Introduction
This policy outlines our commitment to acquiring goods, services and works in a way that achieves best value for money, supports the local economy and adheres to the principles of transparency, fairness, and sustainability. As a public sector organisation, we recognise the significant impact that our procurement activities have on our communities, the environment, and the overall economic landscape in Cumberland (and indeed, wider still, the footprint of Cumbria).
To support the delivery of this policy our definition of procurement is: “the process of identifying, acquiring, and obtaining goods, services, or works from an external source. This process spans the whole procurement lifecycle from needs identification through to contract end”.
Our policy is aligned with national and local policies, ensuring compliance with the relevant legislation and regulatory frameworks. We aim to be innovative, commercial, encourage competition and promote ethical procurement practices. Through both strategic and more targeted, category commissioning, robust supplier engagement and effective contract management, we will strive to deliver high-quality value for money public services that support the delivery of the Council’s priorities.
Strongly linked to the Council Plan, our policy optimises the application of social value, where relevant and proportionate to do so, thereby ensuring our activities contribute to reducing economic and social disparities and enhancing quality of life for all our residents. We want to work with suppliers who demonstrate strong commitment to health and wellbeing initiatives, diversity, equality and inclusion, and we will ensure that small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) are supported in having equitable opportunities to compete for our contracts.
Furthermore, to make local economies work for local people, we will encourage local suppliers (through signposting) to proactively bid for contracts with the aim to strengthen the local economy, creating jobs, retaining wealth within the communities, and reduce our carbon footprint through shorter supply chains.
Through this policy, we detail the key objectives, guiding principles, and methodologies that underpin our procurement processes. By maintaining focus on continuous improvement, we seek to enhance the efficiency, effectiveness and accountability of our procurement operations, whilst actively working to create a more healthy and equitable society that supports the local economy.