2. How we buy goods and services - A guide

Shepway District Council, like other public bodies, have to comply to certain rules and regulations when buying goods and service. These comprise of the Councils own rules, UK Legislation and EU directives on Public Procurement.

There are different rules that are applied to the procurement process depending of the anticipated value of the contract, these are split as follows:

Supply of Goods and Services

Works Contracts

The Typical Tender Process – Medium and High Value Contracts

Below is an outline of the typical steps taken by Shepway District Council for a high value contract or one that falls into the EU Tender limit.

1. Advertising the requirement
2. Receipt of Expressions of Interest
3. Pre-qualification questionnaire (PQQ) sent out
4. Evaluation of the returned PQQ
5. Tender documents sent out
6. Evaluation of the tender submissions
7. Award of contract

We will accept:

• Written queries about your submission
• General questions about any aspect of the process.

We will not accept:

• Tenders after the closing date and time
• Telephone enquiries (unless specifically invited)
• Lobbying for information from elected Members or Officers involved

Shepway District Council’s promise to you

We are committed to using a mixed range of suppliers to help stimulate a varied and competitive marketplace.

We promise to treat each supplier, prospective supplier and enquirer with fairness and respect. We will be helpful and considerate at all times to all who require assistance. We will also follow a fully auditable process that is entirely compliant with Public Procurement legislation. Upon request we will give feedback to all unsuccessful bidders following the award of a contract.