Public sector procurement initiative benefits North East firms

An initiative to Buy Sunderland First has boosted the percentage of money spent by Sunderland City Council on contracts with local and regional suppliers to almost 70%.

The council procured goods, services and work from third party businesses worth more than £217 million in 2012/13. Sunderland-based firms won 36% of the work based on value, and 68% of the value of the contracts went to businesses in the North East.

Although the amount spent with outside suppliers was down from £244.8 million in 2011/12, the actual percentage of money being spent on Wearside rose by 2.21%.

The figures, from Sunderland City Council’s annual report into local spending, are the first to be issued since the council overhauled its procurement processes to make it easier for local firms to win contracts.

Backed by the North East Chamber of Commerce and the Federation of Small Businesses, the initiative introduced an ambitious programme designed to educate and support local businesses about working with the Council.

Sunderland City Council Leader, Cllr Paul Watson, said: “It’s less than a year since we introduced our supplier development programme and I’m delighted that it’s already bearing fruit.

“By raising awareness of opportunities to work with the council, encouraging local firms to bid for it, and adopting a Buy Sunderland First philosophy, we’re aiming to keep as much of our spending as possible in Wearside and the North East.

“The City Council awarded contracts worth £79 million to 1,420 Sunderland businesses and work worth £147,115,410 to 2,916 North East businesses (including Sunderland) in 2012/13.

“Nearly 70% of our total third party spending stayed in the regional economy and we’re working hard to continue this improvement.”

The supplier development programme resulted from a procurement review carried out by the City Council last year. At its heart is a desire to increase engagement with and support for local suppliers by raising awareness of contract opportunities and encouraging local businesses to submit bids.

More than 200 suppliers completed a questionnaire in May, asking for opinions on how the council’s procurement process was working, what they thought of the available support and the Buy Sunderland First and North East Procurement Organisation (NEPO) portals, which publish details of available public sector contracts.

The results were used to put together a new series of training and supplier-based events, running from July this year until March 2014. They include drop-in and feedback sessions plus events giving an overview of how to get the best out of Buy Sunderland First and NEPO.

Training on preparing the documents for a bid, meet the buyer events and market engagement sessions to raise awareness of future opportunities are also being organised. The City Council is also reviewing the Buy Sunderland First database every two months to ensure registered suppliers have the correct contact details and categories of interest listed.

In addition, the City Council published its Supplier Charter at the start of this year, which details the standards local businesses can expect when dealing with the local authority. It encourages a wide range of suppliers to compete for council business and commits Sunderland City Council to giving SMEs and voluntary and community businesses an equal chance to tender for contracts.

Nala Engineers Ltd of Houghton-le-Spring, Sunderland was awarded a place on the Mechanical and Electrical Works framework with Sunderland City Council earlier this year.

Nicola Duke, a director of Nala Engineers Ltd said: “Having had limited experience of working with Sunderland City Council in the past I always thought bidding for council contracts wasn’t worth our while because we would be competing against larger companies with more experience of the procurement process.

“However, after being notified of the framework opportunity through the NEPO Portal website and attending the free supplier briefing/training event I was surprised to find that tendering for work wasn’t as complicated as I thought.

“We are now on the Mechanical and Electrical Works framework and have been successful in winning work with the Council. The Council’s efforts have made more local companies aware of the opportunities available, while the support and feedback provided has made a real difference as far as I’m concerned. I’m confident we can now continue to hold our own when bidding for future work.”