SMART PROCUREMENT STRATEGIES
Future spending: approaching procurement as we enter the new term
MICHELLE WALKER, Head of Procurement Services at YPO, talks planning ahead.
Alongside well documented increases in demand for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) provision and ever tightening budgets, one of the biggest recent legislative changes that schools and Multi- Academy Trusts (MATs) need to consider is the day-to-day impacts of procurement reform.
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s the summer holidays come to a close, it’s an important time for budget holders within education to assess priority areas of spend. A vital part of this preparation is understanding the procurement landscape and the challenges that lie ahead.
Understanding the Procurement Act 2023 The Procurement Act 2023 came into effect in February 2025, representing a significant shift in how the UK public sector spends money. This legislation replaced Public Contracts Regulations 2015 with a single, theoretically simplified, legislative framework. The core objective of the new Act is to create a more efficient, flexible, and transparent procurement system that delivers greater value. Under the new Act, there are some key changes which will need to be directly addressed. A “Central Digital Platform” will replace the existing “Find a Tender Service”. Alternative ways for schools to procure products have also been introduced through multiple procedure, including: • The Open procedure, a single-stage, unrestricted competition.
• The Competitive flexible procedure, which allows schools and trusts to design their own procurement processes.
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• Direct awards, enabling contracts to be issued without competition in specific, defined situations.
Overall, the Procurement Act 2023 aims to promote a more strategic and goal-oriented approach to public sector procurement. It introduces a new collection of principles, which offers potential value, competition, and assists in key decision making. It also aims to broaden contracts to encompass a wider range of suppliers across small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
An emphasis on social value One of the Procurement Act’s standout benefits is the approach to tender evaluation, which will have a direct impact on how schools and MATs approach their procurement practices. The Act replaces the “Most Economically Advantageous Tender” (MEAT) criteria with the broader “Most Advantageous Tender” (MAT).
This change is not just a linguistic one; it empowers schools to consider a wider range of factors beyond price. The MAT criteria explicitly add the inclusion of social, economic, and environmental benefits into contract awards processes. As schools and trusts plan their budgets and supplier relationships, this
September 2025
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