Measurement
Part of Small business grants measurement: baselines, costs and honest limits
Small business grants: correcting a wrong figure in an issued report
How to correct a wrong figure in a small business grants report once issued: trace every use, fix the source, check the agreement, tell the funder.
What to take away
- Scope the damage firstlist every report, dashboard and decision that used the wrong figure.
- Correct the source, repeat the calculation, obtain review and record the reason and date.
- Keep the earlier report, and never call a material change a routine refresh.
- Tell the funder through the required route when an issued claim or result was wrong.
- Find the control failure, then track whether the remedy works in the next reporting cycle.
Scope the damage before you change anything
Start by listing everything that used the wrong figure. Identify all reports, dashboards and decisions that used it, because a fix at the source alone leaves the earlier copies in circulation. A version, reporting date and owner on every issued figure make that list quick to draw up.
Decisions deserve their own line on the list. A figure that fed a claim, a budget revision or a progress paper needs the same correction as the report itself, so check where the number travelled and who acted on it.
Then ask what the figure was meant to show. The 2026 Magenta Book separates process, impact and value-for-money questions. Use that distinction to label evidence accurately, so the corrected figure is described for what it actually measures.
Results chain from inputs to outcomes
- Inputs: money and equipment
- Activities: sessions delivered
- Outputs: participants trained
- Outcomes: skills or sales improve
Some errors are errors of kind rather than arithmetic. Money spent, equipment bought and sessions delivered are not proof of improved productivity, skills or sales. If the wrong figure counted activity as outcome, the correction must reach the outcome end of the results chain, not just swap one number.
Take a report that presented training sessions delivered as improved skills. The count of sessions may be right while the claim is wrong. The correction relabels it as an output, says what outcome evidence exists, and lists every place the claim appeared.
Correct the source and keep the trail
Correct the source first, then repeat the calculation from it. Obtain review before the new figure is issued, and record the reason and date of the change. Reworking a dashboard before the source is fixed only spreads the error again.
- Name the wrong figure, its version and its owner.
- List every report, dashboard and decision that used it.
- Correct the source and repeat the calculation.
- Obtain review of the new figure.
- Record the reason and the date, and keep the earlier version.
- Tell the funder where the agreement requires it.
Do not erase the earlier report or describe a material change as a routine refresh. Keep the old version, give the new one its own version and reporting date, and show both. That is the same trail a funder expects when it asks for proof.
Tell the funder when the claim was wrong
Tell the funder through the required route when an issued claim or result was wrong. The grant funding agreement and the circumstances determine whether a formal notification is needed. Read the agreement before you decide that a quiet correction is enough, and use the route it names.
The Cabinet Office Model Grant Funding Agreement illustrates how financial reporting and performance measures may both form part of an award. So check the reporting and performance clauses of your own agreement, and the offer letter if there is one, for the contact, the form and any deadline.
Keep the funder separate from the tax authority. A wrong figure in a claim made to HMRC is corrected with HMRC, not through the grant contact. A grant team with written service standards already has a named route for the funder, which is faster than inventing one while the error is live.
Find the control failure
After the correction, find the control failure. A wrong formula, ambiguous definition, late source or unauthorised edit calls for a different remedy, so patching the number without naming the cause leaves the same error free to return next quarter.
| Control failure | What it looks like | Remedy to add |
|---|---|---|
| Wrong formula | The calculation does not match the measure | Independent calculation check |
| Ambiguous definition | Two people count the same thing differently | A measure specification with unit, inclusion rule, period, source and owner |
| Late source | The figure was issued before the data arrived | Evidence register showing source and date |
| Unauthorised edit | The figure changed without approval | Version, reporting date and owner on every issued figure |
Work backwards from the error. If two people counted the same thing differently, the definition failed, not the arithmetic. If the formula was right but the figure went out before the source arrived, the control over timing failed.
Track whether the remedy works during the next reporting cycle. A reporting dashboard that shows evidence quality beside the money makes that comparison easier, and it shows quickly whether the same fault has come back.
Check personal data while you trace the error
Tracing an error should not widen who sees personal data. Test duplicates without exposing unnecessary personal data. Every field creates work and may create privacy risk, so collect only what supports an agreed decision or duty.
The ICO guidance hub is the primary starting point for UK data-protection guidance. Read it before sharing working files, and keep the grant team's data protection notes alongside it.
Correction checklist
- Wrong figure named, with its version and owner
- Every affected report, dashboard and decision listed
- Source corrected and calculation repeated
- Review obtained, and reason and date recorded
- Earlier report kept, and the change not called a routine refresh
- Funder told where the agreement requires it
Common questions
Can I just overwrite the wrong figure?
No. Do not erase the earlier report. Keep it, issue the corrected figure as a new version with its reason and date, and show both so a reader can see what changed.
Do I always have to tell the funder?
The agreement and circumstances determine whether a formal notification is needed. When an issued claim or result was wrong, tell the funder through the required route.
Why not simply fix the number and move on?
A wrong formula, ambiguous definition, late source or unauthorised edit each calls for a different remedy. Fixing only the number leaves the cause in place.
