Who we are

The National Audit Office (NAO) is the UK’s independent public spending watchdog.

We support Parliament in holding government to account and we help improve public services through our high-quality audits. We are independent of government and the civil service.

The Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG), Gareth Davies, leads the NAO. He is an Officer of the House of Commons and has statutory authority to:

• audit and report on the financial accounts of all government departments and other public bodies
• examine and report on the value for money of how public money has been spent​

We support the work of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC). It uses our reports to hold evidence sessions focused on public spending and scrutinising the implementation of government policy. Audited bodies are required to respond to recommendations made by PAC, which are often based on our work.

In 2024, the NAO’s work led to a positive financial impact through reduced costs, improved service delivery, or other benefits to citizens, of £5.3 billion.

About our work

Our people are experts in a wide range of specialisms. We work together to audit public spending and share our insights to drive improvements in the public sector. 

​​​Financial audit

We provide an independent audit opinion on around 400 accounts per year. The C&AG certifies these accounts and reports the results to Parliament.

We audit public sector accounts, including:

• All government departments
• Executive agencies
• Arm’s-length bodies
• Companies, audited under statute or on a voluntary basis
• Some charities

Our work provides increased transparency that money is spent in line with Parliament’s intention. It gives government bodies the insight they need to manage taxpayers’ money more effectively.​​​ Find out more about our financial audit work.

Value for money

We report to Parliament on whether government is delivering value for money.  We publish around 60 value-for-money reports per year. These reports are impactful, timely and relevant and respond to complex challenges facing government. We make recommendations in these reports on how government can achieve value for money and improve services. We also publish responsive reports to establish facts where there are concerns about emerging public spending issues.

See our latest value for money reports.

Insights

Our insight teams provide insights and expertise, helping to improve the productivity and resilience of public services.  We draw these from our extensive work focused on the issues that are a priority for government, where we observe both innovations and recurring issues.

Our insight work includes:

• Lessons learned publications – these draw together what we know on cross-cutting issues that matter to government
• Good practice guides – helpful overviews that provide practical tips to help stakeholders involved in delivering or overseeing public services

See our latest insight publications.

Overviews

We publish factual overviews of government departments to assist Parliamentary select committees in their examination of spending and performance. The overviews look at the structure, remit, plans and budget of the departments. They summarise the key information and insights that can be gained from our work.

See our latest overviews.

Other work 

International work

Our international work helps us and other audit offices across the world learn from each other to strengthen our efficiency and insight. We have three areas of work:

• International relations – we work with other audit institutions and international forums to share experiences and collaborate on global audit issues
• International audit – we are the external auditor of some international organisations
• Technical cooperation – we help audit institutions in countries that receive UK aid 

Our Strategy and Impact

Our NAO Strategy 2025-2030: Trust, Value, Impact sets out how we will contribute to improved productivity and resilience of public services and better financial management and reporting in government. By working effectively with Parliament and our other stakeholders, we aim to maximise our impact on trust and value for money.

Our work helps Parliament scrutinise government, achieves a positive financial impact and makes a difference to people’s lives through reduced costs, improved service delivery and other benefits to citizens. We report on issues that matter to people – for example, our work on government’s progress in achieving net zero, our reports on the HS2 programme, and our report on the condition of school buildings. Our 2024-25 programme of 60 value-for-money (VFM) reports in support of the Committee of Public Accounts covered significant areas of public spending, including support for children and young people with special educational needs, NHS elective healthcare and the cost of the tax system.