What is procurement?
Procurement covers the process by which works, goods and services are acquired from suppliers and managed throughout their life. Consequently, procurement is core to achieving the Council's objectives of :
- Protecting and enhancing a sustainable environment
- Promoting a healthier and safer community
- Developing a more prosperous and sustainable local economy
This can be achieved by:
- Securing best value and improving service standards
- Protecting assets and making optimum use of facilities
- Modernising the way we do things
The Byatt report on local authority procurement "Delivering Better Services to Citizens", commissioned by the Government and published in 2001, identified a comprehensive modernisation agenda for council procurement. Wealden embraced this in a Best Value Review of Strategic Procurement and the resultant Corporate Procurement Strategy (pdf) which was agreed by cabinet 11 February 2004 and reflects the National Procurement Strategy for Local Government which was launched by the Government in October 2003.
What the Corporate Procurement Unit is responsible for?
The Unit is responsible for setting strategy and policy, co-ordinating the procurement processes across the organisation and establishing central contracts for commonly used works, goods and services. The Unit seeks to continually strive to improve its processes by bringing innovation to procurement and obtaining best value from all its contracts. For this reason Wealden actively seeks opportunities for joint working with its public sector partners in East Sussex.
The Unit also ensures that that all procurement is carried out in accordance with Council and statutory obligations.