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What is a government business case template?
A government business case template is a structured record of why public money should be committed, which option offers the best public value, how delivery will be controlled and how results will be reported. In the UK, HM Treasury guidance published in May 2024 uses the Five Case Model for projects and programmes.
The model is not a sales pitch. It is an evidence pack for accountable officers, finance, commercial, delivery and assurance reviewers. A proportionate case can be a single-stage business justification for low-cost, low-risk work; complex proposals normally develop through Strategic Outline Case, Outline Business Case and Full Business Case.
Use the right document at the right decision
| Stage | Decision requested | Minimum evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Strategic Outline Case | Agree the problem, objectives, long list and next-stage work | Need, strategic fit, stakeholders, critical success factors and a broad option range |
| Outline Business Case | Choose a preferred way forward before procurement or major commitment | Shortlist appraisal, preferred option, affordability, procurement approach, risks and benefits |
| Full Business Case | Approve commitment and contract or implementation | Final costs, commercial terms, funding, delivery plan, governance and benefits baseline |
What sections should a Five Case Model government business case include?
Use five connected cases: Strategic, Economic, Commercial, Financial and Management. HM Treasury describes the Five Case Model as the step-by-step basis for government business cases; each case answers a different approval question and must point to the same preferred option.
| Case | Decision question | Copy-and-do content |
|---|---|---|
| Strategic Case | Is there a compelling case for change? | State the current service gap, affected users, policy alignment, SMART objectives, constraints and do-minimum counterfactual. |
| Economic Case | Which option creates the best public value? | List the long list, filter it against critical success factors, appraise a shortlist against costs, benefits, risks and unmonetised effects. |
| Commercial Case | Can the preferred option be procured and contracted? | Set out market engagement, packaging, route to market, payment mechanism, risk allocation and contract-management roles. |
| Financial Case | Is it affordable and funded? | Show whole-life cash flows by financial year, capital and resource split, funding source, contingency and budget owner. |
| Management Case | Can it be delivered, governed and evaluated? | Name the senior responsible owner, governance boards, milestones, dependencies, risk owners, benefits owners and evaluation plan. |
Add a one-page executive summary after the five cases are stable. It should state the decision, preferred option, whole-life cost, key quantified benefit, top three risks, delivery date, funding source and named accountable owner. Do not introduce a claim in the summary that the detailed cases do not evidence.
How do you write the Economic Case and calculate public value?
The Economic Case compares realistic alternatives against the do-minimum baseline, not against doing nothing in the abstract. Define the counterfactual service, create a long list, apply critical success factors, then appraise the shortlisted options using discounted costs, benefits, risks and non-monetised impacts.
Core appraisal fields to include
- Appraisal period: state the first and last year, price base and whether values are real or nominal.
- Options: include do-minimum, realistic delivery alternatives and the preferred option; record why rejected long-list options failed a critical success factor.
- Costs: capital, operating, transition, maintenance, replacement, decommissioning, optimism bias or quantified risk allowance where applicable.
- Benefits: cash-releasing, service, social, environmental and distributional effects; identify the beneficiary, unit, baseline, target and evidence source.
- Sensitivity: change the material assumptions one at a time and show whether option ranking changes.
For a UK central-government appraisal, the February 2026 Green Book states a social time preference rate of 3.5% in real terms for years 1 to 30, 3.0% for years 31 to 75 and 2.5% thereafter. Confirm the version and any departmental supplement in force before submitting because sector-specific rules can apply.
Use these appraisal formulas
Discount each future real cost or benefit to present value. Net present social value compares total discounted benefits and costs. Benefit-cost ratio is useful as a cross-check, but it must not replace the narrative on statutory duties, service quality, place impacts or unmonetised effects.
What must the Commercial and Financial Cases show?
The Commercial Case proves that the preferred option has a credible market and contract route. The Financial Case proves that the organisation can pay for it when payments fall due. A positive economic result does not itself create a budget, procurement route or delegated approval.
Commercial Case checklist
- Describe suppliers, capacity, market concentration and evidence from market engagement.
- Choose and justify the procurement route, lotting or packaging, competition approach and timetable.
- Define outputs, service levels, acceptance criteria, pricing method, payment milestones and change control.
- Allocate each major risk to the party best able to manage it; record the residual public-sector risk.
- Name the contract manager, technical authority and escalation route from award through exit.
Financial Case table to complete
| Financial-year field | What to enter | Control check |
|---|---|---|
| Cash requirement | Expected payments by year, including VAT treatment where relevant | Matches contract milestones and treasury profile |
| Capital and resource | Separate capital expenditure from resource expenditure | Matches accounting and budget classifications |
| Funding source | Approved budget, grant, reserve, borrowing or third-party contribution | Named owner confirms availability |
| Contingency | Amount, basis, drawdown authority and remaining balance | Not double-counted with risk allowance |
| Affordability | Budget head, forecast and pressure after the proposal | Finance director or delegated approver signs off |
The UK Government Teal Book states that business-case approvals and spending authority are governed by a department's delegated authority limit. HM Treasury's April 2026 Approvals Process guidance also says departments must undertake appropriate assurance when approval has been delegated. Check your own organisation's scheme of delegation before setting a submission route.
How do you make a government business case approval-ready?
Make the Management Case an operating plan for delivery and assurance. Approval reviewers should be able to see who decides, who owns each risk and benefit, when evidence will be refreshed and what event triggers escalation or reapproval.
Approval-ready sequence
- Define the decision, approver, delegated authority limit and required approval date.
- Appoint the senior responsible owner, project director, finance lead, commercial lead, benefits owner and risk owners.
- Baseline service performance, costs, demand and benefits before the intervention starts.
- Run proportionate internal review across policy, finance, commercial, legal, digital, estates, analytical and delivery functions.
- Freeze the version, reconcile all numbers across cases, submit the decision paper and retain the approval record.
- After approval, report changes in cost, schedule, scope, risk and benefits against the approved baseline.
| Management artifact | Minimum content | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| Milestone plan | Decision gates, procurement, mobilisation, delivery, evaluation and dependencies | Project director |
| Risk register | Cause, event, impact, gross score, control, residual score, trigger and owner | Risk owner |
| Benefits register | Metric, baseline, target, due date, data source, owner and confidence | Benefits owner |
| Evaluation plan | Process, impact and value-for-money questions; method; comparator; publication route | SRO and analyst |
How does a government annual report template connect to the business case?
A government annual report template should report the outcomes promised in the approved business case, not create a separate performance story. For UK bodies, the Government Financial Reporting Manual 2025-26 identifies requirements for a performance report in chapter 5 and an accountability report in chapter 6, alongside financial statements.
Build annual-report reporting fields into the Management Case before approval. Each material benefit should have a baseline, target, reporting period, data owner and source. Each financial commitment should reconcile to the year-end accounts and explain any forecast-versus-actual variance.
| Annual report section | Business-case evidence carried forward | Example reporting line |
|---|---|---|
| Performance report | Objectives, baseline, target, service metrics and benefits | Report actual metric, target, variance, reason and corrective action |
| Accountability report | Governance, risk, control, senior ownership and assurance | Report material control changes, committee oversight and accountability disclosures |
| Financial statements | Approved funding, capital and resource profile, commitments and accounting treatment | Reconcile outturn, provisions and commitments to audited accounts |
Government annual report template fields to prepare monthly
- Outcome metric: baseline, annual target, actual result, variance, data-quality note and benefits owner.
- Delivery metric: approved milestone, actual date, schedule variance, dependency and corrective action.
- Financial metric: approved-year budget, forecast, outturn, variance, explanation and finance sign-off.
- Risk metric: approved residual risk, current residual risk, trigger, mitigation and escalation decision.
How can AnyGen create a government business case template?
Use AnyGen to generate an editable government business case template from your real decision, stage and evidence. Provide the proposal name, organisation, jurisdiction, approval sought, options, cost profile, benefits measures, procurement route, delivery milestones and annual-report reporting period.
Use this input sequence
- State whether you need a Strategic Outline Case, Outline Business Case, Full Business Case or a proportionate single-stage justification.
- Paste the policy or service problem, current baseline, target users, statutory or strategic drivers and decision deadline.
- List the do-minimum option and realistic alternatives with whole-life costs, timing, benefits, risks and known assumptions.
- Specify the required governance, delegated authority, procurement constraints, finance classifications and review functions.
- Add the performance measures that must flow into your government annual report template, including owner, baseline, target and reporting frequency.
- Review every generated number and source against current local guidance before submitting for approval.
AnyGen can accelerate structure, drafting, tables and review prompts, but it cannot replace the accountable officer, finance approval, commercial assurance, legal review or evidence required by your government. Keep source documents and approval records with the final case.
Frequently asked questions
What is included in a government business case template?
A robust template includes an executive summary and five connected cases: Strategic, Economic, Commercial, Financial and Management. It also needs a decision request, option appraisal, whole-life cash flow, risk register, benefits register, governance plan and approval record.
What is the Five Case Model in a government business case?
The Five Case Model tests whether the proposal is needed and strategically aligned, offers the best public value, can be procured, is affordable and can be delivered. UK HM Treasury's May 2024 business-case guidance uses this model for projects and programmes.
What is the difference between an Outline Business Case and a Full Business Case?
An Outline Business Case develops and selects a preferred option before major commitment, including affordability and procurement strategy. A Full Business Case seeks final approval by confirming final costs, funding, commercial terms, delivery arrangements and benefits controls.
How do you calculate net present social value in a government business case?
Discount each future real cost and benefit to its present value, then subtract total discounted costs from total discounted benefits. In the UK Green Book published February 2026, the stated real discount rate is 3.5% for years 1 to 30, 3.0% for years 31 to 75 and 2.5% thereafter.
Does every government project need a full business case?
No. The case should be proportionate to expenditure and risk. A low-cost, low-risk proposal may use a single-stage justification, while a complex or high-risk proposal usually needs staged Strategic Outline, Outline and Full Business Cases. Follow your organisation's delegated authority and assurance rules.
What financial information belongs in a government business case template?
Include whole-life cash flow by financial year, capital and resource split, funding source, affordability against the budget, contingency, cost assumptions, accounting treatment where relevant and the owner who confirms funding availability.
How does a government annual report template relate to a business case?
The annual report should report the approved case's outcomes, expenditure, risks and governance. Carry the benefits baseline, target, metric definition, data source, owner and financial profile from the Management and Financial Cases into performance, accountability and financial-statement reporting.
Can AI write a government business case template?
AI can create an editable structure, draft evidence prompts, build option and cash-flow tables, and connect benefits measures to annual-report fields. It cannot approve spending, validate evidence, set delegated authority or replace finance, commercial, legal and assurance review.