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About the Panel

The CIPFA Financial Management Panel is a functional, cross sectoral panel that reports to CIPFA’s Public Finance and Management Board (PFMB).

The panel focuses on the principles of financial management that apply across the whole of the public services and on identifying actions to achieve improvements in financial management.

The panel develops leading edge tools on the overall approach to financial management improvement and good practice guidance on specific aspects.

Key policy areas:

• Ensuring good practice in financial management is embedded in public service organisations

• Responding to initiatives to strengthen financial management in the public services

• Identifying the financial management challenges in responding to tighter public finance settlements

• Scanning the international landscape to identify new approaches

• Engaging with key stakeholders to mutually influence improvement in financial management

• Championing the inclusion of financial and accounting implications in policy options

• Considering how IT issues affect the efficiency and effectiveness of financial management across the public services.

The Panel meets three times a year.

CIPFA’s definition of financial management

Public Financial Management: a key to good governance and effective performance

The public sector¹ needs to deserve the trust that goes with exacting standards of probity and accountability and demonstrable efficiency in the use of public resources. To cope with limited funding and increasing demand and expectations from citizens, new and creative solutions that make public money go further need to be found. Change and transformation must go hand in hand with the robust stewardship expected of public bodies.

CIPFA’s definition of public financial management focuses on its contribution to achieving strategic and operational goals, as a key aspect of good governance.

‘Public Financial Management (PFM) is the system by which financial resources are planned, directed, and controlled to enable and influence the efficient and effective delivery of public service² goals.’

Using money well is the business of every manager charged with delivering public services. This definition of PFM applies equally across multiple or single bodies, and at all levels of government. It can therefore be used in the context of national governments or regions, localities or individual public service organisations.³

High-performance means consistently demonstrating strengths in leadership, public financial management and performance management. Public financial management is not just about accountants keeping score. With diffused financial responsibilities the leadership and managers need to be financially literate and finance professionals need to contribute challenge, interpretation and advice; allied with control and compliance.

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¹Public sector: That part of the economy where funding comes largely from government and is defined by the System of National Accounts 2008.
²Public services: Goods or services provided on a not-for-profit basis to the general public or for social benefit.
³Public service organisation: One or more bodies managed as a coherent entity with the primary objective of providing public services. The category encompasses both public sector bodies and other organisations whose primary objective is to provide goods or services for the general public or social benefit rather than providing a financial return to equity shareholders