Opportunities

It is difficult to establish a comprehensive public accountability framework for Auckland and to fully assess how well the public sector is performing in the region. To help address this, we suggest the following opportunities for central and local government to support more place-based reporting on Auckland for Aucklanders:

1. Provide a clear outline of outcomes central and local government are looking to achieve in Auckland.
   An agreed set of outcomes would provide a basis for the public sector to align its priorities, investments, and work in Auckland. It would also provide a framework for public organisations to report their performance and progress against.
2. Provide an overview of the key activities, programmes, and investments in Auckland. An overview of the work the public sector is carrying out in Auckland would be an effective way to keep the public informed of the investments that public organisations are making in the region. This should be kept up to date and outline:
   • clear links to any strategic outcomes sought in Auckland;
   • roles and responsibilities; and
   • budget, spending, benefits, and time frames.
3. Provide more detailed and regular performance reporting.
   Public organisations delivering services in Auckland could usefully consider how to prepare and provide more place-based reporting on their performance and make it easier to access.
   
   As a starting point, public organisations could consider how to provide more detail on their regional spending in more open and accessible ways. They could also look to improve reporting on the progress they are making to deliver outcomes for Aucklanders.

In Part 3 of this report, we highlight examples of approaches public organisations are already using to report their non-financial performance in Auckland. In Part 4, we further discuss the three opportunities to support more place-based reporting.