Procurement

Important notice for all Cleveland Police current and future suppliers

Dear Suppliers,

We wish to bring to your attention the impending changes in public procurement regulations stemming from the United Kingdom's departure from the European Union. The UK Government has crafted new legislation, notably the Procurement Act 2023, which necessitates adaptations in our procurement processes to align with the revised legal requirements.

To aid in your understanding of these crucial developments, we encourage you to review the Supplier Guide to the Procurement Act 2023, accessible via the following link: Procurement Act 2023 Short Guide for Suppliers.

Additionally, comprehensive information regarding these changes can be found on the Transforming Public Procurement website, available at: Transforming Public Procurement.

In further support, we highly recommend engaging with the Supplier Knowledge Drops, designed by the Cabinet Office to assist you in navigating these regulatory adjustments. Access the Knowledge Drops via the following link: Official Transforming Public Procurement Knowledge Drops.

Your attention to these resources is paramount as we collectively adapt to ensure continued compliance and efficiency in our procurement endeavours.

About Procurement Services

Cleveland Police spends approximately £50 million per annum on the procurement of goods, services and works. The aim of the Cleveland Police Procurement team is to identify saving opportunities across the force and to provide a flexible procurement function to meet the Force's current and future needs.

The team is working with the business to deliver significant commercial benefits by:

• Moving away from securing one-off contracts to longer-term efficient and effective business solutions that minimise the costs over the life of a contract.
• Developing our category management approaches to understand new market opportunities and changing organisational needs.
• Achieving long term benefits through considering the procurement life cycle.
• Being the best we can be by providing the highest professional standards, working with all stakeholders and being seen as a value-added service.

Procurement Services support all business areas of Cleveland Police and the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Cleveland.

You can contact us directly via our email: [email protected]

Tenders and contracts guidance

A lack of information about opportunities and understanding of the Force’s contracting procedures may be stopping some organisations from seeking to become a supplier to the force. The information on this page aims to overcome these barriers, explains how to apply for opportunities and sets out what is expected of you when working for the force.

Contracts are awarded on the basis of obtaining best value for money for the taxpayer. Whilst Cleveland Police cannot discriminate in favour of local suppliers, they will be given every encouragement to compete for contracts to deliver the goods and services we need across Cleveland.

There is a great deal of competition for contracts with Cleveland Police, and the support provided by us cannot assure an individual firm’s success. However, it should provide enough information to give you the opportunity to be considered for force work.

Procurement rules and regulations

As a public body, there are regulations at both national and local levels that Cleveland Police is required to follow when procuring goods, services and works. Further details of the local regulations can be found within the Chief Constable’s Financial Instructions.

European Rules

The EC Treaty incorporates the free movement of goods and services and prevents discrimination against suppliers on the grounds of nationality. It covers all public sector contracts no matter what their value, within the EU. An EC Procurement Directive backs up the principles of the treaty:

2004/18/EC – Procedures for the award of Public Works Contracts, Public Supply Contracts and Public Service Contracts.

This directive is included in UK law as a number of regulations:

• The Public Supply Contracts Regulations 2015
• The Public Services Contracts Regulations 1993 S.I.No.3228
• The Public Works Contracts Regulations 1991 S.I. No. 2680

The directives and regulations require public bodies to follow detailed procedures for all procurement activities above financial thresholds. The thresholds are reviewed every two years.

Thresholds

A number of new reforms to make public sector procurement more accessible have now been implemented in the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR 2015). These reforms include new transparency obligations on all contracting authorities which mean that new public sector opportunities will be available in one place, the contracts finder portal. In addition, contract award information relating to the winning contractor will also be available on the contracts finder portal. The threshold for Cleveland Police to publish is £50,000.

When the estimated value of a contract is expected to exceed the relevant EU financial threshold it must be advertised in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU), and rules that promote non-discriminatory and transparent competition must be followed. Note that values are for total contract value (i.e. for the full value for the term of the contract).

With effect from 1st January 2024 the following thresholds apply:-

• Products, Services, Supplies and Design Contracts £214,904 (incl. VAT)
• Works Contracts £5,372,609 (incl. VAT)
• Social, LTR and other Specific Services £663,540 (incl. VAT)

Full details on thresholds is available on the Cabinet Office Website

European Procurement Directives specify timescales that must be followed and ensure that reasonable time to respond to adverts and prepare submissions is given to interested parties.

A specific Tender Notice must be placed in the supplement to the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) to give all suppliers in the EU an equal opportunity to tender. A notice of contract award must be placed in OJEU and on Contracts Finder. 

Supplying Cleveland Police

Where a purchase need cannot be met from an existing contract, a quotation or “tender” process is undertaken, as follows, in accordance with the Chief Constables Finance Instructions:

Value £	Roles and Responsibilities
Up to £20,000	Budget holder Process: The budget holder shall conduct such activity as is prudent to show best value and ensure compliance with Financial Instructions.
>£20,000 - £50,000	Informal Process: The budget holder/ Procurement Professional shall subject the requirement to formal quotations from not less than three competitive sources.
>£50,000 to Threshold	Formal Process: The requirement shall be subjected to a formal tender process conducted by the Procurement Services Team.

Small and local suppliers

Cleveland Police are committed to encouraging local suppliers as well as small/medium enterprises (SMEs) to compete for business.

In order to assist SMEs and local suppliers Cleveland Police aims to:

• Publicise its opportunities on the eProcurement Site: In-tend as well as via Contracts Finder & OJEU sites
• Provide up to date procurement advice and guidance.
• Keep tender documents simple and jargon free.
• Utilise where possible the division of the contract into smaller lots.
• Set realistic timetables.
• Encourage suppliers to adopt efficient supply chain management practices.
• Encourage suppliers to adopt e-commerce systems that streamline processes, reduce administration time and enable the Force to make payment to suppliers in a timely manner.

How to find out about opportunities

Cleveland Police tender opportunities can also be viewed at Sell2 (in-tend.co.uk), contracts finder portal and the Find a Tender (find-tender.service.gov.uk). 

Budget Holder Process

Budget holders are to source their requirement seeking the quotations / prices ensuring that they are obtaining full value for money.

Informal processes

Quotation

>£20,000 to <£50,000

At least three suppliers are requested to quote. Quote must include a specification of the services/goods required and timescales for delivery where possible. This is conducted by the Receipts Procure and Pay section.

Formal processes

Tender (goods, services and works)

>£50,000 upwards

The contract notice or advertisement will invite companies to submit tenders and will state what is required from potential bidders. It will also detail the evaluation criteria and weightings to be used. If your organisation would like to be considered for a particular contract you must follow the application instructions detailed in the advertisement.

Tender Evaluation and Contract Award

Submitted bids will be evaluated against the pre-determined criteria. Evaluation will focus on how the proposal will deliver the service quality and the cost. The balance between quality and price will depend upon the particular service area. Cleveland Police will award the contract on the basis of the most advantageous tender.

Contractor vetting

If the nature of the contract requires your employees’ unescorted access to Cleveland Police premises or access to sensitive material/systems, your staff will need to be vetted in accordance with our Non-Police Personnel vetting procedures.

Contract performance

Following contract award the Procurement team will work with the client/contract user to ensure that the contractor performs in accordance with the specification and the terms and conditions of the contract. Effective monitoring procedures are essential to ensuring value for money and will depend on the nature of the goods or services purchased.

Performance will be measured against Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) relevant to the goods / services being delivered.

We aim to establish a good working relationship with the contractor/supplier and their staff as this provides the opportunity to ensure that the contract requirements incorporated into the contract are enforced.

In-Tend Procurement System - FOI Contracts Register

Introduction

This note explains how contracts are displayed and accessed for Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) purposes and some additional information.

Contracts Register

Contracts which need to be publicly available are displayed on the Contracts Register via the link: 

In-Tend Electronic Tendering Site

• Select the Contracts tab to access the contracts register,
• A login is not required to access the Contracts Register.

Archived Contracts and the Contracts Register

The In Tend system does not show archived contracts on the public contract register.

E-Procurement Team

The In-tend E-procurement Team can be contacted through:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.bluelightcommercial.police.uk

Contact

For general enquiries, email the above email addresses, or write to this address:

Procurement
St Mark’s House
St Mark’s Court
Thornaby
Stockton-on-Tees
TS17 6QW

Head of Procurement – Nick Eyley MCIPS, email: [email protected]

Core Terms and Conditions

• Consultancy Services
• Goods and Services
• Goods
• Services