Using Performance Networks in the national frameworks across the devolved governments

Debbie Johns, Head of APSE Performance Networks, details how using Performance Networks in the national frameworks is a critical tool for local government.

The financial context

Councils are operating in an increasingly fragile financial environment. While recent settlements have provided some welcome funding increases, many frontline services remain below pre-austerity funding levels, with demand continuing to rise. The Institute for Government and CIPFA have warned that public services are now in a weaker position than in 2010, meaning any further cuts would be more damaging and harder to deliver.

The Local Government Association estimates that cost and demand pressures could add £21.4 billion to the cost of delivering council services by 2028/29. Even accounting for new funding streams, councils face a projected funding gap rising to £8.4 billion by the end of the decade. In this context, a continued focus on value for money is unavoidable.

At APSE’s Performance Networks Seminar in December 2025, CIPFA highlighted a challenging outlook for local government finances, including unprecedented funding redistribution, continued growth in demand for key services, increased reliance on exceptional financial support, and a growing emphasis on data, benchmarking and scenario planning. For frontline services, the message was clear: understand your baseline, know your numbers and bring performance and finance together.

Using benchmarking to evidence Best Value 

Performance measurement is a critical tool for identifying efficiencies and evidencing value for money. APSE Performance Networks enables councils to compare performance with similar authorities, set realistic targets over time, monitor trends across cost, productivity, outputs and outcomes, and identify areas for challenge and improvement.

Benchmarking supports informed decision-making by helping councils understand why performance is changing. For example, whether cost increases reflect inefficiency or deliberate investment. By highlighting good practice that can be shared across the sector, it also provides a strong evidence base for elected members, auditors and the public.

Supporting national and developed frameworks 

Across the UK, new national performance and accountability frameworks are emerging. While APSE Performance Networks is primarily a local improvement tool rather than a mechanism designed to mirror national reporting, its data can increasingly be used as supporting evidence.

In England, APSE has been engaging with MHCLG on the proposed Local Government Outcomes Framework, which is intended to monitor progress against national priorities and the Best Value duty. Given Performance Networks’ origins in Best Value, the framework provides an opportunity for councils to use benchmarking data voluntarily to support their reporting.

In Scotland, reform of the National Performance Framework is underway, and APSE will work with councils to ensure Performance Networks continues to support any new requirements. In Wales, APSE has been liaising with Data Cymru on opportunities for Performance Networks data to complement the Self-Assessment Performance Dataset and associated performance profiles. In Northern Ireland, APSE has played a leading role in supporting councils to meet statutory duties around continuous improvement and comparative performance, including the development of new Power BI reports for core indicators.

Looking ahead 

Local government reorganisation in England adds further importance to robust performance data. APSE has developed a lighter-touch benchmarking module to help authorities baseline performance before, during and after transition, providing evidence of impact and supporting service integration in new councils.

As W. Edwards Deming famously observed, “Without data, you’re just another person with an opinion.” In an era of financial constraint, service transformation and increasing scrutiny, APSE Performance Networks remains a vital tool; helping councils understand where they are, where they are going, and how best to deliver high-quality, value-for-money services for their communities.

For further information on APSE Performance Networks, please contact [email protected].

Established to support the development of the statutory Best Value duty, APSE Performance Networks has been benchmarking frontline local authority services for over 27 years. The service provides robust, well-established processes for collecting, validating and reporting performance data, underpinned by consistency, reliability and rigorous error checking. Today, more than 170 local authorities across the UK participate annually, making Performance Networks one of the most trusted sources of comparative local government performance data.