Members of Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Policy and Resources Committee will meet on Thursday 14 March and hear of an increase in spending with local suppliers as part of a Procurement update report.
The report sets out that more than a third of our total spend in quarter three of the 2018/19 financial year was with local suppliers. This in an increase of nearly 4% on our key performance indicator of 30% of total spending and represents our continued commitment to building the local economy within the region. Over £46million has been spent with local suppliers so far in this financial year. As well as spending with local businesses, an online training awareness course has been completed by Council staff and has led to over £146,000 worth of savings being made thus far in 2018/19.
Councillors will also hear about the success of Procurement Supplier events that have been held through the region, with 20 taking place since April last year. These engagement events have seen an upsurge in local suppliers tendering to the Council for contracts, and the knock-on effect of this is that more local suppliers are being awarded work by the Council. The success of these events has led to demand for similar workshops to be organised for 2019, and a “Meet the Buyer” day is being organised for early Summer (2019).
A more joined-up approach with other local authorities has seen our Council represented at various procurement forums and user groups locally and nationally, including the Scottish Local Government Procurement forum – a key player in taking procurement decision making forward within procurement teams in Councils in Scotland.
Speaking ahead of the meeting on 14 March, Chair of Policy and Resources Councillor Rob Davidson said;
“This report represents a good yard-stick for how far we’ve come as a Council in terms of procurement in recent months. Building the local economy is a high priority for our Council, and to see we’re putting our contracts out to so many local businesses is great news. I hope the figure of 33% continues to rise thanks to the good work of the Procurement team, particularly with the introduction of these events where they go and meet with local suppliers.”Vice Chair of the Committee, Councillor Elaine Murray commented;
“During such an unprecedented time where savings are at the heart of everything we do and say, it is vital we realise the importance of investing in local suppliers for the spending we are undertaking. It is important we continue with this approach into and beyond the next financial year as well as continuing to ensure we’re getting best value for the contracts we award.”
The report, along with others for Policy and Resources Committee can be viewed on our website at https://www.dumgal.gov.uk/article/15143/Committee-meetings
