About the National indicator set
The Single Set of 198 National Indicators (the National indicator set – NIS) was announced by CLG in October 2007, following the Government's Comprehensive Spending Review 2007.
Effective from 1 April 2008, the NIS is the only set of indicators on which central government will performance manage local government. It covers services delivered by local authorities alone and in partnership with other organisations like health services and the police.
The NIS replaces all other existing sets of indicators including the Best Value Performance Indicators (BVPIs) and the Performance Assessment Framework (PAF).
Performance against each of the national indicators will be published annually by the Audit Commission, as part of Comprehensive Area Assessment (CAA).
The new NIS contains 18 indicators that are to be determined by measuring citizens' views and perspectives collected through a single Place Survey that is administered by all local authorities.
What we do
All effective organisations measure their performance in order to know how well they are doing and to identify opportunities for improvement. The Audit Commission aims to stimulate significant improvement in the quality of data and the use of information by decision makers.
We are supporting Communities and Local Government (CLG) (external link) with the NIS, and provide advice and information to help local public bodies interpret the Guidance. We are also working with and on behalf of other Inspectorates as part of the new Comprehensive Area Assessment.