In 2022, the Department for Communities commissioned a report in response to 2020 NDNA Agreement commitment ‘that Departments should undertake a review of their Arm’s Length Bodies’. The aim of the Review was ‘to determine whether its NDPB and Corporation Sole status continues to represent the optimum mode of delivery for the desired policy and strategic outcomes in comparison with other options, alongside looking at governance efficiencies for better partnership working focussed on a strategic and proportionate approach.
Fieldwork was undertaken in May – August 2022, and involved reviewing documents, interviewing NICCY staff, and receiving input from a range of stakeholders including from statutory sector and VCS. The report’s authors also considered NICCY’s Art 24 reports on effectiveness of the Commissioner for Children and Young People (Northern Ireland) Order 2003, largely through consultation with departments and the Assembly Commission.
In October 2024, NICCY prepared a response to the NDNA report recommendations:
