It is important the Council is accountable for its actions. It is responsible for spending public money and for providing services which everyone uses more or less daily. One of the most common ways of assessing how councils are performing is through the use of performance indicators which are part of the day to day management of services.

Glasgow City Council uses a great variety of performance indicators and measures to assess how it is doing in terms of achieving its aims and objectives at corporate and service department levels. Services have their own local performance information which is reported to service management teams. The Council as a whole reports a number of Statutory measures to the Government and other bodies.

The Council needs to know how well it is delivering services and if there are any difficulties these have to be quickly identified and resolved. Performance measures allow the Council to assess how it is doing over time and in comparison with others. They also allow for a clear assessment of how policies and actions can be changed to meet changing needs.