Doing business with the Council

When the Council buys goods, services or carries out works of any kind, we have to ensure that the contracts we award are procured fairly and transparently. From the 1st January 2021, the UK were no longer bound to comply with EU Procurement Rules and Regulations and instead became a member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Government Procurement Agreement (GPA).

The majority of goods and services contracts that are competitively tendered by us are governed by the following financial thresholds:

• Below £30,000 - a minimum of one quotation but good practice to seek most favourable prices and terms
• Between £30,001 and £100,000 - a minimum of 3 formal requests for quotation or use of a compliant framework
• Between £100,001 and GPA threshold - invitation to tender by advertisement or select list or use of a compliant framework
• Above GPA threshold - GPA tender process in accordance with the Open or Competitive Flexible Procedure or use of a compliant framework

Contracts Register

In seeking to make the public sector more transparent to the public, the Government introduced The Local Government Transparency Code 2015 which requires all local authorities to publish details of contracts, tenders and agreements over £5000.

Please select the link below to view the Contracts Register.  This contains a list of contracts and framework agreements for goods, services and works supplied to the Council.  After following the link, please select Torridge District Council from the drop down menu under Organisations on the narrow your results side bar Contracts register (due-north.com)

e-Tendering with Torridge District Council

Torridge District Council use the ProContract e-Tendering portal www.supplyingthesouthwest.org.uk when procuring selected services, goods and works.  Contractors and suppliers can register for free. This regional portal will allow you to view contract opportunities from a number of councils in the South West.  We also advertise our opportunities on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender Service.

The Council may not advertise every opportunity as there maybe a contract or framework agreement that we can use or it is under the threshold for advertising in accordance with our Contract Procedure Rules.

Members of the Procurement Team are bound by the Code of Conduct of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS) CIPS Code of Conduct (PDF, 187 KB)

Social Value Policy

Social Value has been defined as the additional benefit to the community from a commissioning/procurement process over and above the direct purchasing of goods, services and outcomes.The Council recognises the important role it can play in enabling Social Value through its procurement activities and have introduced a Social Value Policy that will require suppliers to deliver social benefits while they deliver the main element of their contract.  Incorporating social value into our commissioning and procurement process is not difficult and can make a tangible difference to people in the community, to service delivery and to the council's spending plans, in line with the Strategic Plan 2023 - 2028 and the Devon Districts Procurement Strategy 2023 - 2027 Devon Districts Procurement Strategy 2023 - 2027 (PDF, 27 MB) Social Value PolicySocial Value Policy (PDF, 4 MB)

Procurement Act 2023: A New Era for Public Sector Procurement

The legal framework governing public sector procurement and contract management has undergone significant reform.

Led by the Cabinet Office, the Transforming Public Procurement Programme has introduced a new regulatory regime under the Procurement Act 2023, which came into force on 24 February 2025. This transformation aims to:

• Simplify and modernise procurement: Establish a more flexible and commercially focused system that better serves the UK's needs while maintaining compliance with international obligations.

• Broaden market access: Enable greater participation from small businesses, social enterprises, and other new entrants, helping them compete for and win public contracts.

• Enhance transparency: Embed openness throughout the commercial lifecycle, ensuring that public spending is visible and accountable to taxpayers.

This reform marks a pivotal shift in how public procurement is conducted, offering opportunities for innovation, efficiency, and improved value for money across the public sector.

There will be a transition period between the old and new regulations, during which the two regimes will run in parallel for a period of time.

Further detail on key changes and benefits for suppliers can be found on The Procurement Act 2023: Short guides page.

This is a long-term change so although benefits may not be visible on day one, the Cabinet Office are confident that the new regime will help break down barriers to entry into procurement.

Supplier Registration on the Central Digital Platform (CDP)

From 1^st April 2026, Central Government has confirmed that all suppliers will be required to register on the Central Digital Platform (CDP) Central Digital Platform Find a Tender in order to engage in business with the Public Sector. This requirement previously applied only to suppliers delivering above‑threshold contracts. However, from 1 April 2026, it will extend to suppliers delivering below‑threshold contracts, a change expected to affect SME's (Small and Medium‑Sized Enterprises). Supplier Registration Guide

The Procurement Act 2023 legislated for provision of a central digital platform to facilitate the publishing of required notices and documents in accordance with the new regulations. An enhanced Find a Tender service (FTS) was launched on 24 February 2025, which is the central digital platform for public procurement. It makes it easier to find and bid for contracts and for buyers to meet their transparency commitments under the Act.

Find a Tender:

• Features a simple registration and identification for both suppliers and buyers.

• Stores suppliers' core business details that can be used for multiple bids.

• Enables easy management and updating of core information quickly, and shared easily between suppliers, eSenders and buyers.

• Makes public procurement opportunities visible making it easier to search at no cost and set up alerts for tenders of interest for suppliers.

• Allows for procurement noticing throughout the procurement lifecycle.

• Captures procurement data and eventually will create dashboards to analyse that data.

Supplier Registration Guide

https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/ 

The platform will be used by public sector bodies to publish a range of notices required by the Act relating to a tender/contract. Torridge District Council will continue to use our current e-tendering system to advertise opportunities, receive bids from suppliers and manage our procurement activities.

A Central Digital Platform Factsheet for suppliers has been published by the Cabinet Office.

Further information

The Cabinet Office are providing regular updates and will continue working with leading business groups and trade associations to make sure information is available for suppliers. They have developed a number of knowledge drops specifically for suppliers, and small and medium-sized enterprises and voluntary, community or social enterprise organisations: The Official Transforming Public Procurement Knowledge Drops (GOV.UK)

Additional links to Government guidance:

• Transforming Public Procurement (GOV.UK)

• Animations and videos (GOV.UK)

• The Procurement Bill - Benefits for prospective suppliers to the public Sector (publishing.service.GOV.UK)

If you have questions on any aspect of the new regulations, please contact the dedicated Transforming Public Procurement helpdesk at [email protected] or [email protected]