Sustainable Procurement Policy (draft)

In June 2022, following an extensive period of internal and external stakeholder engagement, we published and implemented our Social Value Procurement Policy ‘SVPP’; being the first local authority in Northern Ireland to have in place such a policy.

The SVPP was designed to utilise the influence and power of our procurement expenditure to help deliver the Belfast Agenda while ensuring the best possible value for money ‘VFM’ when purchasing goods, services and works for the people of Belfast.

The SVPP has proven to be a success with some notable outcomes to date including:

• Payment of the Real Living Wage ‘RLW’ by our suppliers
• Prohibited use of Zero Hours Contracts by our suppliers
• Greater consideration of use of reserved contracts for social enterprises ‘SEs’ and creating connections between private sector and VCSE sector to support contract delivery
• Creation of local jobs for apprenticeships, our Inclusive Growth (IG) Target Groups and students as well the delivery of employability and skills initiatives by suppliers
• The delivery of a wide range of social value initiatives by suppliers that support local communities and people covering improving good relations, reducing crime, improving health, increasing sports participation and increasing arts participation
• The delivery of a wide range of environmental improvement initiatives by suppliers that aim to reduce supplier’s carbon footprint, support the circular economy and enhance biodiversity

This Sustainable Policy & Strategy Document ‘Policy’ aims to build on these successes, apply lessons learned and further strengthen our commitments to ethical procurement, social value and climate action whilst delivering VFM for the ratepayers of Belfast.

We have defined Sustainable Procurement as:

"Using our buying power to support the Belfast Agenda, help the local economy grow in a fair way, tackle climate change, and support local communities and vulnerable people—while still making sure we get the best value for money for the people of Belfast, now and in the future"

Please click on the Survey tab below to get involved and have your say. You can also ask us a question, using the questions and answers (Q&A) tab below.