Useful links for developing appraisals

General links

The Green Book

The full text of the 2003 Her Majesty's Treasury (HMT) Green Book: appraisal and evaluation in central government, is available at this site, together with supplementary guidance on a variety of relevant issues.

DoF Accountability & Financial Management Division

Contains all current letters of guidance and other resources including Managing Public Money Northern Ireland (MPMNI).

Her Majesty's Treasury

Provides a wide range of information and resources on current economic and financial issues including pages on the UK economy, the budget, the spending review, economic data and tools, public spending and reporting and many other related subjects.

The Northern Ireland Executive

Explains the role of the Executive and its work including the Programme for Government (PfG).

List of Northern Ireland's main central and local government bodies

Contains links to Northern Ireland's central government departments, district councils and other public bodies.

Policy appraisal and evaluation

The Policy Toolkit

Developed by The Executive Office (TEO), this toolkit provides a practical overview of the policy development process. It consists of a number of workbooks covering key steps in the process, such as justification and set-up, developing and analysing the evidence base, identifying and appraising policy options, impact assessment and the consultation process.

A Practical Guide to Policy Making in Northern Ireland

Published by TEO in 2003, this guide sets out key principles for good policy-making with practical advice on applying them in Northern Ireland

The Cabinet Office

Provides information on a wide range of current UK policy issues including the big society, national security, constitutional reform and government efficiency, among others.

The Magenta Book

Government Social Research Unit guide to the evaluation methods used by social researchers, economists and statisticians.

Multi-criteria analysis and impact assessment

Multi-Criteria Analysis (MCA): A Manual

Published by the Department for Communities and Local Government in 2009. This provides a good general introduction to MCA techniques.

Policy Toolkit Workbook 4

This is part of the TEO Policy Toolkit. It is a practical guide to impact assessment for a wide range of social, economic and environmental impacts. Includes checklists and templates tailored to suit a variety of different impacts.

Integrated impact assessment

Although superseded by The Policy Toolkit, there still are a number of useful impact assessment links at this page.

Green Book supplementary guidance

This page lists a number of guides to specific types of impact assessment including health, environment and transport among others.

Risk and optimism bias

Green Book supplementary guidance on risk

Includes HMT's Orange Book guide to risk management and other relevant resources.

HMT supplementary guidance on the treatment of optimism bias

Cabinet Office risk assessment page

PPP/PFI projects

Working Together in Financing Our Future

The local PPP policy framework document (OFMDFM/DFP, 2003)

Private Finance 2 (PF2)

HMT's revised policy guidance on private finance. It applies to England but does not automatically apply to Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. However, it may be used as supplementary guidance.

HMT PFI/PPP finance guidance

A range of useful resources on financial aspects of PPPs.

Archived HMT Guidance

Older HMT guidance which no longer applies but may provide useful background reading.

Implementation, management and monitoring

Programme and project management and assurance

This page contains detailed guidance and resources for programme and project management (PPM). It covers the full range of PPM issues including, among other things, managing successful programmes, gateway reviews, PRINCE2, and benefits management.

Cabinet Office best practice and methodology page

Contains guidance and resources for a wide range of issues related to programme and project management.

Inflation

Office for National Statistics (ONS) summaries of price indices and inflation

ONS page providing the latest figures on consumer and producer price inflation.

Gross domestic product (GDP) deflators

HMT page containing the latest GDP deflator figures.

Auditing

The Northern Ireland Audit Office (NIAO)

The NIAO's objectives are to provide effective support to the Northern Ireland Assembly in its task of holding departments and their agencies to account for their use of public money and effective local government audit.

The National Audit Office (NAO)

The NAO audits the accounts of all central government departments and agencies, as well as a wide range of other public bodies, and reports to parliament on the economy, efficiency and effectiveness with which they have used public money.

Other useful links

• Central Procurement Directorate (DoF)
• Equality and Strategy Directorate (TEO)
• European Division (DoF)
• Land & Property Services (DoF)
• Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) (DoF)
• Strategic Investment Board (DoF)
• State Aid Team (DfE)