Partner Article

Public sector productivity boost could save the North East £72 million per year

Improved productivity in the North East’s public services could save £72 million per year, according to The State of the State 2014 a report by business advisory firm Deloitte and Reform, a think tank.

In the report, Deloitte and Reform call on the public sector to make better use of technology, demand management and reformed working practices to find savings.

In the North East, Deloitte calculates that saving one percent of public sector workforce time through productivity measures could create savings; for the UK as a whole, £1.64 billion could be saved.

Lead partner for local public sector at Deloitte in the North, Jay Bevington, said: “We are just halfway through the deficit reduction plan, and the next half will be the more difficult part.

“The next Spending Review will be the defining moment for the North East’s public services.

“Key to making the remaining savings is thinking again about how our public services are designed and delivered.

“Productivity is a challenge for the whole economy, but in the public sector we’ve only ever got more from public services by spending more.

“Meeting the challenges of the future, increased demand, particularly in areas such as health, with less money, requires new ways of working.

“Those running public services in the North East need to think about how, where and when public servants work to ensure time and resources are allocated as efficiently as possible.

“This means looking at how to make better use of technology, looking at how to manage the level of demand on services and introducing new working practices, including flexible working and reshaping the property footprint of our public services.”

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