The new Procurement Act will benefit suppliers of all sizes, particularly start-ups, scale-ups and small businesses
Public procurement law is changing. The reforms will improve the way procurement is done, so that every pound goes further for our public services.
If your business supplies goods, works or services to the County Council – or hopes to do so – you need to know about the changes.
The new Procurement Act will benefit suppliers of all sizes, particularly start-ups, scale-ups and small businesses.
It will create a central digital platform for suppliers to register and store their details so that they can be used for multiple bids, and see all opportunities in one place. Simplified bidding processes will make it easier to bid, negotiate and work in partnership with the public sector.
We expect the new regime to go live on 24 February 2025. The existing rules will continue to apply for procurements that are already in progress, so the changes won’t happen overnight.
Video guidance
The Official Transforming Public Procurement Knowledge Drops - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Knowledge Drops are designed to provide an overview of the Procurement Act 2023 for three audiences:
- Contracting authorities
- Suppliers who deliver contracts to the UK public, utilities and defence sectors
- Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and voluntary, community and social enterprises (VCSEs)
Short guides
Procurement Act 2023: short guides - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
These short guides provide a high level overview of the key features of the Procurement Act, timelines for implementation and next steps for Contracting Authorities and Suppliers.
Transforming public procurement
Transforming Public Procurement - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The Transforming Public Procurement programme aims to improve the way public procurement is regulated
The GOV.UK website explains what the new procurement regime will mean, provides more detail about the learning and development programme that is supporting its introduction, as well as further guidance for both contracting authorities and suppliers.