Help shape new public procurement rules for charities

The government have recently launched a new consultation to reform public procurement – the process public bodies use to buy goods and services.

Voluntary organisations deliver nearly £14.2bn worth of public services each year. Many face persistent barriers when bidding for contracts, including:

• overly competitive processes that hinder collaboration
• approaches to social value that don’t reflect the sector’s strengths.

This consultation is an opportunity to push for a system that works better for voluntary organisations. If your organisation delivers public services or creates social value through public contracts, we want to hear your views.

In recent years, the rules for how authorities purchase goods and services have changed:

• The Procurement Act 2023 introduced a new competitive flexible procedure. It replaced the light touch regime, a simpler process that previously applied to services like health and care. This new procedure now applies across all procurement.
• Health services were removed from procurement regulations and are now covered by a different set of rules called the Provider Selection Regime, which aims to support more collaborative commissioning.
• The National Procurement Policy Statement now requires central government departments to set targets for spending with voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations.

The government’s public procurement consultation proposes further changes that could significantly impact the way voluntary organisations deliver public services.

Key proposals include:

• mandating public bodies to set direct VCSE spending targets
• focusing social value requirements on jobs and opportunity for high value contracts
• taking a more standardised approach to social value
• clarifying where a full competitive procedure is not required for services that support people the government defines as ‘vulnerable’
• excluding providers who can’t demonstrate they pay invoices within 60 days.

These proposals could open up more opportunities or create new barriers for charities that deliver public services or work with other providers to add social value.

This consultation is a chance to help make sure the system works for the people and communities our sector support.