Whole of Government Accounts
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Whole of Government Accounts (WGA) are full accruals based accounts covering the whole public sector to be audited by the National Audit Office.
WGA will consolidate the accounts of about 1300 bodies from within the central government, health service, local government and public corporation sectors.
Budget 2007 announced the Government's intention that WGA will be published for the first time for the 2008-09 financial year. This revised timetable is to allow time to complete the alignment of local and central government accounting policies and to enable WGA to be prepared on the new International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) basis.
Dear Consolidation Manager Letter
- PDF file of (DCM 1/07) Whole of Government Accounts (WGA) 2006-07 - Guidance for Central Government Departments and Bodies for 2006-07. The guidance presented in this letter does not currently apply to the devolved administrations in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Dear Consolidation Officer Letter
- PDF file of (DCO 1/06) Whole of Government Accounts: Progress During 2005 and Timetable for 2005/06 Dry Run Accounts - 22 May 2006
Local Government in WGA
For specific queries on English local government issues relating to WGA, please contact wga.returns@communities.gsi.gov.uk at CLG.
Designation of local authorities in Scotland and Northern Ireland is for the Scottish Executive and Northern Ireland Executive. We currently expect all Scottish Councils, Police and Fire Joint Boards and all Northern Ireland District Councils to be included in WGA. Please see the external links section below for the CLG website.
NHS Trusts in WGA
NHS Trusts should follow the guidance issued by the Department of Health - see the external links section below for the Department of Health Finance Manual.
Primary Care Trusts are within the Department of Health's Resource Accounting boundary and should follow the guidance issued by the Department of Health, and DCM letters to the extent that they apply.
The inclusion of NHS trusts in WGA in Wales and Health and Social Services Trusts in Northern Ireland will be the responsibility of the devolved administrations.
Acts of Parliament and Statutory Instruments
- Statutory Instrument 2007 No. 1492 The Whole of Government Accounts (Designation of Bodies) Order 2007(PDF)
- Explanatory Memorandum to the Designation Order 2007 (PDF) The Whole of Government Accounts (Designation of Bodies) Order 2007 was laid before Parliament on 21 May 2007 and came into force on 11 June 2007.
- Government Resources and Accounts Act 2000 (OPSI website)
- Explanatory Notes to Government Resources and Accounts Act 2000 (OPSI website)
- Statutory Instrument 2000 No. 3349 (C.111) The Government Resources and Accounts Act 2000 (Commencement No. 1 and Transitional Provision) Order 2000 (OPSI website)
- Public Finance and Accountability (Scotland) Act 2000 (OPSI website)
- Explanatory Notes to Public Finance and Accountability (Scotland) Act 2000 (OPSI website)
- Government Resources and Accounts Act (Northern Ireland) 2001 (OPSI website)
- Explanatory Notes to Government Resources and Accounts Act (Northern Ireland) 2001 (PDF) (OPSI website)
Some of the above documents are available in Adobe Acrobat Portable Document Format (PDF). If you do not have Adobe Acrobat installed on your computer you can download the software free of charge from the Adobe website. For alternative ways to read PDF documents and further information on website accessibility visit the HM Treasury accessibility page.
External links
- NAO - National Audit Office. (NAO website) Guidance for private sector firms appointed as auditors to bodies within the WGA boundary.
- Department for Communities and Local Government's Local Government Finance Whole of Government Accounts page (CLG website)
- Department for Communities and Local Government's Local Government Finance Statistical Forms page (CLG website)
- Welsh Local Government Data Unit (Welsh Assembly Government website)
- Department of Health Finance Manual (DOH website)
Internal Links
The background to and development of the WGA programme is set out in the two HM Treasury publications linked below
- PDF file of Whole of Government Accounts Scoping Study. The Scoping Study explains the benefits the Government sees in producing WGA and was originally published in July 1998.
- Delivering the benefits of accruals accounting for the whole public sector. A report explaining how the WGA programme is completing the introduction of accruals accounting across all public sector bodies.
- Whole of Government Accounts - Guidance for Practitioners.
Government Financial Information and Reporting Team,
1st Floor, HM Treasury,
1 Horse Guards Road,
London, SW1A 2HQ
email: wga.team@hm-treasury.gsi.gov.uk
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