Buying into Bury
Bury Council's Procurement Strategy - Buying into Bury sets the tone for an organisations that is committed to supporting local businesses in their efforts to engage with, and become suppliers of, the goods, works and services the Council relies upon to operate and deliver services to the people of the borough.
Through Buying into Bury we recognise the added value we achieve when we spend money in the local economy, including the multiplier effect this creates which results in money being re-invested locally.
The Chest
In order to ensure local companies are aware of opportunities to bid for Council business we use an online business portal, The Chest, to advertise contracts from £5,000 in value. The Chest provides a one-stop shop got Council opportunities across the North West, has free registration and issues email alerts when contracts are advertised in your chosen business category, meaning you never miss out on relevant information.
In a further effort to make local companies aware of lower value contracts we have also developed a new Request to Quotation process for lower value procurement opportunities, which requires purchasers to consult a Bury Supplier Database and invite at least one Bury-based company to submit a quote (if relevant suppliers exist locally).
If you are a Bury-based business make sure your company is registered on the Bury Supplier Database by completing and returning our online supplier questionnaire.
We support a number of industry and business events including the Bolton, Bury and Wigan Construction Network (in conjunction with GM Chamber) and deliver Meet the Buyer sessions to demystify public procurement procedures and provide an insight into best practice tendering.