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Doing business with the council

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We buy goods, works, and services from a wide range of suppliers and providers. We award contracts to organisations that can meet our requirements and standards. Contracts can range from small, one-off purchases up to multi-million pound contracts lasting several years.

Guidance notes

These guidance notes:

  • explain to businesses  including suppliers of goods, works or services how the council procures what it needs
  • allow businesses to get greater access to sell their goods, works and services
  • encourage businesses to compete for our contracts

We don't usually respond to unsolicited enquiries or applications. Our procurement procedures can vary depending on the type of product we're is and its value.

ProContract Click to get info

We use an e-tendering system called 'ProContract’. All councils must use this to source quotes and tenders above £1000.

Benefits

Benefits to suppliers include:

  • quick registration on a London portal
  • alerts of new opportunities
  • view all of all of our tenders and contracts
  • a free system to use with online help and guidance
  • access to circa 20 other London boroughs opportunities
  • retains organisations information to reduce time inputting the same data repeatedly

So, to make sure that you can bid for work with 20 London boroughs, please register your company.

Advertising of tenders and prior indicative notices Click to get info

Tenders are advertised on London Tenders Portal.

Suppliers can register for free to see and respond to contract opportunities.

For tenders advertised on OJEU please go to Official Journal of the European Union.

 

Contracts registers Click to get info

Find all of our contracts on the Due North Contracts Register

Contract thresholds Click to get info

The value of a contract determines which process we will adopt:

Up to £10,000 for supplier and services:

  • we must receive at least one (1) written quote.
  • we look for quotation from local suppliers

£10,001 to £50,000 for supplies and services:

  • we must receive at least two (2) written quotes
  • we look for quotations from a local supplier

£50,001 to £100,000 for supplies and services:

  • at least three (3) written quotes.
  • we look for a quotation from a local supplier

£100,001 to EU threshold level for supplies and services OR up to £500,000 for works:

  • we must receive at least five (5) written quotes.
  • we look for at least two (2) quotations from local suppliers

Contracts which exceed the European Procurement Regulations thresholds determined by the European Procurement Regulations, except for some services, must be advertised in OJEU (Official Journal of the European Union)..

Find more information on BIP Solutions.

Community right to challenge Click to get info

The right to challenge allows eligible groups to express an interest in running a Local Authority Service:

We must consider expressions of interest and, where we accept them, run a procurement exercise for the service which anyone can compete for. Please see the guidance which explains how we will assess expressions of interest and the expression of interest form below:

Guidance for completing expression of interest form

Expression of interest form

Further information

Information on the right to challenge

Community right to challenge: statutory guidance (www.gov.uk)

Procurement strategy and policy Click to get info

We want to make sure we have a positive impact on the local economy, environment and socially through our contracts. 

We are keen to make sure we use our contracts to create opportunities and benefits for the local economy, for example employment, apprentices etc.  

Supplier Charter
Waltham Forest promotes fairness and diversity in its supply chain and welcomes the opportunity to work with suppliers who align with our values and principles. The Council’s Supplier Charter (393KB PDF) highlights our main expectations of organisations doing business with the Council.

Procurement Policy
The Council’s Procurement Policy (427KB PDF) the supporting Procurement Strategy and Sustainable Procurement Policy support the priorities of the Council’s Corporate Strategy.