Trading with the Council - Rules and regulations
Description of the processes involved in bidding for Council contracts.
The estimated value of a contract determines the procedure which council officers must follow. For low value contracts the options may be by quotation, using the council's general terms and conditions. For high value contracts, and those where the estimated value is more than £50,000 officers are required to carry out a full tendering exercise.
The council is required to comply with statutory requirements set out in the European Consolidated Procurement Directive and the United Kingdom's Public Contract Regulations 2006. In addition, the council has agreed Contract Standing Orders which provides guidance on the legislative requirements and sets out, amongst other things the internal processes which must be observed in the letting of contracts (including when and how quotes/tenders should be sought).
Set out below is a summary of the contract values (thresholds) that will trigger the requirement for a quotation or full tendering process, including the EU Procurement Regulations.
- Threshold Criteria Up to £5,000 1 quotation is required.
- Threshold Criteria £5,000 and below £50,000: Normally 3 quotations are required. Officers may select organisations that advertise in trade journals or newspapers, rather than placing a Contract Notice seeking expressions of interest.
- Threshold Criteria £50,000 or more: Contract advertised or selection made from an approved list (mainly works). Normally 3 tenders (sealed bids) are sought.
- Threshold Criteria £139,893*: For all goods and some services the Council must advertise a Contract Notice in the Official Journal of the European Union
- Threshold Criteria £3,497,313*: For all works contracts the Council must advertise a Contract Notice in the Official Journal of the European Union
It should be noted that the higher the estimated value of the contract the greater the need to demonstrate transparency. For certain contracts the Council may have to seek expressions of interest through the Official Journal of the European Union. The Council also publishes Contract Notices on its "Tendering Opportunities" web-page.
Approved Lists - In order to keep costs of advertising down, the Council uses Constructionline (a national database of construction and highway related organisations) to provide lists when seeking quotations and tenders. There is no corporate approved lists for supplies or service providers, although some departments may keep specialised lists.
*the thresholds that trigger the application of EU procurement rules are changed ever 2 years - the last change being in January 2008.
