Procurement and doing business with the Council
Understanding Procurement
Blaby District Council is subject to both UK and EU legislation which governs how we buy goods, services and works. This means that any higher value goods, services and works that we buy must be subject to a competitive process, either in the form of a quotation or a tender exercise.
Our procurement processes are designed to ensure that we are able to demonstrate value for money. The way we advertise and the procurement process that we follow is determined by the estimated total contract value. Our procurement thresholds are set out in our Contract Procedure Rules, and are summarised below.
- Where the contract is valued below £10,000, Officers are required to seek at least one written quotation. Value for money remains a primary objective and so Officers may decide to seek more than one quotation to ensure that objective is achieved
- Where the contract is valued between £10,000 and £49,999 at least three written quotations must be obtained. Those quotations must be invited from identified suppliers as no procurement advertising can take place
- For contracts valued between £50,000 and the current goods and services OJEU Threshold a single stage/open tender process must be completed. This means that all interested suppliers are eligible to submit a Tender. The procurement must be advertised on East Midland Tenders website and Contracts Finder website and will be managed using an electronic tendering system
- Contracts valued at or above the current OJEU Threshold will be procured in accordance with EU regulations
Welland Procurement
The Council does not have an in house procurement service but is instead supported by Welland Procurement, a shared service hosted by Melton Borough Council.
For more information please visit the Welland Procurement website using the link below.
Contracts Register
The Contracts Register is a record of the contracts we hold with a value of £5,000 or more. Details of the register can be found within our procurement portal, Proactis using the link below.
Electronic Tendering System
Contract opportunities valued above £50,000 will be run through the e-tendering portal East Midlands Tenders. In order to participate in the tender process you must first be registered on their website.
The website and portal are operated by Proactis. If you are experiencing issues using the ProContract website you can submit a ticket by using the link below.
Guides to help you operate the electronic tendering system are available to download.
Procurement in the public sector from 01 January 2021
You will be aware that the United Kingdom (UK) has left the European Union (EU) and that the transition period ends on 31 December 2020. At the end of the transition period, current public procurement principles and legislation will not really change (such as procurement procedures and financial thresholds), however, the Council will have to change where it advertises new procurement opportunities.
Details on this are as follows:
- New opportunities will be advertised on the new UK e-notification service, Find a Tender Service (FTS) see link below
- FTS will be available from 23:00 hours on 31 December 2020
- Opportunities will continue to be advertised on Contracts Finder and East Mids Tenders
The Council is amending its own documentation to reflect these changes.