How we approach working with others
When it comes to buying goods and services from other businesses, we follow the policies set by the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH).
These make sure we prioritise value for money, stick to good practice and comply with legal requirements.
As an organisation focused on making a positive difference to society, we want to work with companies that share our values. So we’re asking companies to ensure that at least 20% of the value of their tender adds extra value to the community. All of this is key to offering the best service for our residents and communities.
Our contracts
We offer a variety of contracts:
Minor contracts
For minor activities that have a lower value, we review several quotes to find the most cost-effective options, before making a final decision. This approach is outlined in our Procurement Policy and Procedures document.
Major contracts
For larger projects, we advertise on Find a Tender (FTS) when the value exceeds the financial thresholds.
Our supply chain compliance approach
We partner with Alcumus to provide the highest standard of compliance within our supply chain.
Alcumus helps us do this by providing total supply chain coverage, visibility, and insight into the compliance levels across our on-site contractors and off-site suppliers. This partnership supports us in raising standards within our own supply chain and our wider industry.
What this means for our suppliers
For our significant contracts, all suppliers will need to have their health and safety, and sustainability policies pre-qualified along with providing information on their business and professional standing, quality management, and risk management.
What are the benefits?
- It allows you to prove to Peabody and your other existing customers that you are a responsible supply chain partner when it comes to Health and Safety, Quality, Ethical Best Practices and Responsible Growth.
- Your profile is visible to all 400 plus customers of the Alcumus Client Portal, so you will stand out from the crowd and could win more business.
- Alcumus offer unrivalled support to our supply chain and have dedicated teams to help you through the process, ensuring you have all the relevant documentation in place, and where not signposting you to relevant resources, to get you bid ready.
If you have any questions, please get in touch with Procurement.Enquiries@peabody.org.uk or contact Alcumus on 0333 305 4280.
Procurement Act 2023
Later this year, significant new regulations will come into effect that will transform public procurement - the Procurement Act 2023. It's expected that the 'go-live’ date for the new regime will be Monday 24 February 2025.
The Procurement Act is an important piece of legislation that will change the process of buying good, services and works.
It will impact the way we do business - so you need to know about these changes and our plans to prepare for go-live.
The existing rules will continue to apply for contracts that are already in progress, and for procurements started under the current regime. However, for all new procurements post October, it is important that you understand the change.
The Cabinet Office, who are leading the Transforming Public Procurement programme, will be providing regular updates. Therefore, if you haven’t done so, - we encourage you to subscribe to its update bulletin and check in to the dedicated gov.uk page.
Benefits of the new regime
A key objective for the Procurement Act 2023 was to make it easier for suppliers to do business, and as such there are some core benefits for suppliers once the new regime goes live in October, including:
- A central place to register and to store your core business details so that they can be used for multiple bids
- Improved transparency and access to information, with all public procurement opportunities in one place - making it easier to search for and set up alerts for procurements of interest to you.
- Better visibility of procurement plans, engagement events and tender opportunities - including those below threshold - increasing the number of opportunities available to bid on.
- Greater visibility about who is bidding for, and winning, larger public sector contracts above £5 million, and the details of those public contracts.
- Simplified bidding processes to make it easier to bid, negotiate and work in partnership with the public sector - including a new ‘competitive flexible’ procedure.
- Frameworks will be more flexible, so prospective suppliers are not shut out for long periods of time.
- A new duty on contracting authorities to have regard to the particular barriers facing SMEs and VCSEs, and to consider what can be done to overcome them throughout the procurement lifecycle, helping level the playing field for smaller businesses so they can compete for more contracts.
- Strengthened provisions for prompt payment throughout the supply chain - enabling SMEs to benefit from 30 day payment terms on a broader range of public sector contracts.
- A stronger exclusions framework will take tougher action on underperforming suppliers.
This is a long-term change, so although these benefits may not be visible on day one, the new regime will help break down barriers to entry into procurement.
Next steps
Our Group Procurement Team is now working through the necessary training and guidance materials so we are ready to operate under the new regulations and realise the benefits of the new regime when it goes live.
The Cabinet Office will continue working with leading business groups and trade associations to make sure information is available for suppliers. There is already a range of information and resources about the new regime on the Transforming Public Procurement landing page.
If you haven’t already - we strongly recommend you watch the ‘Knowledge Drop’ videos with dedicated versions designed specifically for suppliers, including SME and VCSE suppliers - these will give you a broader understanding of the changes which will be coming.
There are other actions you can start to take to prepare:
• Sign up for the Cabinet Office regular updates.
• Familiarise yourself with the Act - check out the summary documents and videos on the Transforming Public Procurement landing page.
In the meantime, if you would like to discuss any aspect of the new Act please contact the dedicated Transforming Public Procurement helpdesk.
Further information
The Procurement Act 2023 – a short guide for suppliers
Central Digital Platform - Factsheet
TPP suppliers' guide and knowledge drops
Want to be a Peabody supplier?
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If you’ve got something to offer, we’d love to hear from you.
