There are regulations at a European, national and local level which we have to follow when buying goods and services.
Tenders
Contracts with an estimated value over £50,000 (£200,000 for works) will generally be advertised on the "Supplying the South West" web portal - see the link on the right hand side of this page. They may also be advertised in trade journals, the local press or both. In certain circumstances other procedures need to be followed. These are explained in our contracting rules.
Where the estimated value of a contract for services or supplies is expected to exceed £139,893 (or £3,497,313 for works) we will also place an advert in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU). OJEU tenders can be viewed on the Tenders Electronic Diary website (see link).
Quotations
Where the value of a contract is not expected to exceed £50,000 we will ask for three written quotations from known suppliers. However, if the estimated time and cost of getting a quote is out of proportion to the value of the contract then we may get a quote from a single supplier. This would normally apply only to small purchases.
These contracts are not usually advertised in any way. If you are a supplier and wish to be considered for these lower value contracts, please contact us.
Buying through consortium arrangements
For some types of goods and services we can obtain best value by purchasing through framework agreements procured by other Councils or public sector consortia such as OGC Buying Solutions. In these cases the opportunity will have been advertised in OJEU by the Council or consortium concerned, and the advertisement will have made it clear that the framework would be open to other public sector organisation. For this reason it is important to keep a close eye on tenders appearing in OJEU.
Approved suppliers
For some types of goods and services we use lists of approved suppliers. These suppliers have demonstrated that they are able to carry out work to necessary standards. See the separate page on Approved Suppliers (link below).