The Shared Services Centre (SSC), which was intended to save money by combing the back-office functions of the UK’s seven research councils, has so far not been good value for money, and there is a risk that the councils will not recover their investment, according to a report by the National Audit Office (NAO).

The centre, originally expected to be completed in December 2009, was 15 months late and £51 million – a whopping 65% – over budget. And the expected cost savings have yet to materialise – the NAO estimates that the centre has saved £73 million less than expected so far. This number is just an estimate, however, because the research councils have not monitored the benefits effectively, the report says. The NAO also criticised the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills for not stepping in to fix the problems when it became obvious that the project was going off the rails.

“This is yet another example of a project embarked upon without the necessary planning. Once it did start to go wrong, proper governance or intervention from the department should have rectified the problems, but this did not happen until a great deal of taxpayers’ money had been spent,” said Amyas Morse, head of the NAO, in a statement.

The report concludes, however, that with careful management there is significant scope for further savings.

Of course, none of this will come as a surprise to those who have been following the trials and tribulations of the SSC over the years. Last year Research Fortnight reported several examples of poor financial administration at the centre, including visits from bailiffs and moon rocks held hostage by couriers over non-payment of bills.

Research Councils UK said in a statement that it is already implementing most of the NAO’s recommendations in an effort to get the centre back on track.

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