Spelthorne Borough Council
Procurement Policies & Procedures
02_Developing the Procurement Plan
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Version |
v 3.0 |
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Author |
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Date Drafted |
1 August 2025 |
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Date Approved |
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Review Date |
August 2028 |
Developing the Procurement Plan
CONTENTS
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1. |
Introduction |
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2. |
Purpose |
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3. |
Considering and Budgeting for Procurements & Contracts |
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4. |
Procurement Project Savings and Social Value |
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5. |
References to other SBC Policies
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Appendix A |
Budgeting & Planning of Contracts Procurement Projects |
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Appendix B Appendix C |
Procurement & Contracts Review Meeting template Approval process for new (non-urgent) Procurement projects |
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1. Introduction
This procedure outlines the process for developing a plan for procurement activity across the Council. It outlines the importance of securing procurement project budgets; of planning any proposed procurement activities in good time; of involving the Corporate Procurement team (when required) as early as possible for any large, high value, strategic and / or complex procurements; and planning the re-tender of existing contracts in sufficient time to ensure business continuity.
A procurement project is any project which entails the acquisition of goods, works and services from an external third party (supplier).
Procurement projects, depending on their value, require support from Corporate Procurement and / or Legal Services. See below for further details.
2. Purpose
Except where Contract Standing Orders (CSOs) require support from Corporate Procurement and / or Legal Services[1],the responsibility for procuring works, good and services is devolved across the Council. Officers are responsible for ensuring that they carry out a compliant procurement project and achieving value for money, by following the Procurement Policy and various Procurement Procedures, as applicable.
For those projects which require Corporate Procurement support, as much notice as possible needs to be given to ensure adequate time to tender and provide end to end support. r It also allows sufficient time to understand the market, in order to achieve best, whole life value for money.
3. Considering and Budgeting for Procurements and Contracts
Council teams need to undertake their financial and budget planning well in advance of the coming financial year, to align with the budget setting process, and ensure that any Growth Bid applications are duly considered.
Appendix A (Budgeting & Planning of Contracts & Procurement Projects) details a proposed timetable and process for this.
Procurement Board will liaise with Group Heads and their Managers in the early autumn to understand:
· arrangements required to renew expiring contracts, if required;
· proposals for the procurement of any new requirements and contracts, including any changes to the specification of requirements;
· exit strategies for expiring major contracts, especially where this may have a financial impact.
This discussion will help teams in the development of their Service Plans and will ensure that they have approved budgets for any continuing contracts and any new planned procurements they wish to undertake in the next financial year.
Any large unplanned projects (that could reasonably have been foreseen) may risk delay if the Corporate Procurement is unable to provide support within the required timescales, and if further budget approval – in year – needs to be sought.
Appendix B has a draft of the form to be used for the Procurement & Contracts discussion.
Once discussions have taken place with all teams across the Council, the draft Procurement Plan, with all procurement and contract intentions will be prepared and considered by the Procurement Board. This early indication of potential projects will enable the Procurement Team to plan and adequately resource all projects in the most appropriate timescales, allowing contract continuity and market engagement where required.
Appendix C details the process for the drafting of project requirements, the approval process, and the methods by which the Authority will develop and approve its procurement plan for the coming financial year.
The process detailed at section 3 assumes that Council services engage positively with Corporate Procurement and share their budgets and intentions in a timely and co-operative manner.
4. Procurement Project Savings and Social Value
The early agreement of project and contract budgets and the Procurement project plan provides much greater opportunities for market management, which in turn will give greater opportunities for achieving procurement efficiencies and cashable savings. As a general rule, new procurement projects should aim to achieve a 10% saving against the agreed budget.
Early project planning also provides improved opportunities for the achievement of social value benefits. In larger tenders, social value must be weighted as a minimum of 10% of the total evaluation score and should aim to achieve £1 of social value for every £100 of project cost.
