Procurement
LGA: External audit firms need to address their shortcomings
Town hall leaders have said external audit firms ‘need to address their shortcomings’ to improve the timeliness of audits.
Broadland DC awards environmental services contract to Veolia
Broadland District Council has announced it has awarded its Strategic Environmental Services contract to Veolia following a comprehensive tender exercise.
Overcoming the barriers to Commercial Card use
Want to reap the benefits of Commercial Cards but facing some challenges? James Sykes and David Legg from Lloyds Bank explore some of the barriers to card usage and the work that’s being done to overcome them.
Inflation: mitigating the risks to deliver recovery
Alastair Gamage says that while we are now dealing with rapid inflation, public sector organisations can still progress projects with confidence by adopting a best-in-class procurement strategy.
The Paralympics and public procurement for the public good
We need to make sure the principles that drove big set piece investments such as London 2012 are reflected in everyday public spending, says Patrick Thomson from the Shaw Trust Foundation.
'No end in sight' as bin strike continues
Trade union Unite has accused Bexley LBC of failing to deal with an ongoing industrial dispute that has caused six weeks of bin strikes.
How can procurement drive digital transformation?
Procurement can set the tone and determine the successful outcome of a digital transformation project; getting it right will reap dividends further down the line, says Craig Elder at Browne Jacobson.
Long live commissioning
Benjamin Taylor says examples of how commissioning is being used show how important it is to move away from a deficit focus to experimenting and learning how to influence complex systems.
Building wealth from within
Tom Lloyd Goodwin traces community wealth-building from its origins 13 years ago to the present, to both deepen understanding of the approach and inspire the uninitiated to take their first steps.
Procurement overhaul to ‘undermine’ social value
Peers have warned proposed procurement changes could ‘do more harm than good’ in encouraging collaboration.
Why COVID-19 has changed the way you should sell surplus
Online marketplace adoption accelerates higher returns from surplus assets
What does the new NPPS mean for councils?
Local authorities should start to look at how the National Procurement Policy Statement can be implemented across their organisations, say Rebecca Rees and Stuart Brown.
Significant procurement challenges lie ahead for districts
Procurement is likely to involved significant challenges for district councils now and in the years ahead, says Ian Miller. 'It remains to be seen whether national or local priorities will govern councils' purchases'.
Transforming Glasgow into a world-class smart city
Cllr Angus Millar explains how a new single-supplier contract for a full fibre network marks a huge step forward in delivering significant benefits to Glasgow – giving the council cutting-edge technological capability.
Somerset CC to open up to 10 new children's homes
Somerset CC is to open up to 10 new children’s homes by 2026, admitting it is too reliant on larger for-profit providers in children’s social care.
Audit firms to be wooed
Audit appointment chiefs have launched a bid to attract more firms to the local government market from April 2023.
Are you missing out on the re-sale revolution?
Finlo Corrin of Liquidity Services looks at why online marketplaces deliver higher returns from surplus assets.
What next for the social care market?
Martin Samuels sets out five principles we can draw on in creating a sustainable market in social care and says we must not allow fear to stop us moving forward.
Councils call for procurement freedom
Removal of red tape during the COVID-19 pandemic has shown what can be done, officers have told the House of Lords' Public Services Committee.
A change of direction
Léonie Cowen says there is a better model for the procurement of placements for looked after children, and she outlines how to achieve this using a collaborative Department for Education-funded approach she believes is unique.
