
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In October 2021, the BBC agreed a phased approach to evaluating Across the UK. According to this plan, the BBC would not develop its methodology for evaluating Across the UK until phase two of the programme (April 2023 to the end of March 2025) and would not start measuring impact until phase three (April 2025 to the end of March 2028). Its October 2021 baseline plan included high-level metrics to measure improvements in audience portrayals and added economic value to the creative and production sectors, but lacked detail. The BBC is now in phase two of the programme where, as it planned, it will develop its main methodologies for measuring benefits and impacts.31
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Government response AI summary
The BBC has strengthened its management of programme benefits, introducing a refreshed approach to programme management including a new integrated benefits tracker and full measurement frameworks for audience and economic impact.
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HM Treasury
21
Conclusion
Twenty-Sixth Report - The BBC’s impleme…
Accepted
We asked the BBC what precisely it would measure as part of its evaluation. It told us that it had developed frameworks for measuring two key criteria for the evaluation – the audiences framework and the economic framework. It explained that as part of the economic framework it had developed …
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We asked the BBC what precisely it would measure as part of its evaluation. It told us that it had developed frameworks for measuring two key criteria for the evaluation – the audiences framework and the economic framework. It explained that as part of the economic framework it had developed a baseline against which it would be measuring its local gross value added.34 We asked the BBC why it was developing two separate evaluation strands to assess its main, intended impacts (audience perception and economic growth) rather than bringing them together. The BBC told us that the two plans sat under the programme director, but otherwise did not explain how they formed an overall framework for evaluating Across the UK.35 In written evidence provided after the session, the BBC said its baseline year for all evaluation measures was the financial year 2019–20.36 The BBC acknowledged it would need to collect better data to understand the later stages of the programme and its impacts in the regions.37
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Government response AI summary
The BBC has strengthened its management of programme benefits, introducing a refreshed approach to programme management including a new integrated benefits tracker.
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HM Treasury
24
Recommendation
Twenty-Sixth Report - The BBC’s impleme…
Accepted
We asked the BBC about the potential impact on Across the UK of issues within local government finance, given that several local authorities were reportedly close to declaring themselves bankrupt, or had already in effect done so, and may have to withdraw some local services. In light of current financial …
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We asked the BBC about the potential impact on Across the UK of issues within local government finance, given that several local authorities were reportedly close to declaring themselves bankrupt, or had already in effect done so, and may have to withdraw some local services. In light of current financial pressures on various local councils, we asked the BBC what contingency plans it had in place if a significant partner had to pull out owing to lack of funding. The BBC could not explain to us any contingency plans it had in place. Instead, it told us that while it did not take the state of public finances lightly, unlike big infrastructure projects Across the UK only required small levels of funding from individual local partners. It gave us the example of its North East partnership, where 12 local authorities and 3 combined authorities were expected to contribute a combined total of £10 to £15 million, and the BBC would contribute £25 million. Furthermore, it asserted that even without investment from local partners it could still deliver Across the UK. The BBC told us that it mainly needed local authorities in order to help attract private investment and creative leaders, rather than to invest their own cash.42 Similarly, given 38 Qq 68, 97; C&AG’s Report para 1.8 39 Qq 25, 45, 49, 50, 51–54 40 Q 93 41 Qq 13, 21–23, 26, 81, 83, 91–92 42 Qq 87–90 The BBC’s implementation of Across the UK 17 that the West Midlands was one of the BBC’s key regions of activity, we asked the BBC about the impact of major changes to infrastructure projects, in particular the cancellation of the High Speed 2 (HS2) train line between Birmingham and Manchester. The BBC told us that in many respects its activities in Birmingham were unaffected by the withdrawal of the northern leg of HS2 and it would continue to deliver the benefits of Across the UK in the West Midlands.43
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Government response AI summary
The Across the UK programme board is in regular dialogue with external partners to ensure the BBC is fully across any anticipated future issues related to delivery and the BBC continues to monitor the financial position of local partners.
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HM Treasury
25
Recommendation
Twenty-Sixth Report - The BBC’s impleme…
Accepted
We asked the BBC what specific data its management had to tell it what its staff thought about Across the UK. It told us it did not have any specific data but said it had a comprehensive staff survey where it looked at how people felt in each location and …
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We asked the BBC what specific data its management had to tell it what its staff thought about Across the UK. It told us it did not have any specific data but said it had a comprehensive staff survey where it looked at how people felt in each location and provided “world-class data on staff engagement”. We asked why it did not collect specific data given the clear importance the BBC attached to Across the UK, the fact it was designed to change the culture of the BBC and its disruptive nature for some of its London-based staff. The BBC told us it had an appropriate system in place which it considered proportionate, and that it focused on “good leadership” rather than surveys.44 The BBC was also unable to tell us at what point it engaged with its staff and musicians regarding the proposed relocation of the Concert Orchestra and could not explain its decision-making process. In written evidence provided after the session, the BBC confirmed it engaged with the Concert Orchestra musicians, management and production in October 2021, some six months after the move was announced in March 2021.45 43 Qq 94–96 44 Qq 84–85 45 Qq 33–37; Letter dated 1 March 2024 from Tim Davie, Director General, BBC, to Dame Meg Hillier, Chair, Committee of Public Accounts, dated 1 March 2024, page 3 18 The BBC’s implementation of Across the UK
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Government response AI summary
The BBC will improve monitoring of staff views by analysing staff survey results by base/location, engaging with divisional teams and regional base leadership for feedback as part of the midpoint review, and conducting post-implementation reviews for divisional relocations. Target implementation date is December 2025.
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HM Treasury