Recommendation 22

Small bodies told us that shared corporate services do not always suit them. The Office of the Children’s Commissioner told us that delivering back-office functions, such as payroll, in-house allows it to operate more flexibly, at very low cost, and with fewer processes than by using shared services.49 A submission by the Pubs Code Adjudicator stated that reliance on its parent department’s HR support can exacerbate its challenges in recruiting staff with the right skills and experience in a timely way.50 The Government Actuary’s Department explained that it procured its own accounting system rather than adopting its sponsor department’s accounting system, which 42 Qq 3 and 16 43 Qq 9, 11 and 37 44 Letter from the Ministry of Justice, 4 February 2026 45 Cabinet Office, Guidance on the undertaking of Reviews of Public Bodies, updated 25 April 2024, para. 63 46 Q 76 47 Qq 4, 15, 71 and 76 48 C&AG’s Report, para 1.17 49 Qq 13 and 35 50 Pubs Code Adjudicator (SGB0007) 12 lacked the timesheet functionality it requires. Procuring its own system was cheaper than adding this functionality to the sponsor department’s system.51 51 Qq 40–42 13