New rules now make bidding for public contracts easier, faster and fairer.
Northumberland County Council is here to help you navigate what the reforms mean for you.
The Procurement Act 2023 aims to streamline and modernise the public procurement process across the UK.
A central place to register and store your business details so that they can be used for multiple bids with different public organisations.
Improved transparency and access to information, with all public procurement opportunities in one place, making it easier to search for and set up alerts for procurements of interest to you.
Strengthened provisions for prompt payment throughout the supply chain, enabling SMEs to benefit from 30-day payment terms on a broader range of public sector contracts.
Simplified bidding processes to make it easier to bid, negotiate and work in partnership with the public sector, including a new ‘competitive flexible’ procedure.
Expect greater visibility about who is bidding for, and winning, larger public sector contracts above £5 million, and the details of those public contracts.
Better visibility of procurement plans, engagement events and tender opportunities - including those below threshold -increasing the number of opportunities available to bid on.
Frameworks will be more flexible, so prospective suppliers are not shut out for long periods of time.
A new duty on contracting authorities to have regard to the particular barriers facing SMEs and VCSEs, and to consider what can be done to overcome them throughout the procurement lifecycle, helping level the playing field for smaller businesses.
A stronger exclusions framework will take tougher action on underperforming suppliers.
The Goverment have provided useful guide for suppliers that includes helpful videos, mailing lists and more.
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