Do business with the council

The council buys many goods, services and works, to help deliver services for residents. We spend more than £140m each year with organisations of all sizes, from local sole traders and charities to national and international companies.

We want businesses, charities, community organisations and social enterprises to have a fair opportunity to work with us.

The way public organisations buy goods and services changed in February 2025 when the Procurement Act 2023 came into force. The new rules are designed to make it easier for organisations of all sizes, particularly small businesses and charities, to compete for public sector contracts.

What we buy

We regularly need suppliers for:

• Building and maintenance work
• Care and support services
• Professional services
• IT equipment and software
• Cleaning and environmental services
• Community projects and programmes
• Training and consultancy

Opportunities range from small one-off purchases to longer-term contracts. Each council service is responsible for identifying what it needs to buy. The Procurement Team supports these services by combining similar requirements where appropriate and helping them secure the best value for residents.

Finding opportunities

Most opportunities are advertised through our online procurement portal.

You can register free of charge to:

• View current opportunities
• Download documents about what we are buying and how to bid
• Submit bids online
• Receive alerts when new opportunities are published

You can also search for opportunities on:

• Find a Tender
• Contracts Finder

Registering on these sites allows you to receive notifications about opportunities that may be relevant to your organisation. We recommend registering for a free Find a Tender account. This makes it easier to access procurement opportunities and is required for certain contracts awarded under the Procurement Act 2023.

Sometimes we buy through arrangements called “frameworks” or “dynamic markets”. These allow suppliers to become pre-approved and compete for specific opportunities as they arise. You can find these opportunities on Find a Tender or by searching online for the goods or services you provide together with the terms “framework” or “dynamic market”.

Working with smaller organisations

We understand that smaller organisations may not have dedicated bid-writing or procurement teams. We try to make our opportunities accessible by keeping requirements proportionate to the contract being advertised and by providing clear instructions and timescales. We welcome bids from local businesses, charities, social enterprises, community organisations and new market entrants.

Our approach

We must ensure public money is spent responsibly and delivers value for residents. When we buy goods, services or works, we look for suppliers that can:

• Meet our requirements
• Offer good value for money
• Deliver a quality service
• Support wider social and environmental benefits where appropriate – this is sometimes called Social Value; you can learn more about this on our Social Value Policy web page.

The level of paperwork and how many companies might bid will usually depend on the size and value of the contract, plus how risky the contract is if it does not perform well.

What happens when we advertise a contract?

Most opportunities follow a similar process.

1. We advertise the opportunity

Details are published on our procurement portal, together with all relevant documents and instructions.

2. You submit your bid

You tell us about your organisation and explain how you would deliver the work.

Depending on the contract, we may ask for examples of previous experience, references or other supporting information. Make sure you read each question carefully and answer every part of it. Use examples and evidence wherever possible, and explain clearly how your proposal will meet the requirements set out in the specification. Even if you currently deliver a similar contract elsewhere, focus on the specific requirements of the opportunity you are bidding for.

3. We evaluate applications

We first check that all required information has been provided and that suppliers meet any minimum requirements set out in the tender documents, such as being appropriately registered or having the resources and financial capacity needed to deliver the contract successfully.

A panel reviews all submissions against the criteria published in the tender documents. We assess both quality and cost to identify the supplier that offers the best overall solution.

4. We award the contract

All bidders are informed of the outcome through the procurement portal.

As much as possible, we provide feedback to help organisations improve future bids. We encourage unsuccessful bidders to review the feedback provided and consider bidding for future opportunities with us.

Support for small businesses and charities

We recognise that bidding for public sector work can sometimes seem challenging. Even so, we encourage applications from:

• Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)
• Charities
• Voluntary and community organisations
• Social enterprises
• New suppliers who have not previously worked with the council

We aim to make our procurement processes proportionate to the size, value and risk of the contract. We make it clear what information is required and when it needs to be submitted. We always include a “clarification” process in our procurements, which means that you can ask questions about any of the documents including the contract draft terms, the process, or our requirements to make your best bidding effort. These are shared anonymised with all bidders so that everyone gets an equitable chance to bid.

Current contracts

Information about many of our current contracts is available through our Contract Register.

The register includes details such as:

• Contract title
• Supplier name
• Contract value
• Contract end date

Entries are made regardless of the route we used to secure the contract. If you are interested in working with the council, the Contract Register can help you understand when existing arrangements may be coming to an end. We recommend registering on our procurement portal so that you receive notifications when relevant opportunities are advertised.