Nearly half of government digital spend goes to SMEs, data shows

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are receiving almost half of all public sector spending on digital, data and technology services, new figures show.

Oliver Dowden MP, Minister for Implementation, announced today (August 24) that SMEs have secured a significant chunk of the available public sector work over the last six years.

Since 2012 more than £1.9bn has been spent with SMEs – equivalent to £1.35 out of every £3 spent by the Government.

Its Digital Marketplace, a platform set up to simplify the application process for accessing public sector digital contracts, is “levelling the playing-field” and supporting a more diverse supplier base, the Government said.

Mr Dowden commented: “It’s great to see small business taking full advantage of the Digital Marketplace to help drive innovation in the public sector.

“The Digital Marketplace is enabling small businesses to work in partnership with the public sector to drive the UK’s digital transformation.”

He added: “Small businesses are the backbone of the British economy and this government is committed to help them prosper.”

Thousands of SMEs are signed up to the platform, enabling them to offer their digital, data and technology services to public bodies.

In the last year, £1.3bn has been spent through the Digital Marketplace, of which £602m went to SMEs.

i-movo, a digital voucher network, is one firm to have landed work through the marketplace.

The Southwark-based company won a contract with the Department for Work and Pensions, and now provides an online voucher system supporting benefit claimants who are unable to access their payments through the bank.

David Tymm, i-movo’s CEO, commented: “The process of joining and winning through the Digital Marketplace is straightforward even for niche solution providers like us.

“We worked in partnership with our customer to deliver a solution which supports vulnerable citizens to access government services, and which at the same time will enable us to grow our reputation and our business.”