Public sector procurement can be intimidating when you first explore its potential, especially when you aim high and want to start with large regional or national contracts. Regardless of your business’s size, the best place to get your feet wet is in your local area.
You’re still stuck with one major challenge, however, and that is where to find local government tenders in your area.
It’s actually pretty easy: Register on tender alerts platforms like Supply2Gov, which has the largest database of government tenders in the UK and the Republic of Ireland.
Supply2Gov’s pay-as-you-grow philosophy lets you start with free local area alerts and upgrade your package as your business grows and you want to extend your reach to other regions in the country.
Why Local Contracts Are a Powerful Growth Lever
All businesses can benefit from local tenders when starting out, but SMEs get the most benefit from sticking to local council tenders. They can establish themselves as thought leaders who pack a powerful contract delivery punch. They can carve out a pretty good niche for their businesses and build strong relationships with key contracting authorities and public sector buyers in their area of specialisation.
There are several more benefits for SMEs that want to capture their share of the UK’s public procurement market.
Lower competition
Larger enterprises tend to ignore low-value local contracts, preferring to focus their attention and resources on high-value contract opportunities from government departments on a regional or national scale.
Faster delivery
Local lower-value contracts tend to be small(ish) with short, but manageable, deadlines. SMEs on the ball can take advantage of the quick delivery times and bid on more local area tender opportunities.
Local reputation
The more successful contracts you deliver, the better your reputation and the more in-demand your services, products, or works. Quality is of the essence. It’s no good sacrificing quality so you can bolt through contracts to get as many under your belt as quickly as you can. That will scuttle your reputation and your chances of winning future bids.
One more benefit. The UK government is very keen to get more SMEs involved in public sector procurement, to this end more than £100 billion is available for local authorities and NHS trusts to spend annually. That’s a whole lot of pie to get your fingers into.
What Types of Local Government Contracts Exist?
There are a lot of local government contracts. Name it and you can probably find a contract for it.
For example, public sector bodies might publish contract notices for:
- IT support
- Social care services
- Waste management
- Construction (e.g., infrastructure, maintenance)
- Cleaning
- Printing
- Training
And many, many more.
Here are a few examples of real government contracts posted by contracting authorities on Supply2Gov.
| Sector | Contract |
| IT support | Contract for the Provision of Redcap Data Management & Statistics Analysis Support |
| Social care services | Preliminary Market Engagement – Healthwatch Service |
| Waste management | P2232 – Processing of Paper and Card |
| Construction | Cold Applied Ultra Thin Surfacing Systems (CAUTS) Treatment |
| Cleaning | Corporate Cleaning Contract (includes corporate admin buildings and housing residential buildings) |
| Printing | Supplier Hosted Physical Records Management and File Tracking System |
| Training | Warehouse Operative Apprenticeships |
As you can see, government tender opportunities are varied and diverse.
Step-by-Step: How to Find Tenders in Your Local Area
Here’s how to register for local tender alerts on our platform in three simple steps.
Step 1 – Register for Free on Supply2Gov
Our entry package is perfect for anyone getting into public sector procurement because it doesn’t cost a penny. You’re also free to choose any local area where you’d like to work; it doesn’t have to be where you live. For example, your town might have limited opportunities, but the next county could be teeming with contracts in your niche. You’re welcome to set up alerts for procurement notices in that area.
Step 2 – Enter Your Sector and Postcode
Be specific about your sector, you want to receive relevant alerts, not everything with a passing resemblance.
The postcode is important, that’s where you can choose to receive alerts from neighbouring local areas and not your hometown.
Local area examples: Greater Manchester – South, Glasgow City, Outer Belfast.
When you register for free, you also get access to CompeteFor supply chain opportunities, our Tender Ready Toolkit, and the S2G Helpdesk.
Step 3 – Set Preferences and Start Receiving Alerts
Once you set your preferences, you’ll start receiving tender alerts with plenty of time left to the deadline, so you can focus on developing a compelling tender response.
Remember to be as specific as possible. S2G monitors over 3000 sources to find the most relevant contracts for your business. Results are emailed directly to your Alert Profile, and you don’t want to wade through an avalanche of alerts from public sector buyers just to find one promising prospect.
Why Timely Alerts Matter in Tendering
Immediacy is one of the great things about tender alerts. As soon as a contract notice is published, S2G grabs it and sends it to your profile email. This is very important because it gives you plenty of time to put a bid together.
Make no mistake, you need plenty of time because bid prep can be anything from a week to upwards of a month. It depends on the size and complexity of the contract, but it also depends on your experience with public sector procurement practices.
If you’re new to the public sector market, you should give yourself extra time to prepare your tender response and gather the relevant evidence you need to complete your bid. Even if you miss the deadline for the first few contracts, at least you’ve had time to get all your ducks in a row.
Many companies get into the groove around their third bid, after which the process of responding to procurement notices is far more efficient and seamless.
Upgrade to Access Niche and Nationwide Opportunities
Free alerts for specific postcodes are good and well (very good and well for smaller businesses), but you might want to spread your wings and find new markets across a much broader region. This is where the beauty of our pay-as-you-grow philosophy shines.
You can upgrade your package to support your new target market, whether it’s country-specific (England or Wales), UK-wide, or even global. You’ll also gain access to more sectors, with more tender opportunities for your growing skills, as well as frameworks, and even private sector projects.
Why wait?
Common Mistakes When Searching for Local Tenders
We’ve said it’s pretty easy to find local government contracts using Supply2Gov’s database. And it’s true, but mistakes happen. Here are some of the most common mistakes suppliers make when looking for relevant local tenders.
1) Not registering for alerts
You can go it alone, if you want, but there are over 3000 sources out there. It’ll take a lot of time scouring each database for contracts that suit your business offering. A lot of time. Time you probably can’t afford to waste on a task that can be done in next to no time when you register on S2G.
2) Only search the government website: http://GOV.UK
While it’s mandatory to publish contracts above a certain threshold on the government’s Contracts Finder and Find a Tender portals, there are plenty of local council contracts that are only advertised locally and not on the national site. S2G picks up all contracts published, so you’ll get tenders from GOV.UK and local government sources.
3) Ignoring lower-value contracts
Ambition is good. It’s great. Nothing would ever be achieved without ambition. But, you have to walk before you can run. Start with lower-value contracts to build experience. Get a few successful contracts under your belt before you reach for the stars.
Bear in mind, there’s nothing wrong with only choosing lower-value contracts. It’s entirely your choice and if you’ve carved out a successful niche, then make yourself comfy, by all means.
4) Miss pre-market engagement opportunities
The government actively encourages pre-market or early market engagement in public sector procurement practices. It won’t necessarily land you contracts immediately, but the opportunity to network and build relationships with contracting authorities and public sector buyers will pay dividends in the long run.
Download Your Free Guide to Local Tendering
This is just an introduction to winning local tenders. You can find out much more by downloading our free Local Tendering Starter Kit. In addition to more in-depth information on public procurement, you’ll get a tendering checklist, examples of the different types of public sector tenders, and a tutorial to help you set up your alerts to optimise your contract opportunities.
Supply2Gov is much more than a database of government tenders. We’re also your gateway to success, with the support and tools available to help you reach your procurement goals. Save time by registering on our portal and receiving local tender alerts immediately.