Introduction
The Scottish Social Services Council and Care Inspectorate Procurement Strategy 2023-2026:
- sets out our priorities and proposals for procurement over the planning period
- identifies those factors that will influence the way in which we manage the procurement process
- describes the arrangements for monitoring and evaluating the strategy.
Public Contracts Scotland
We publish our contracts register (Opens new window)for all competitively advertised contracts exceeding £50,000 on the Public Contracts Scotland portal and high value tenders on the Public Contracts Scotland website(Opens new window). We encourage businesses to register for free on this site. It gives you access to a large number of public authority contract opportunities across Scotland. You can also view our profile(Opens new window).
We do not have an internal register of suppliers or approved supplier list.
Our procurement practices – values and promotion of tenders
Legislation and best practice guide our procurement activity with the route determined by the potential total value of the contract.
- Less than £10k – the principles of adequate competition apply.
- Between £10k and £50k – usually advertised on the Public Contracts Scotland website using the Quick Quote facility.
- Greater than £50k but below the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA) threshold – usually advertised on the Public Contracts Scotland website, using the Notice facility.
- GPA threshold and above – advertised on both the Find a Tender Service(Opens new window) and the Public Contracts Scotland website, using the Notice facility.
Guidance and reports
Supplier opportunities, guidance and support
There is a national Dynamic Purchasing System reserved for Supported Businesses in place(Opens new window) to provide products and services to the Scottish public sector.
The Online Supplier Journey (Opens new window)makes it easier for Scottish companies to bid for work in the public sector by guiding them through each step in the process. It is particularly useful for small businesses.
The Single Point of Enquiry(Opens new window) is an independent, impartial and confidential service for suppliers to the public sector in Scotland. The service offers advice on the procurement rules for public bodies in Scotland and information on how contracts are advertised and awarded.
Scottish Enterprise Net Zero Accelerator Tool(Opens new window) is designed to help businesses work towards a net zero future using practical, inclusive and data-led solutions.
Supplier Development Programme
Scotland’s free tender training service for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is a programme of tender training events. They hold free events and many of the courses are available online.
Find out more on the Supplier Development Programme website(Opens new window).
Supplier cyber security
Cyber attacks are becoming an increasing threat to our economy and society. No internet-connected organisation, however large or small, is immune.
As part of the Scottish Public Sector Action Plan on Cyber Resilience, Scotland’s public sector organisations are encouraged to adopt a common approach to supplier cyber security. You can find links to authoritative sources of advice and support on the Scottish Government Cyber Resilience website(Opens new window).
The National Cyber Security Centre(Opens new window) has a guide for small businesses and charities.
You can get a free digital health check and one-to-one support at Business Gateway’s Digital Boost(Opens new window).
Supplier payments
We’re committed to the Confederation of British Industry Prompt Payment Code for the payment of bills for goods and services we receive. It is our policy to make payments in accordance with the Scottish Government’s instructions on prompt payment and a target payment within 10 days.
National Fraud Initiative (NFI)
We take part in the NFI under powers introduced by the Criminal Justice and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2010 and incorporated in Part 2A of the Public Finance and Accountability (Scotland) Act 2000. You can find the information we provide on gov.uk here(Opens new window).
The exercise uses computerised techniques to compare electronic data held within and transferred between public and private sector, to identify the existence of possible fraud or error.
Our overarching Data Protection Policy also provides details of your rights in relation to data processing, including the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner. If you have any queries about data protection, please contact us at [email protected]
Annual Procurement Reports
We publish our progress towards achieving our strategic procurement priorities in our Annual Procurement Reports. The reports provide information on regulated procurement activity and our planned procurement activity.
Find our Annual Procurement Reports here.