Cannock Chase Council aims to achieve Best Value in its procurement of goods and services. We are committed to the fair, equal and transparent treatment of all current and future providers.
Local and National Regulations for Procurement
The Council’s procurement activities are governed by UK law and the Council’s own rules. These rules must be followed and are designed to promote non-discriminatory practice and provide transparency to tenderers.
The Procurement Act 2023, which came into effect on 24 February 2025, sets out how public bodies buy goods and services. The Government has produced “A Short Guide for Suppliers” to explain what this means and several online Knowledge Drops.
Cannock Chase Council’s rules governing procurement are known as Procurement Regulations.
The Council’s rules generally require all contracts over £60,000 (including VAT) to be subjected to a tendering process. Further information is provided in the Guide to Selling to the Council below.
Guide to Selling to the Council
This guide is aimed at helping potential contractors, consultants and suppliers to tender for contracts with the District Council.
Whilst it cannot assure you of success in gaining work with the Council, it should provide you with sufficient information to help you understand the tendering process and to submit a tender.
You can find general information on selling to the public sector on the GOV.UK website.
- Advertising Tenders
In accordance with the Procurement Act 2023, the Council has to advertise it tenders on the Find a Tender Service on the Central Digital Platform (CDP) and suppliers will need to register to use the CDP.
The Government has created a supplier information pack which includes instructions for supplier registration and management of the Central Digital Platform.
The Find a Tender Service lets you search for information about contracts with all public sector bodies.
You can use it to:
• search for current contract opportunities
• find out what’s coming up in the future
• look up details of previous tenders and contractsThe Council does not advertise opportunities valued below £30,000. Suppliers are encouraged to contact the relevant service area(s) of the Council directly.
- How to apply for a Tender
Staffordshire County Council’s Commercial Team supports Cannock Chase Council in its procurement activities and in particular administers the tendering process on our behalf.
The Commercial Team manage all tendered procurement projects electronically using an online electronic procurement (eProcurement) portal. The portal system employed is Proactis.
Suppliers will need to register online with the Proactis system.
After registering, access is provided to all tendering opportunities on the portal. The portal will hold the procurement documentation and templates, allow providers to complete, upload and submit their tender requirements, and provide the 2-way interface to communicate to the Commercial Team.
- What to expect in a procurement
The full procurement process will be managed via the on-line Proactis eProcurement portal.
Typical procurement documents included on the portal usually consist of:
• Procurement Pack – a set of instructions to providers presenting detail on the process
• Specification – the Council conveying its requirement of the provider to deliver against
• Pricing – a template which providers complete to present the pricing requirements
• Questionnaire – where providers articulate/attach evidence in answer to scored criteria
• Terms & conditions – the ‘legal speak’ which brings together the specification, pricing and questionnaireThe advert will state the closing time and date for submission. Providers must submit their tender before the deadline and should leave themselves plenty of time to do this to avoid last-minute problems in uploading all of the documents required.
Whilst the opportunity is ‘at advert’ providers complete the submission, upload and submit. This period also allows providers to raise any clarification points regarding the documentation.
Once the submission deadline has passed, we will score the submissions in line with the published criteria in the documentation, and ultimately appoint the successful provider(s). At the end of the procurement process, the successful provider(s) enter into agreement, which effectively is the provider(s) and us agreeing to the final specification, pricing, questionnaire and terms & conditions.
- Information for Small to Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs)
The Government have issued guidance to the SME market on basic tendering requirements.
The guide aims to help:
• Tell you where to find opportunities within the public sector;
• Explain how you can bid for work;
• Gives you tips on tendering; and
• Frequently asked questions.- Contact details
Contact Point for the Commercial Team:
The tendering for goods and services is handled on behalf of Cannock Chase Council by Staffordshire County Council’s Commercial Team.
Website: Commercial Team - Staffordshire County Council
Email: commercial.team@staffordshire.gov.ukContact Point for Cannock Chase Council:
The Head of Transformation and Assurance acts as the lead officer at Cannock Chase Council for general procurement enquiries and can be contacted as follows:
Email: procurement@cannockchasedc.gov.uk
Tel: 01543 464411