Annex 3: The National Audit Office methodology
1. Examination of implementation of recommendations
from the previous NAO report
We examined how the Commission
have implemented the recommendations of our previous report, "The
Electoral Commission's Public Awareness Strategy", which
focused on campaigns in the 2002-03 year, and highlighted any
further work required.
- We have presented the finding from this work
as an annex to the report.
2. Examination of key campaigns in the year
We looked at the larger
campaigns such as the General Election (planning began in 2004-05)
and the June 2004 elections.
We reviewed business cases
for larger campaigns and spoke to the campaign managers. We also
reviewed the related documents such as the evaluation reports
and research papers.
This methodology covered:
- why the campaigns were identified
- research for specific campaigns
- targeting of the campaigns
- media used in the campaigns
- managing the projects
- measuring the results of the campaigns
- successes and failures of the campaigns, and
lessons learned
3. How the Commission compares to other organisations
As part of examining specific
campaigns, we compared the Commission's campaigns to government
departments' public awareness work (e.g. DoH). We also looked
at international comparators.
We spoke to government departments
including the Central Office of Information. We carried out research
on overseas organisations and reviewed the Commission's own work
on international comparisons.
This methodology covered:
- costs of campaigns and outcomes
- activities used to promote public awareness by
other organisations
- international comparators with other Commissions
4. How third parties view the work of the Commission
We looked at how external
bodies view the Commission's campaigns. We spoke to organisations
that the Commission has worked with to get their feedback on the
effectiveness of its campaigns.
This methodology covered:
- Whether the campaign was effective at increasing
interest in voting
- Whether the campaign was well-targeted
- Whether the campaign could have done more
5. How the Commission work with third parties
The Commission work with
third parties for many of its activities, such as the Prince's
Trust, DCA, the Foyer Association and the Hansard Society. We
examined how the Commission manage these relationships to ensure
that it meets its objectives. We also drew on the NAO's own experience
of working with stakeholders and recommendations made in NAO reports.
This methodology covered:
- managing and sustaining relationships
- provision of funding—targeting it
- linking back to the Commission's objectives
- early engagement
- partnership funding
6. Looking forward - the future plans for section
13 work
We examined what progress
the Commission has made and its plans for future public awareness,
highlighting good practice and lessons learned (or to be learned).
For example, we looked at the Commission's plans to move away
from awarding grants under the New Initiatives Fund towards other
ways of working with stakeholders.
This methodology covered:
- Changes since 2002-03
- The Commission's future campaign plans and strategies
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