In recent years public sector buyers have taken social and environmental issues into consideration before deciding on which suppliers to award contracts to. This shift means that economic and qualitative factors are no longer alone at the forefront of decision makers’ minds.

If your business wants to tender for public sector work and doesn’t have an environmental and sustainability policy in place, it may be time to create one.

Learn more about environmental issues in procurement and the policy you should have in place below.

 

Procurement is changing

The Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS) is urging public sector buyers to consider social and environmental issues when purchasing goods from the private sector.

On its website, the organisation gives an example of the types of question, outside of the commercial arena, that buyers should be asking before they choose suppliers:

“Where does the wood come from that we make our paper out of; how environmentally friendly are our contractors and suppliers; and are we benefiting our local economy in the wider sense when we procure?”

 

What is an environmental and sustainability policy?

Moving forward, public sector organisations will be reviewing bidders’ environmental and sustainability policies before deciding on a winning contractor.

Public sector bodies want their suppliers to promote responsibility for the environment and communicate their environmental and sustainability policy at all levels within their workforce.

This policy should also include details on how your business is trying to reduce its use of energy, water and other resources and minimise waste by reduction, re-use and recycling methods.

 

Get ready to tender

If your business is getting ready to tender, make sure that you include details about your environmental and sustainability policy within your bid.

Not ready yet?

You can find opportunities by registering for free to Supply2Gov. This will give you access to tender opportunities as well as access to our ‘Ready to Tender Checklist’, which will help you cover all the bases when it comes to public sector procurement.

Get started

 

 

In the fiscal year ending in 2019, total UK public spending, including central government and local authorities, was £821.0 billion. This is expected to rise this year to £847.6 billion.

With more opportunities with the public sector out there than ever before, it’s time to think about the contracts that you may have been missing out on.

We have listed the top hotspots for UK public sector business below, so you can spot the opportunities that could be sitting on your doorstep.

 

Contract Hotspots

London:                                            20,007 contract notices

North West England:                     16,969 contract notices

South East England:                      15,435 contract notices

South West England:                     15,385 contract notices

Yorkshire and the Humber:         14,869 contract notices

Scotland:                                          14,645 contract notices

 

London

London topped our 2018 Contract Hotspots list and continues to take top place in 2019. The region is a favoured location of major private housing schemes, a sector which is fast-growing, as well as social housing projects. According to construction experts Glenigan, there are already a number of new social housing projects in the pipeline for 2020. Many housing associations have reviewed the implications of the Grenfell Tower fire of June 2017, leading to planned future refurbishment schemes on non-compliant properties.

 

North West England

UK central government intends to spend £134 billion over the period 2016-21; 32% of that sum will be spent in the North of England. The Northern Powerhouse initiative is creating many opportunities as the UK Government is committed to improving everyday journeys, developing skills and rolling out superfast broadband throughout the region.

 

South East England

Around 60% of Transport for London (TfL) expenditure is spent with suppliers based outside London – many are located in the South East of England, making it a hotspot for procurement opportunities. The Infrastructure and Projects Authority has also announced that by the end of 2020/21 it will have reached “a decision on a preferred new runway in the South East and preparation of a new Airports National Policy Statement.”

 

South West England

The Department for Transport (DfT) revealed this year that it has major plans to invest in the South West of England. Already the UK Government is transforming connectivity throughout the region with £360 million being allocated for a fleet of brand-new Intercity Express Trains. The South West will also benefit from DfT’s £29 billion improvement package on England’s most important roads; £1.6 billion from this will be invested into a 1.8-mile tunnel to bypass Stonehenge.

 

Yorkshire and the Humber

Major construction projects have boosted tender opportunities in Yorkshire and the Humber. In June 2019 it was announced that the search had started for 14 contractors to work on a £1.5 billion major projects framework for YORBuild. The YORBuild framework aims to help the public sector “deliver great construction projects at the best value, improving the lives of those who call Yorkshire and the Humber home.”

 

Scotland

The construction industry makes a huge contribution to Scotland’s economy, generating £21.4 billion per year. The latest Glenigan Construction Forecast predicts a rise in project starts during 2019 in Scotland. At the end of last year Construction ­Scotland launched its new strategy, which sets out the industry’s priorities for actions to improve its performance, with procurement reform at the top of the list.

 

Find public sector procurement opportunities

Supply2Gov users can gain access to tender alerts for the areas mentioned above, and beyond!

Once you have signed up for your FREE local area, simply tailor your profile to the services or products that your SME business offers and start winning work with the public sector.

Thursday 4th July 2019 saw P4H England return to the NEC in Birmingham for another smash hit procurement show. As part of the annual event, Supply2Gov presented a talk on how to get ready to tender to the public sector. If you missed the talk, don’t worry you can complete the form below to get your hands on a copy of the slides from the session.

Download your free copy today.

Our parent company BiP Solutions has released its latest market report: “Transforming Infrastructure: Building Britain’s Future – Opportunities and Trends 2019”.

This report examines some of the key themes in infrastructure today and shines a spotlight on many of the construction tenders that have been granted in recent years by the public sector.

 

Infrastructure Investment

In the latest report by procurement experts BiP Solutions, it is noted that:

“The UK is currently host to some of the largest infrastructure projects underway in Europe, with HS2, Crossrail and Thames Tideway some of the flagship developments in the sector.”

Investment is set to continue as the National Infrastructure and Construction Pipeline (published in 2018) gives detail of the level of investment expected in construction and infrastructure over the next decade.

The Government predicts that £600Bn of both private and public investment will fund nearly 700 projects that will aim to improve UK roads and rail, hospitals and schools, utilities, energy and communications.

 

Key Statistics

The report also hosts the findings of a specially commissioned survey that considers the impact of large-scale infrastructure projects on the overall construction industry. According to the survey:

“80% of participants agree or strongly agree that infrastructure has been responsible for driving growth within the industry over the past 12 months.”

The great majority of participants (89%) also agree that large-scale infrastructure projects are vital for the economy of a post-Brexit Britain, with some two-thirds confident that strong public investment within the UK is likely to continue.

 

Spend Analysis

The “Transforming Infrastructure: Building Britain’s Future – Opportunities and Trends 2019” Spend Analysis chapter breaks down infrastructure spend in three sections:

  • Investment in the pipeline 2018/19 to 2020/21 by sector (£Bn)
  • Funding mix of the pipeline 2018/19 to 2020/21 by sector (£Bn)
  • Around £225Bn investment in the pipeline beyond 2020/21 by sector

To gain access to these detailed figures, download the report here.

 

Opportunities in Construction

If your business is looking for the latest construction tenders within the UK, get started for free with Supply2Gov.

Our platform has been designed to make tendering simple for businesses that want to win public sector contracts in the construction sector.

Learn more about how your business can start winning construction tenders.

 

 

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is listed on our Ready to Tender checklist as one of the areas your business should have prepared when setting out to tender for work with the public sector.

The public sector wants to work with suppliers that conduct their business in a way that is ethical. When evaluating a tender, they will consider the social, economic and environmental impact made by the applicant, and assess their consideration of human rights.

 

Why you need a CSR to tender?

In recent years there has been an increased demand from employees, customers and government bodies for suppliers to be more open about their business practices, which has encouraged many to implement a CSR policy.

Your CSR policy may include a range of activities:

  • Socially responsible investment (SRI)
  • Building relationships with employees and customers
  • Eco-friendly/sustainability projects
  • Partnership with local communities

It makes commercial sense for businesses to get involved in community-based CSR related to your product or service as it is particularly prized by local authorities as partnership projects benefit their area.

 

Examples of CSR in procurement

One of the categories in the Government Opportunities (GO) Awards is dedicated to CSR.

The “GO Social and Community Benefit in Procurement Award” recognises the additional value that smart procurement can deliver for individuals and groups across society.

When judging this category for the 2019 Awards, the judges were focused not just on the theory behind the projects but also on the actual, tangible benefits that have been derived from them. In the past, winners have been chosen for their efforts in training and upskilling unemployed individuals and for collaboration with local charities.

Tai Tarian, one of the largest social housing providers in Wales, was a finalist and Highly Commended winner at the UK National GO Awards 2019/20. The judges were impressed by the “Copper Foundation”, an initiative launched by Tai Tarian that aims to upskill 80 individuals who come from workless families to help them to find a route back into long-term sustainable employment.

 

Ready to Tender Checklist

Have a think about your business’s CSR policy and make sure that you are including details about it within your tender.

Once you have done so, register for free to gain access to our “Ready to Tender Checklist”, which will help you cover all bases when it comes to public sector procurement.

 

Our parent company BiP Solutions has launched a new Procurement in Defence: Key Themes and Trends 2019 report. It examines various areas of the defence sector from the MOD’S efforts to improve industrial engagement to the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO)’s commercial transformation. Below you will find a short infographic that we’ve created which pulls out some of the key points from the report.

Click here to download your copy of the Supply2Gov Procurement in Defence infographic.

Discover your place in the UK’s £20 billion defence marketplace. Click here to download the full BiP Procurement in Defence report.

Want to find defence tender opportunities?

There are many defence tender opportunities available in the UK. Even if you don’t supply defence materials, defence buyers are always looking for a vast range of goods and services as diverse as ICT, research and development, manufacturing and blue light services.

Supply2Gov offers tender alert subscriptions at both a local and national level. Find opportunities relevant to the goods and services your business provides.

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