Guidance

Functional Standards Common Glossary

Updated 2 September 2021

Functional Standards Common Glossary

A

accountable (person)	Someone who is accountable is required and expected to justify actions or decisions to a person or body with greater authority, from whom the accountability has been formally assigned. [Note: accountabilities can be tiered such that there is a hierarchy of accountabilities, with a higher-level having overall accountability over lowel-level accountabilities.] [Note: an accountable person usually has associated formally delegated authority for their actions and decisions, such as through delegated letters.]	Owning Function: Project delivery
accounting officer	A person appointed by the Treasury or designated by a department to be accountable for the operations of an organisation and the preparation of its accounts. The appointee is the head of a department or other organisation or the Chief Executive of a non-departmental public body (NDPB) or other arm’s length body.	Owning Function: Finance
accounts direction	A direction issued setting out the accounts which a body must prepare, and the form and content of those accounts.	Owning Function: Finance
aged debt	A debt that is overdue by 181 days or more.	Owning Function: Debt
agile	Agile is an approach to software development that can also be used in different project management contexts. It emphasises building quickly, testing and iterating work based on regular feedback.	Owning Function: Digital, data and technology
ambit	A description of the services or purposes to which expenditure and income is to be put in respect of each of the relevant control limits (voted DEL, voted AME, voted non-budget).	Owning Function: Finance
analytically qualified	Any person fulfilling a role having received both sufficient training and experience to properly undertake the tasks at hand. This may be demonstrated through relevant qualifications.	Owning Function: Analysis
analytical method	A process, combined with the scientific method, to enable analysts to examine complex relationships between variables.	Owning Function: Analysis
analytical model	A mathematical simulation or forecasting model that uses equations to conceptualise characteristics and describe changes in a system.	Owning Function: Analysis
analytical recommended practice model	A model that through experience and research has been critically proven to reliably lead to a desired result, and has been adopted by an analytical community.	Owning Function: Analysis
annually managed expenditure (AME)	Spending included in Total Managed Expenditure (TME), which does not fall within Departmental Expenditure Limits (DELs). Expenditure in AME is generally less predictable and controllable than expenditure in DEL.	Owning Function: Finance
arm’s length body	Central government bodies that carry out discrete functions on behalf of departments, but which are controlled or owned by them. They include executive agencies, non-departmental public bodies, and government-owned companies.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
assessment framework (continuous improvement)	In the context of government standards, an assessment framework defines levels of maturity against the most important aspects of the corresponding standard, to make it easy for organisations to understand how well they are meeting the standard, and what practices they should aim to improve.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
asset (property)	Tangible fixed assets in the form of land, buildings or related equipment, owned or controlled by government, with the expectation of present or future benefit.	Owning Function: Property
assurance	A general term for the confidence that can be derived from objective information over the successful conduct of activities, the efficient and effective design and operation of internal control, compliance with internal and external requirements, and the production of insightful and credible information to support decision making. Confidence diminishes when there are uncertainties around the integrity of information or of underlying processes.	Owning Function: Finance
assurance statement (analysis)	In the context of analysis, an assurance statement is a description of the analytical assurance efforts that have been performed to assure the analysis, making reference to known limitations and conditions associated with the analysis and the use of its outputs.	Owning Function: Analysis
audit and risk assurance committee	The governance group charged with independent assurance of the adequacy of the risk management framework, the internal control environment and the integrity of financial reporting. The audit committee provides oversight of financial reporting, risk management, internal control, compliance, ethics, management, internal auditors, and the external auditors.	Owning Function: Internal audit
audit opinion	The rating, conclusion and/or description of results provided by the chief audit executive addressing, at a broad level, governance, risk, management and/or control processes of the organisation. An overall audit opinion is the professional judgment of the chief audit executive based on the results of a number of individual engagements and other activities for a specific time interval.	Owning Function: Internal audit

B

Barnett Formula	The Barnett Formula is a mechanism used by the HM Treasury in the United Kingdom to automatically adjust the amounts of public expenditure allocated to Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales to reflect changes in spending levels allocated to public services in England, England and Wales or Great Britain, as appropriate.	Owning Function: Finance
baseline	A measurement, calculation, or location used as a basis for comparison. In a project delivery context baselines typically apply to plans and to sets of data relating to the solution. [Note: examples include schedule baseline, cost baseline, requirements baseline, design baseline.]	Owning Function: Project delivery
benchmarking	Comparison of performance between different organisations using consistently gathered data.	Owning Function: Property
benefit (project delivery)	In the context of project delivery, benefit is the measurable value or other positive impact resulting from an outcome perceived as an advantage by one or more stakeholders, and which contributes towards one or more objective(s).	Owning Function: Project delivery
BIM	Building information modelling is a broad term that describes the process of creating and managing a digital model of a building or other facility such as a building, bridge, highway or tunnel.	Owning Function: Property
blueprint (commercial)	A document that sets out the commercial operating model, required resources, organisation structure and core transformation/ improvement activities.	Owning Function: Commercial
board	The highest-level governing body (e.g. a board of directors, a supervisory board, or a board of governors or trustees) charged with the responsibility to direct and/ or oversee the organisation’s activities and hold senior management accountable.	Owning Function: Internal audit
bribery	The offering, promising or giving of a financial or other advantage to induce or reward improper performance and/or the request, or receipt of such an advantage. It includes the corporate offence of failing to prevent bribery (as set out in the Bribery Act 2010).	Owning Function: Counter fraud
business case	The justification for an organisational activity (strategic, programme, project or operational) which typically contains benefits, outcomes, timescales, costs and risks against which continuing viability is tested.	Owning Function: Project delivery

C

campaign	A planned sequence of communications and interactions that uses a compelling narrative over time to deliver a defined and measurable outcome.	Owning Function: Communication
capital spending/ investment	Spending on the purchase of assets (including buildings, equipment and land), above a certain threshold (set by the body concerned), which are expected to be used for a period of at least one year. Items valued below it are not counted as capital assets, even where they have a productive life of more than one year.	Owning Function: Finance
CASIE	A central government technology system, intended to aggregate data across organisations.	Owning Function: Commercial
category management	Category management is the strategic approach for buying specific categories of goods and services that aligns organisational spend and requirements with supply market capability and capacity. The majority of organisational external spend can be grouped into common categories.	Owning Function: Commercial
category plan	A category plan defines how the category strategy should be delivered. Category plans include performance reporting for the category, project management approach and risk management.	Owning Function: Commercial
category strategy	A category strategy defines the overall approach to managing the category, including the strategic objectives and how the category should support the wider business objectives.	Owning Function: Commercial
central government	All government departments and their arm’s length bodies.	Owning Function: Debt
challenge fund	A challenge fund is a pot of funding that has pre-published criteria attached to it. Organisations can apply to the fund and will receive a grant where they meet the published criteria. Challenge funds often have several rounds of applications. This would be considered competed funding.	Owning Function: Grants
channel	The medium to deliver a message to an end audience. Often categorised as either ‘paid’, ‘owned’ or ‘earned’.The publicity gained through means other than paid-for advertising or own channel.	Owning Function: Communication
channel (earned)	The publicity gained through means other than paid-for advertising or own channel.	Owning Function: Communication
channel (owned)	Owned media refers to channels that a party has complete control over such as their website, blogs, email newsletters, social media and internal communications.	Owning Function: Communication
channel (paid)	Covers all paid media, including TV and radio advertising, display, programmatic, search, media partnerships and sponsorship.	Owning Function: Communication
clawback	The concept that where an asset financed by public money is sold, all or part of the proceeds of the sales should be returned to the Exchequer. Clawback can also apply when the purpose for which a general grant is given is not fulfilled.	Owning Function: Grants
commercial	Commonly used term in central government to define broad procurement activity, but does not include wider commercial activity including income generation for the purposes of this document.	Owning Function: Commercial
commercial pipeline	A commercial pipeline provides an ongoing view of commercial activity so that sufficient time and resources can be allocated to develop commercial strategies, make recommendations and act upon them.	Owning Function: Commercial
commercial specialists	Staff, of any rank, with particular expertise in the undertaking of specialist commercial activities as defined in this standard, including commercial specialist roles as defined in the Government Commercial Function people standards.	Owning Function: Commercial
commercial system	A technology system designed and used specifically for commercial use.	Owning Function: Commercial
Committee of Public Accounts	A committee of the House of Commons which examines the accounting for, and the regularity and propriety of, government expenditure. It also examines the economy, efficiency and effectiveness, and feasibility of expenditure. Commonly known as the Public Accounts Committee (PAC).	Owning Function: Finance
communication	Communication, in the context of this functional standard includes announcements, media management, co-ordinated communication activities (including social media, branded campaigns, external affairs and stakeholder management) aimed to support the organisation’s policy and priority objectives. This includes external and internal audiences.	Owning Function: Communication
communication package	A communication package, managed by a communication lead, is an element of a campaign which covers a specific need or event and is aligned to the campaign objectives. A communication package can be made up of a number of sub-packages.	Owning Function: Communication
competed grant	Funds for which applications are invited and evaluated, with awards made based on the outcome of the application.	Owning Function: Grants
complex outsourcing	First generation outsourcing; significant transformation of service delivery; obtaining services from markets with limited competition or where Government is the only customer; and/or any service obtained by contract that is considered novel or contentious.	Owning Function: Commercial
compromise (security)	In the context of security, compromise is bringing an asset (including people, property or information) into disrepute or danger.	Owning Function: Security
Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG)	The chief executive of the National Audit Office, appointed by the Crown, and an officer of the House of Commons. As Comptroller, the C&AG’s duties are to authorise the issue by the Treasury of public funds from the Consolidated Fund and the National Loans Fund to government departments and others. As Auditor General, the C&AG certifies the accounts of all government departments and some other public bodies, and carries out value-for-money examinations.	Owning Function: Finance
Consolidated Fund, CF	The consolidated fund, operated by HM Treasury, is central government’s current account into which most revenue from taxation, fines and penalties and certain departmental income is paid. Payments made out of this account are in respect of general government expenditure, which includes funding for department’s budgetary Supply Estimates approved by Parliament and settlement of specific liabilities that legislation charges directly on the Consolidated Fund.	Owning Function: Finance
constraint (project delivery)	In the context of project delivery, a constraint is a limitation or restriction on planning or undertaking work. [Note: planning constraints can include, but are not limited to scope, performance, time, cost, resources and risk.]	Owning Function: Project delivery
consulting services	Advisory and related client service activities, the nature and scope of which are agreed with the client, are intended to add value and improve an organisation’s governance, risk management and control processes without the internal auditor assuming management responsibility. Examples include counsel, advice, facilitation and training.	Owning Function: Internal audit
contingency planning/ plans	A course of action and resulting document(s) that prepares the organisation to respond effectively to future significant events, incidents and risks.	Owning Function: Commercial
contingent worker	A contingent worker is a temporary worker contracted for a particular project or period of time; they are not on the payroll but provide services to the organisation. There are different types of contingent worker, including agency worker or independent contractor, each of which have different legal rights and status.	Owning Function: Human resources
contract	A legally binding agreement that sets out obligations between parties. A contract can take any form, such as a licence agreement, memorandum, service agreement. (For the purpose of this standard the term is used to describe a broad range of commercial arrangements but does not include grants which are covered in GovS 015, Grants.)	Owning Function: Commercial
contract management plan	A process through which the contract portfolio is categorised according to the organisations judgment of risk, value and criticality.	Owning Function: Commercial
contract segmentation	A process through which the contract portfolio is categorised according to the organisations judgment of risk, value and criticality.	Owning Function: Commercial
control (expenditure)	Cabinet Office expenditure controls are part of HM Treasury’s scheme of financial delegations. They apply to proposals to procure certain goods and services, to ensure the expertise and insight of the government functions is utilised. Such proposals fall outside departments’ delegated authority and require Cabinet Office approval, without which expenditure is irregular.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
control (organisational)	Any action taken by management, the board and other parties to manage risk and increase the likelihood that established objectives and goals will be achieved.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
control environment	The attitude and actions of the board and management regarding the importance of control within the organisation. The control environment provides the discipline and structure for the achievement of the primary objectives of the system of internal control. The control environment includes the following elements: integrity and ethical values; management’s philosophy and operating style; organisational structure; assignment of authority and responsibility; human resource policies and practices; and competence of personnel.	Owning Function: Internal audit
corruption	The abuse of a public or private office for personal gain. The active or passive misuse of the powers of public officials, appointed or elected, for private financial or other benefits (as set out in the OECD glossary of international standards in criminal law).	Owning Function: Counter fraud
counter fraud annual action plan	A plan detailing the specific actions that an organisation will undertake to deliver the counter fraud, bribery and corruption strategy or specific parts of it within the financial year.	Owning Function: Counter fraud
counter fraud strategy	A defined approach for how the organisation will counter fraud, bribery and corruption over a 2 to 5 year period.	Owning Function: Counter fraud
Crichel Down Rules	Rules for assessing compensation payable when land is sold that has previously been brought into government ownership by compulsory purchase.	Owning Function: Property
crisis (security)	In the context of security, a crisis is a direct threat or act against staff or assets that can or or has caused a loss of life or critical business function.	Owning Function: Security
criteria based grant	Used to disseminate grant funding based on specific qualifying criteria, e.g. grants to assist those affected by floods.	Owning Function: Grants
critical national infrastructure	Those facilities, systems, sites, information, people, networks and processes, necessary for a country to function and upon which daily life depends.	Owning Function: Security
crown body	A department, office, executive agency or other organisation that is defined by law in the UK as a crown body.	Owning Function: Property
Crown Estate	The Crown estate is property belonging to the British monarch as a corporation sole, which is neither government property nor part of the monarch’s private estate. The Crown Estate Commissioners are accountable to Parliament, reporting annually.	Owning Function: Property
crown land	A term often used to cover a variety of categories, such as: land belonging to The King as monarch; The King’s private property; properties of the Duchies of Cornwall or Lancaster; or Government land. To avoid confusion, more specific terms can be used, such as the Crown Estate or central government property.	Owning Function: Property
cyber security	Protective cyber security measures put in place to mitigate against the consequences of an external cyber attack on government information, personnel or infrastructures.	Owning Function: Security

D

Dear Accounting Officer (DAO) letters	Dear Accounting Officer (DAO) letters are used to provide specific advice on issues of accountability, regularity and propriety and annual accounting exercises. They supplement guidance published in Managing Public Money.	Owning Function: Finance
debtor	A person or organisation that owes money to another party.	Owning Function: Debt
defined (way of working)	In the context of standards, defined denotes a documented way of working which people are expected to use. This can apply to any aspect of a governance or management framework. For example processes, codes of practice, methods, templates, tools and guides.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office Standards
delegated authority and delegation letter	A standing authorisation by HM Treasury under which a body may commit resources or incur expenditure from money voted by Parliament without specific prior approval from HM Treasury. Delegated authorities may also authorise commitments to spend (including the acceptance of contingent liabilities) and to deal with special transactions (such as write-offs) without prior approval.	Owning Function: Finance
delivery strategy (project delivery)	In the context of project delivery, the delivery strategy outlines longer term objectives, outcomes and outputs, and the means to achieve them, to inform future decisions and planning and includes phasing and strategies for commercial, business, societal change and solution delivery aspects.	Owning Function: Project delivery
demand analysis/management	An approach to understanding, forecasting and influencing the requirements of the organisation through alignment with market capacity and capability.	Owning Function: Commercial
Departmental Expenditure Limit (DEL)	DEL limits are set in the Spending Review. Departments may not exceed the limits that they have been set.	Owning Function: Finance
depreciation	A measure of the wearing out, consumption or other reduction in the useful life of a fixed asset whether arising from use, passage of time or obsolescence through technological or market changes.	Owning Function: Finance
developed vetting	A level of security clearance which allows unsupervised access of material up to and including “SECRET” on a regular basis.	Owning Function: Security
disbenefit (project delivery)	In the context of project delivery, disbenefit is the measurable value or other impact resulting from an outcome perceived as a disadvantage by one or more stakeholders, and which partially or fully negates the achievement of one or more objective(s).	Owning Function: Project delivery
dispositive power	Power to transfer, lease or grant legal interests out of a property.	Owning Function: Property
diversity and inclusion	Diversity provides a focus on championing a broad range of backgrounds and opinions- included those protected by prevailing equality legislation- with the merit principle front and centre and drawing on the talents of the widest possible range of geographical, social and career backgrounds. All diversity and inclusion people policies, processes and practices should be data-driven, evidence-led and delivery-focused.	Owning Function: Human resources
dynamic purchasing system	An electronic system used to procure commonly used goods, works or services, and which allows suppliers to apply to join at any time.	Owning Function: Commercial

E

employee assistance programme	An employee assistance programme or EAP is an impartial service for all employees, offering counselling and other types of support.	Owning Function: Human resources
employee engagement	Employee engagement activity seeks to develop and encourage a workforce that is committed, supports one another, is loyal and has job satisfaction.	Owning Function: Human resources
employee experience	Employee experience is about creating a great work environment for people. It involves understanding the role that trust plays in the employment relationship and making sure people are listened to and have a voice in issues that impact them.	Owning Function: Human resources
employee life cycle	The employee life cycle is a common, informal way of describing the key moments, experiences and interactions with services at different points in employee’s journeys and careers with an organisation. Another way of describing this is ‘hire to retire’.	Owning Function: Human resources
employee relations	Employee relations focus on both individual and collective relationships in the workplace, with an emphasis on establishing trust-based relationships with employees.	Owning Function: Human resources
end users	End users are the individuals for whom digital services and technology are ultimately created.	Owning Function: Digital, data and technology
end-to-end service	An end-to-end service enables a user to complete complex, multi-stage tasks like learning to drive or starting a business in a unified, coherent way. Users may complete different steps or features in an end-to-end service at different times.	Owning Function: Digital, data and technology
endowment	An endowment is usually paid as a one-off grant to enable the recipient to set up a fund from which to draw down over a number of years. Sometimes called a ‘dowry’.	Owning Function: Grants
established (way of working)	In the context of standards, established denotes a way of working that is implemented and used throughout the organisation. This can apply to any aspect of a governance or management framework- for example processes, codes of practice, methods, templates, tools and guides.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
estate	The sum total of property assets held by an organisation.	Owning Function: Property
Estimates Memorandum	An explanation of how provision sought in the Estimate is intended to be used and the relationship with other spending controls. Primarily provided for the departmental select committee but made freely available online.	Owning Function: Finance
event (security)	In the context of security, an event is a disruptive but non-threatening organised event in your department or building or an event in the public space which requires security planning and mitigations to be put in place.	Owning Function: Security
excess vote	The means by which excess expenditure, or otherwise unauthorised expenditure, of cash, capital or resources, is regularised through an additional vote by Parliament.	Owning Function: Finance
executive agency	A type of arm’s length body. A public body that acts as an arm of its sponsoring department.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
external affairs	External affairs is about building and maintaining relationships with influential individuals and organisations for the public benefit.	Owning Function: Communication

F

feasibility	The principle that proposals with public expenditure implications should be implemented accurately, sustainable and to the intended timetable.	Owning Function: Finance
fillers	Low cost government TV and radio public service announcements, containing public welfare, health and safety messages, which are aired entirely at the goodwill of media owners who have donated free airtime.	Owning Function: Communication
financial data (relating to a debtor)	Financial data relating to the debtor may include the total balance owed to the organisation, and any previous payments made. Income and expenditure assessment data could also be included.	Owning Function: Debt
financial privilege	The House of Commons has financial primacy in Parliament. Only the Commons may decide on public taxes and public spending, and it may overrule any House of Lords proposal with cost implications.	Owning Function: Finance
fiscal targets	Targets for economic performance and public finance management.	Owning Function: Finance
formula grant	Grants calculated by way of a formula (e.g. grant funding provided by central government to local authorities, schools and the Police, which is determined by factors such as population and levels of pupils who receive free school meals).	Owning Function: Grants
fraud	A false representation, or failure to disclose that is dishonest, or the abuse of position with the intention to cause financial gain or loss (as set out in the Fraud Act 2006).	Owning Function: Counter fraud
fraud loss measurement	The method of selecting a sample to estimate the total cost of fraud or error.	Owning Function: Counter fraud
fraud outcome based metrics	A method of measuring a particular task, activity or process using quantifiable measures based upon the outcome (i.e. financial savings, fraud rate, volume/ value of fraud detected/ prevented, false positive rate or percentage of staff trained).	Owning Function: Counter fraud
fraud, bribery and corruption reporting route	A communication channel or reporting medium for staff, contractors or members of the public to report fraud, bribery and corruption to the organisation (i.e. a whistleblowing line, fraud reporting hotline or online reporting service/ tool).	Owning Function: Counter fraud
function	See Government functions.
functional work	Work that falls within the scope of a functional standard.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
function plan	A plan detailing how a function strategy is to be implemented in practice.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
function strategy	A strategy for developing and improving the operation of a government function.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards

G

gate	A decision point, carried out as part of formal governance, at significant points in the life cycle to ensure that the decision to invest as stated in an agreed business case and plans is, and remains, valid.	Owning Function: Project delivery
general grants	Grants made by departments or their grant-making arm’s length bodies to outside bodies to reimburse expenditure on agreed items or functions, and often paid only on statutory conditions. They include competed, uncompeted and criteria based grants. These grants are closely related in administration to contract procurement, whilst remaining legally distinct.	Owning Function: Grants
gift	Gifts include all transactions economically equivalent to free and unremunerated transfers from departments to others.	Owning Function: Grants
governance	Governance defines relationships and the distribution of rights and responsibilities among those who work with and in the organisation. It determines the rules and procedures through which the organisation’s objectives are set, and provides the means of attaining those objectives and monitoring performances. Importantly, it defines where accountability lies throughout the organisation.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
governance and management framework	A governance and management framework sets out the authority limits, decision making roles and rules, degrees of autonomy, assurance needs, reporting structure, accountabilities and roles, together with the appropriate management practices and associated documentation needed to meet this standard.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
governance statement	A key feature of the organisation’s annual report and accounts, which manifests how the accounting officer has carried out their responsibilities to manage and control the resources used in his or her organisation.	Owning Function: Finance
government function	A grouping aligned across government, embedded into departments and arm’s length bodies. For activities within its scope, each function: sets cross-government strategies, sets and assures standards, develops capability, gives expert advice, drives continuous improvement, and develops and delivers commonly required services.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
government grants information system	Part of the Grants Hub, the government grants information system is the central database for all government grants.	Owning Function: Grants
government grants statistics	The cabinet Office publishes the government grants statistics on GOV.UK in March each year, sourced from the government grants information system, in order to fulfil the government’s transparency commitment. The statistics cover formula grants at scheme level and general grants at scheme level and award level.	Owning Function: Grants
government major project	A central government funded project or programme that requires HM Treasury approval during its life, as set out in Delegated Authority Letters, or is otherwise of special interest to the government. A government major project is listed in the Government Major Project Portfolio (GMPP).	Owning Function: Project delivery
Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP)	The portfolio of the government’s largest, complex, innovative, risky and ambitious projects that have been agreed by the Infrastructure and Projects Authority, HMT and departments and are delivering the government’s main policy initiatives.	Owning Function: Project delivery
government profession	A grouping aligned across government to increase the professionalism and engagement of people with particular skills, knowledge or expertise. A profession sets professional standards, supports professional development and career progress, and provides a consistent way to attract and retain people.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
government property	Property owned by the government in any form of tenure, including freehold and leasehold.	Owning Function: Property
government property function	A grouping of similar activities related to property that are aligned across government and embedded into departments and arm’s length bodies. For activities within its scope, the function: sets cross-government strategies; sets and assures standards; develops capability; gives expert advice; drives continuous improvement and develops and delivers commonly required services.	Owning Function: Property
government property profession	A group of people across government with the skills, knowledge or expertise engaged in the management of property and committed to developing capability. An individual can belong to more than one government profession. Those in the property profession can be employed in any department or arm’s length body.	Owning Function: Property
grant agreement	The grant agreement provides a legal framework and sets out details of the grant including what the funding is to be used for, what expenditure is expressly eligible and ineligible, together with details of the payment model, performance and monitoring regime, termination and clawback provision, and financial reconciliation.	Owning Function: Grants
grant award	A grant award is made to meet one of the objectives of the grant scheme. Grant awards can be made to organisations, registered and unregistered entities and individuals.	Owning Function: Grants
grant scheme	Grant schemes are created to deliver a specific policy area, generally providing for a number of individual awards that sit within the scheme.	Owning Function: Grants
grant-in-aid	Regular payments by departments to outside bodies (usually non departmental public bodies) to finance their operating expenditure.	Owning Function: Finance
grid	A media planning schedule and forward look to plan announcements.	Owning Function: Communication

H

handshake	Handshaking is a technique of communication between two entities. A simple handshake might involve the receiver sending a message saying “I received your last message and I am ready for you to send me another one”.	Owning Function: Debt
heritage assets	A building, monument, site, place, area or landscape identified as having a degree of significance meriting consideration in planning decisions, because of its heritage interest. Heritage asset includes designated heritage assets and assets identified by the local planning authority as of heritage value (including local listing).	Owning Function: Property
high-risk grants	High risk schemes would be classed as ‘level 1’ and are defined by value: generally, schemes with a value of £10m and above.	Owning Function: Grants

I

impairment	Where the carrying amount of an asset exceeds its recoverable amount departments should recognise an impairment loss. Departments need to establish whether any of the impairment loss is as a result of consumption of economic benefit or reduction in service potential, or a change in market price. Examples of impairments resulting from a consumption of economic benefit or service potential include losses as a result of loss or damage, abandonment of projects, goldplating and use of the asset for a lower specification purpose.	Owning Function: Finance
incident (security)	In the context of security, incident is any circumstance that arises where assets may be damaged, compromised, lost or leaked as a result of failure of policy or codes of conduct, existing security measures or controls, or something that requires an action/ response following a direct threat or individual action, or to prevent any of the above. These could be accidental or deliberate acts by those internal or external to the department.	Owning Function: Security
inclusion	Inclusion describes how we ensure that all staff feel valued, supported and have a sense of belonging to their organisation and team, supporting them to drive organisational performance through innovation, creativity, productivity and utilisation. All diversity and inclusion people policies, processes and practices should be data-driven, evidence-led and delivery-focused.	Owning Function: Human resources
insider threat	The threat posed by staff, contractors or contracted third parties not following or deliberately disregarding established policies.	Owning Function: Security
integrated assurance and approval plan (IAAP)	The planning, co-ordination and provision of assurance activities and approval points throughout the ‘policy to delivery’ life cycle, proportionate to levels of project cost and risk.	Owning Function: Project delivery
integrated assurance strategy (IAS)	The integrated assurance strategy sets the strategic requirements for assurance provision to ensure agreed and consistent standards across an organisation’s portfolio of major projects.	Owning Function: Project delivery
internal auditing	An independent, objective assurance and consulting activity designed to add value and improve an organisation’s operations. It helps an organisation accomplish its objectives by bringing a systematic, disciplined approach to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of risk management, control and governance processes.	Owning Function: Internal audit
internal audit charter	The internal audit charter is a formal document that defines the internal audit activity’s purpose, authority and responsibility. The internal audit charter establishes the internal audit activity’s position within the organisation; authorises access to records, personnel and physical properties relevant to the performance of engagements; and defines the scope of internal audit activities. It should be reviewed periodically and approved by the audit committee.	Owning Function: Internal audit
internal audit engagement	A specific internal audit assignment, task, or review activity, such as an internal audit, control self-assessment review, fraud examination, or consultancy. An engagement may include multiple tasks or activities designed to accomplish a specific set of related objectives.	Owning Function: Internal audit
internal communication	Internal communication helps leaders in an organisation inform and engage employees, in a way which motivates staff to maximise their performance and deliver the business strategy most effectively.	Owning Function: Communication
issue	A relevant event that has happened, was not planned and requires management action. It could be a problem, benefit, query, concern, change request or risk that has occurred.	Owning Function: Project delivery

L

lease event	Date of lease expiry or allowing operation of break clauses.	Owning Function: Property
lease retention	Choosing to retain a lease beyond a break date that provides an opportunity to exit the lease without penalty.	Owning Function: Property
lessons learnt	The practice of continuous improvement based upon organisational learning in a risk management context.	Owning Function: Counter fraud
life cycle	The life cycle provides a phased structure for governing the work and underpinning the delivery plan, from start to finish. Life cycles can be applied to a portfolio, service, product, system, programme or project.	Owning Function: Project delivery
lines of defence	An assurance model that defines three distinct groups of stakeholders involved with separate but complimentary assurance activity.	Owning Function: Commercial
loss reporting (counter fraud)	The method of reporting loss data relating to fraud and error to the Cabinet Office using the consolidated data request process.	Owning Function: Counter fraud

M

market structure	The interconnected characteristics of a market, such as: the number and relative strength of buyers and sellers and degree of collusion among them; level and forms of competition; extent of product or service differentiation; and ease of entry into and exit from the market.	Owning Function: Commercial
marketing	In a government context, marketing is the strategic application of a range of techniques that help fulfil operational and policy objectives by effectively understanding and meeting the needs of citizens.	Owning Function: Communication
media	Communication channels through which news, entertainment, education, data, or promotional messages are disseminated. Media includes every broadcasting and narrowcasting medium on and off line such as websites, social media platforms, newspapers, magazines, TV, radio, billboards, direct mail and telephone.	Owning Function: Communication
Memorandum of understanding	The MOU documents the common intent of both parties regarding the commissioning and delivery of the internal audit service, and provides a framework and set of principles to guide the parties in the working arrangements.	Owning Function: Internal audit
mobilisation plan	A plan detailing how a supplier intends to mobilise their resources ready for undertaking their contract obligations.	Owning Function: Commercial

N

national accounts	Accounts produced by the Office for National Statistics in accordance with the European System of Accounts 1995, which promotes standardisation in the way in which public sector income and expenditure is measured.	Owning Function: Finance
non departmental public body	A subset of arm’s length body. A public body with a role in the process of national government that is legally separate from its sponsoring department and operates independently from ministers.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
non ministerial department	A subset of arm’s length body. A public body that shares many characteristics with a full department, without ministers, and acts independently from any sponsoring department.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards

O

organisation	In the context of government functional standards, ‘organisation’ is the generic term used to describe a government department, arm’s length body, or any other entity, which is identified as being within the scope of the functional standard.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
organisation design	Organisation design involves taking decisions about how to organise the work and people in an organisation in order to best achieve its purpose (its goals, aims or strategy).	Owning Function: Human resources
OSCAR	Online System for Central Accounting and Reporting (OSCAR) supplies information for a wide range of users and uses: the HM Treasury’s planning and control of public spending; the HM Treasury’s monitoring and forecasting of spending against the fiscal framework; HM Treasury publications, such as Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses; operational publications, such as Main and Supplementary Estimates; departmental publications, such as the common core tables in Departmental Reports; ONS publications based on the National Accounts, including Public Sector Finances which contains information for the fiscal aggregates and; the input side of ONS’ measures of public sector productivity.	Owning Function: Finance
other related work (project delivery)	In the context of project delivery, other related work comprises work within a portfolio or programme which is not managed as a project. [Note: examples of other related work are support services (such as for finance and human resources, support offices and specialist information and engineering offices), ongoing improvement initiatives not run as projects, service delivery and business as usual operations.]	Owning Function: Project delivery
outcome	The result of change, normally affecting real-world behaviour or circumstances. Outcomes are desired when a change is conceived. Outcomes are achieved as a result of the activities undertaken to effect the change; they are the manifestation of part or all of the new state conceived in the target operating model.	Owning Function: Project delivery
output	A specialist product (the tangible of intangible artefact) that is produced, constructed or created as a result of a planned activity and handed over to users.	Owning Function: Project delivery
overdue debt	Overdue debt is a receivable that has not been paid by the due date, where the due date is defined as a specified period for payment, or the first date following a specified period of appeal from when a charge is raised. Generally speaking, this is when a payment is missed by 1 day, or trade receivables missed by 30 days.	Owning Function: Debt

P

partner longlist	A list of potential partner organisations who are able to reach a defined audience before prioritisation has taken place.	Owning Function: Communication
partner shortlist	A prioritised list of partner organisations to be approached for campaign support.	Owning Function: Communication
partnership marketing	The development and delivery of government messages via partnerships with private sector organisations, the public sector and civil society, utilising one or more elements of the partner’s marketing communication channels.	Owning Function: Debt
payment holiday	A period within which payments do not need to be made.	Owning Function: Debt
personnel security	The practice of ensuring the security of government information and infrastructure against threats arising from government personnel.	Owning Function: Security
physical security	The practice of protecting elements of government infrastructure, estates and personnel against attacks or compromises in the physical (i.e. tangible, real-world) environment.	Owning Function: Security
plan	A plan sets out how objectives, outcomes and outputs are to be delivered within defined constraints, in accordance with the strategy.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
portfolio	A portfolio comprises part or all of an organisation’s investment required to achieve its objectives. Governed through its portfolios (or business) plan, a portfolio comprises work components, such as other portfolios, programmes, projects, other related work and work packages.	Owning Function: Project delivery
portfolio management	Portfolio management is a co-ordinated collection of strategic practices and decisions that together enable the most effective balance of organisational change and business as usual.	Owning Function: Project delivery
portfolio strategy	A collection of top-level strategic information that provides total clarity to all stakeholders regarding the content and long term objectives of the portfolio.	Owning Function: Project delivery
position management	A position is a specific occurrence of one job, fixed within one business unit or organisation. Position management involves maintaining all of the positions identified within the business unit or organisation, usually within a digital resource planning system.	Owning Function: Human resources
prevention (security)	In the context of security, prevention is the action of stopping a security incident arising.	Owning Function: Security
profession	See government profession.
programme	A programme is a unique, temporary, flexible organisation created to co-ordinate, direct and oversee the implementation of a set of projects and other related work components to deliver outcomes and benefits related to a set of strategic objectives.	Owning Function: Project delivery
project	A project is a unique temporary management environment, undertaken in stages, created for the purpose of delivering one or more business products or outcomes.	Owning Function: Project delivery
project delivery	Collectively, portfolio, programme and project management are referred to in government as “project delivery”.	Owning Function: Project delivery
project validation review (PVR)	An assurance review that brings together the full weight of cross government expertise at the early stages of the project to help assure deliverability, affordability and value for money.	Owning Function: Commercial
propriety	The principles that patterns of resource consumption should meet high standards of public conduct, and robust governance and respect Parliament’s intentions, conventions and control procedures, including any laid down by the Public Accounts Committee.	Owning Function: Finance
protective security	The term used to define physical, personnel, cyber, technical and industry security working in concert to protect an organisation and its assets.	Owning Function: Security

Q

quality	The degree to which the features and inherent or assigned characteristics of a product, person, process, service and/or system bear on its ability to show that it meets expectations or stated needs, requirements or specification.	Owning Function: Project delivery
quality assurance	The planned systematic process that will be used to provide confidence that outputs will match their defined quality criteria.	Owning Function: Project delivery
quality control	The process of monitoring specific project results to determine whether they comply with relevant standards and of identifying ways to eliminate causes of unsatisfactory performance.	Owning Function: Project delivery

R

reach	The number of people reached by a communications activity.	Owning Function: Communication
receivable	A receivable is money owed to the government and is represented as an asset. In financial statements these are categorised between current (receivable within 12 months), and non-current (receivable after 12 months or more).	Owning Function: Debt
regularity	Compliant with the relevant legislation and wider legal principles such as subsidy control and procurement law, delegated authorities and the guidance in Managing Public Money.	Owning Function: Finance
remission	Remissions are debts capable of recovery but the organisation has decided not to pursue the liability on the grounds of value for money or hardship. As with a write-off, this would be recorded in the annual report and accounts as a reduction in the value of the receivable, or as an expenditure.	Owning Function: Debt
residual risk	The risk remaining after the risk response has been applied.	Owning Function: Project delivery
resolution plans	A component of contingency planning that defines how a significant incident will be resolved and who is accountable and responsible for the plan within the organisation.	Owning Function: Commercial
resource	Current expenditure such as pay or procurement and including depreciation, which is the current cost associated with the ownership of asset.	Owning Function: Finance
responsible (person)	Someone who is responsible has some control over or care for an action, or the obligation to do something as part of a wider job role. [Note: a responsible person is responsible to an accountable person, or themselves if they are the accountable person.]	Owning Function: Project delivery
risk	The effect of uncertainty on objectives. Risk is usually expressed in terms of causes, potential events, and their consequences: a cause is an element which alone or in combination has the potential to give rise to risk; an event is an occurrence or change of a set of circumstances and can be something that is expected which does not happen or something that is not expected which does happen. Events can have multiple causes and consequences and can affect multiple objectives; the consequences should the event happen- consequences are the outcome of an event affecting objectives, which can be certain or uncertain, can have positive or negative direct of indirect effects on objectives, can be expressed qualitatively or quantitatively, and can escalate through cascading and cumulative effects.	Owning Function: Finance
risk appetite	The amount of risk the organisation, or subset of it, is willing to accept.	Owning Function: Project delivery
risk management	Risk management is the co-ordinated activities designed and operated to manage risk and exercise internal control within an organisation.	Owning Function: Internal audit
risk tolerance	The threshold levels of risk exposure that, with appropriate approvals, can be exceeded, but which when exceeded will trigger some form of response (for example, reporting the situation to senior management for action).	Owning Function: Project delivery
root cause analysis	Root cause analysis is a process for understanding ‘what happened’ and solving a problem through looking back and drilling down to find out ‘why it happened’ in the first place. Then, looking to rectify the issue(s) so that it does not happen again, or reduce the likelihood that it will happen again.	Owning Function: Internal audit
route to market	The route to market is the approach selected to invite an offer or offers from the supply market. Example routes to market include using existing government framework agreements, open competition, restricted competition, direct award and changes to an existing contract. Permitted routes to market are often restricted by public procurement regulations.	Owning Function: Commercial

S

scenario analysis	A process through which potential future requirements are explored with cross functional stakeholders to ensure contracts are sufficiently flexible to remain fit for purpose if demands and business objectives change.	Owning Function: Commercial
security breach	The confirmed compromise of government assets without permission or authority. This includes people, property or information.	Owning Function: Security
security threat	A possible danger that might exploit a vulnerability to breach security and therefore cause possible harm.	Owning Function: Security
security vulnerability	A weakness that could be exploited by an adversary.	Owning Function: Security
senior responsible owner	The individual accountable to the sponsoring body for a programme or project meeting its objectives, delivering the required outcomes and realising the required benefits. [Note: the senior responsible owner owns the business case and is accountable for governance.] [Note: the sponsoring body could be a group or individual.] [Note: the senior responsible owner of a government major project is ultimately accountable to Parliament.]	Owning Function: Project delivery
service catalogue	A list of operational security services that government security centres provide to their clustered organisations.	Owning Function: Security
services (digital, data and technology)	In the context of digital, data and technology, services enable users to do something that they need to do. Services can be delivered digitally or otherwise (e.g. in-person, over the telephone).	Owning Function: Digital, data and technology
shall	In functional standards, “shall”denotes a requirement: a mandatory element.	Owning Function:Cabinet Office standards
should	In functional standards, “should” denotes a recommendation: an advisory element.**	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
should cost	A financial modelling technique to determine the expected cost of goods or services that are provided by suppliers. HM treasury spending teams are the first point of contact for departments and are best placed to compare Estimates with agreed priorities and spending limits. Spending Teams are responsible for checking their department’s Supply Estimates in detail in accordance with the set timetable.	Owning Function: Commercial
spending teams	HM treasury spending teams are the first point of contact for departments and are best placed to compare Estimates with agreed priorities and spending limits. Spending Teams are responsible for checking their department’s Supply Estimates in detail in accordance with the set timetable.	Owning Function: Finance
sponsoring body	The driving force behind a programme, which provides the investment decision and top-level endorsement for the rationale and objectives of the programme.	Owning Function: Project delivery
sponsorship	A contractual engagement where an organisation pays for the rights ( exclusive or non-exclusive) to be associated with an activity. This may be financially or through the provision of products or services.	Owning Function: Communication
sponsorship framework	The framework document sets out the broad parameters within which organisations will operate but does not convey any legal powers or responsibilities.	Owning Function: Internal audit
sprint retrospectives	In some agile approaches, a team’s time is divided into regular sprints. Retrospectives are meetings held at the end of each sprint to assess progress and plan for the next sprint.	Owning Function: Digital, data and technology
stage (project delivery)	In the context of project delivery, a stage is a subdivision of a project life cycle.	Owning Function: Project delivery
stakeholder	Any individual, group or organisation that can affect or be affected by, or perceive itself to be affected by an initiative (programme, project, activity, risk).	Owning Function: Project delivery
standard	A standard is an agreed document that provides requirements, specifications, guidelines or characteristics that can be used consistently to ensure that materials, products, processes and services are fit for their purpose.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
standardisation	The process of setting generally uniform characteristics for a particular good or service to improve value and streamline procurement activity.	Owning Function: Commercial
Statement of Excesses	A formal statement detailing departments’ overspends and irregular spending as identified by the Comptroller and Auditor General as a result of undertaking annual audits.	Owning Function: Finance
strategic communication	Strategic communication sets, co-ordinates and guides the implementation of activity, based on insight, in a timely way, as part of an overarching plan to deliver against agreed priorities to measurable effect.	Owning Function: Communication
strategic supplier	A supplier that is considered critical to delivery of an organisation’s objectives and strategy.	Owning Function: Commercial
strategy	A strategy outlines longer term objectives, outcomes and outputs, and the means to achieve them, to inform future decisions and planning.	Owning Function: Cabinet Office standards
subsidy	Subsidy means financial assistance which: (i) arises from the resources of the parties, including (A) a direct or contingent transfer of funds such as direct grants, loans or loan guarantees; (B) the forgoing or revenue that is otherwise due; or (C) the provision of goods or services, or the purchase of goods or services; (ii) confers an economic advantage on one of more economic actors; (iii) is specific in so far as it benefits, as a matter of law or fact, certain economic actors over others in relation to the production of certain goods or services; and (iv) has, or could have, an effect on trade or investment between the parties. More information on UK subsidy control can be found on GOV.UK.	Owning Function: Grants
supplier segmentation	A process through which suppliers are categorised according to the organisations judgement over risk, value and criticality.	Owning Function: Commercial
supply estimates	Estimates are the mechanism by which Parliament authorises departmental spending.Estimates require Parliament to vote limits for resources DEL, resource AME, capital DEL and capital AME, as well as any voted spending outside of budgets and the department’s net cash requirement. These voted limits may differ from the figures in departmental budgets and Estimates, as elements of the department’s budgets may fall within non-voted spending.	Owning Function: Finance
sustainability (property)	In the context of property, sustainability is the development, use, maintenance, operation and disposal of property that meets the needs of the present, without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. This includes biodiversity and climate change adaptations.	Owning Function: Property

T

target operating model	A model of the future organisation, its working practices and processes, the information it requires and the technology that supports its operations. [Note: It is often called a blueprint.]	Owning Function: Project delivery
termination	Termination is the premature closure of a work component because it is no longer needed or viable, or because the risks associated with it have become unacceptably high.	Owning Function: Project delivery
tier	The level a contract is assigned to in the organisation’s hierarchy of criticality, as defined by its risk assumptions.	Owning Function: Commercial
tolerance	The permissible deviation above and below a plan’s target for time and cost without escalating the deviation to the next level of management. There can also be tolerance levels for quality, scope, benefit and risk. Tolerance is applied at project, stage and team levels.	Owning Function: Project delivery
tranche (project delivery)	In the context of project delivery, a tranche is a subdivision of a programme designed to enable an incremental approach to delivery of outputs, outcomes and benefits.	Owning Function: Project delivery
transformation	A distinct change to the way an organisation conducts all or part of its business.	Owning Function: Project delivery
transition plan	Documented plan detailing how an incumbent service provider is to hand over their responsibilities to an incoming service provider.	Owning Function: Commercial
two-way traceability	The ability to trace both forward and backward (for example, from requirement to an element of the solution and from the solution element back to requirement). It can also be applied in other areas, such as to output-outcome-benefits mapping, and solution-plan mapping.	Owning Function: Project delivery

U

uncompeted grant	A grant that is awarded to a single organisation or individual without a competition, for example, where there is only a single organisation that has the capability of delivering the objectives. Often referred to as a ‘direct award’. Grant-in-aid is not part of this category.	Owning Function: Grants
user needs	User needs are the needs that a user has of a service, and which that service must satisfy for the user to get the right outcome for them.	Owning Function: Digital, Data and technology

V

validation	An activity that ensures a solution (or part of) meets the needs of the business. Validation ensures that business requirements are met even though these might have changed since the original design.	Owning Function: Project delivery
validation (analysis)	In the context of analysis, validation comprises activities that confirm that an analysis has been performed, which fulfils the stated need.	Owning Function: Analysis
value exchange	Ensuring that each side of a marketing partnership is content with what they are receiving from the relationship relative to what they are giving.	Owning Function: Communication
value for money	The process under which organisation’s procurements, projects and processes are systematically evaluated and assessed to provide confidence about suitability, effectiveness, prudence, quality, value and avoidance of error and other waste, judged for the Exchequer as a whole.	Owning Function: Finance
value for money (project delivery)	Value for money is a balanced judgment based on the benefit cost ratio which brings together social costs over the entire life of a proposal, together with decisively significant unquantifiable deliverables, and unmonetised risks and uncertainties, to deliver a proposal’s objectives.	Owning Function: Finance
verification	An activity that ensures that a solution (or part of) is complete, accurate, reliable and matches its design specification.	Owning Function: Project delivery
verification (analysis)	In the context of analysis, verification comprises activities that confirm the analysis has been carried out correctly.	Owning Function: Project delivery

W

whole life costs (property)	The cost of an asset throughout its whole life cycle, including costs associated with acquisition, ownership, use, operation, maintenance and disposal, calculated on a consistent basis over time.	Owning Function: Property
whole life costs (commercial)	The cost of an asset throughout its whole life cycle, including the costs associated with acquisition, ownership, use, operation, maintenance and disposal, calculated on a consistent basis over time.	Owning Function: Commercial
whole of government accounts	Consolidates all central and local government organisations’ accounts and comparisons of outturn with budgets.	Owning Function: Finance
work component	A defined and managed part of a portfolio, such as a lower-level portfolio, programme, project, other related work, or work package.	Owning Function: Project delivery
work package	A group of related activities that have a defined scope, deliverable, timescale and cost, contributing to the required outputs and outcomes.	Owning Function: Project delivery
write-off	Writing down of a receivable balance in the annual report and accounts below its original value. Only receivables that are considered irrecoverable can be written off, although they could still be legally collectable. Court fines and confiscation orders can be cancelled as a result of a judicial decision, and will be written off. These will all result in a charge to the Income and Expenditure account and a reduction to the receivables balance.	Owning Function: Debt