Procurement is an integral and essential element within the services that Dover District Council provides. However, because it is not in itself a service, it is often invisible to the final consumer, and it is easy to overlook its contribution and to ignore its potential for enabling and developing Council Services. Purchasing is the single service, which can, without making any financial investment in resources, reduce costs to the Council with immediate effect.
Effective procurement involves a partnership between the council and it's contractors; this partnership holds the key to the council's success in delivering its strategic and operational objectives. In the past, effective procurement has been seen as securing the lowest tender or cheapest product and has often ignored the longer-term costs and suitability to the overall detriment of the service. Best Value requires the council to obtain value for money. Purchasing procedures should therefore take into account not only price, but also quality issues in order that the best possible service is given to users, and ultimately, the public.
To move into this new regime, the Council must be transparent in its procurement processes. The Purchasing Section must be clear about it's objectives, and the standards, which it requires. Contractors will need to adapt to the more demanding regime of Best Value, and this can only be achieved if the procurement processes adopt such clarity. It is vital that partnerships are built on trust and trust is built on transparency.
The Procurement Strategy is available in two formats, please select:
Procurement
Strategy (PDF format)
Procurement
Strategy (Word format)
