Issue - meetings
Changes to the Contract Procurement Rules
Meeting: 08/10/2026 - Council (Item 39)
39 CHANGES TO THE CONTRACT PROCUREMENT RULES 
PDF 213 KB
REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR – RESOURCES
This report proposes two changes to the Council's Contract Procurement Rules. The first is to increase the threshold for procurements that only require a single quote, to reflect inflation. The second change is to allow a restriction on the location and type of supplier that can bid for contracts.
Decision:
RESOLVED: That Council adopted the changes to the Council’s Contract Procurement Rules detailed in the report.
REASON FOR DECISION:
(1) The increase in the threshold for single quotes reflects the impact of inflation and that not changing them creates additional work for Officers.
(2) The introduction of geographical and supplier type restrictions gives the opportunity for procurements to be better aligned with policy objectives.
Minutes:
Audio recording – 01 hour 06 minutes 30 seconds
Councillor Stewart Willoughby presented the referral from the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee (Referral 6A) and the report entitled ‘Changes to the Contract Procurement Rules’ and advised that:
· New Contract Procurement Rules were adopted by the Council in 2025 following implementation of the Procurement Act 2023.
· Minor amendments had been made under delegated authority since their adoption.
· The report proposed more substantial changes requiring approval by Full Council.
· One proposed change was to increase the threshold at which more than one quotation is requiring from £10,000 to £25,000, which would better target Officer time and procurement resources. Officers would still be encouraged to obtain multiple quotations where it was likely to provide better value for money.
· A second proposed change would allow below-threshold procurements to be restricted to local suppliers, small and medium enterprises, and voluntary, community and social enterprises.
· The changes had been supported by the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee.
N.B. Councillor Val Bryant and Councillor Amy Allen entered the Chamber at 20:37.
The following points were made as part of the debate by Councillor Ruth Brown:
· The inclusion of voluntary, community and social enterprises and the application of the Go Local Policy were welcomed.
· The changes would help support local businesses and local voluntary sector organisations.
· The increase in the quotation threshold from £10,000 to £25,000 was sensible and she supported the proposal.
Councillor Stewart Willoughby proposed and Councillor Ian Albert seconded, and following a vote, it was:
RESOLVED: That Council adopted the changes to the Council’s Contract Procurement Rules detailed in the report.
REASON FOR DECISION:
(1) The increase in the threshold for single quotes reflects the impact of inflation and that not changing them creates additional work for Officers.
(2) The introduction of geographical and supplier type restrictions gives the opportunity for procurements to be better aligned with policy objectives.
N.B. Councillor Cathy Brownjohn entered the Chamber at 20.39.
Meeting: 09/09/2026 - Finance, Audit and Risk Committee (Item 30)
30 CHANGES TO THE CONTRACT PROCUREMENT RULES PDF 212 KB
REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR – RESOURCES
To update Cabinet on changes to the Contract Procurement Rules.
Decision:
RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL: That the changes to the Council’s Procurement Rules detailed in this report are adopted.
REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATION:
(1) The increase in the threshold for single quotes reflects the impact of inflation and that not changing them creates additional work for Officers.
(2) The introduction of geographical and supplier type restrictions gives the opportunity for procurements to be better aligned with policy objectives.
Minutes:
Audio recording – 01 hours 27 minutes 03 seconds
The Director – Resources presented the report entitled ‘Changes to the Contract Procurement Rules’ and advised that:
· The final decision on this would be taken by Council, but the Committee had been given the chance to review and comment on this beforehand.
· New contract procurement rules had been adopted by the Council in 2025 following the Procurement Act 2023, and minor changes had been made to these under delegated authority since.
· Major changes to the rules were proposed within the report.
· One of those changes was to increase the threshold for procurement that needed more than one quote from £10K to £25K, with the reason for this level of increase described in paragraph 8 of the report.
· Officers were encouraged to obtain multiple quotes where it was likely to provide better value for money as the need for one quote was a minimum requirement.
· Another major change was to allow below threshold procurement to be restricted to the local area and to Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprises (VCSEs), which would align with the Go Local Policy and Contract Procurement Strategy.
Councillor Elizabeth Dennis proposed the recommendations in the report, and this was seconded by Councillor Ruth Brown.
The following Members took part in the debate:
· Councillor Ruth Brown
· Councillor Elizabeth Dennis
The following points were made as part of the debate:
· Changes to restrict below threshold procurement to SMEs and VCSEs were welcomed as this would support local suppliers and make procurement more ethical.
· Officer time would be used more appropriately on procurement from these changes.
· The proposed threshold increase was to a safe, sensible amount.
Having been proposed and seconded and, following a vote, it
was:
RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL: That the changes to the Council’s Procurement Rules detailed in this report are adopted.
REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATION:
(1) The increase in the threshold for single quotes reflects the impact of inflation and that not changing them creates additional work for Officers.
(2) The introduction of geographical and supplier type restrictions gives the opportunity for procurements to be better aligned with policy objectives.