This work has resulted in the development of a conceptual framework of public service quality. The work has reviewed differences between the 'rhetoric and realil}'' of quality improvement practice in order to produce a multi-dimensional definition of public service quality. The research has also identified the major influences on quality improvement in the public sector, with a particular focus on local government. The theoretical and empirical research illustrates that traditional definitions of quality originating in the private sector are not sufficiently precise to capture the distinctiveness and complexity of public service quality and thus a multi-dimensional definition has been developed. This describes public service quality as having a democratic, strategic, process and transactional dimension, with each dimension possessing distinct characteristics. The research identified a range of unique factors that are likely to influence quality improvement at each dimension. The theoretical and empirical research indicates that the achievement of long-term and sustainable quality improvement is influenced by the way in which organisations use quality models and systems in practice; their underlying organisational culture; and by a diverse range of institutional factors. All three elements exert a significant influence on the nature and extent of quality improvement in the public sector.