Procurement

Council tenders, contracts and how the council does business.

About us

We deliver many of our services through third party suppliers. We welcome bids from all organisations, including: 

  • small and medium sized enterprises
  • new and established firms
  • voluntary organisations

We have over 500 active contracts with a total contract value of £3.5 billion pounds and an estimated annual contract value of £350 million pounds.

Introducing the Procurement Act 2023

On 24 February 2025, the rules that shape how public bodies buy goods and services will change. The Procurement Act 2023 will improve and streamline the way procurement is done. The Act will benefit prospective suppliers of all sizes, particularly small businesses, start-ups and social enterprises. 

If you are an existing or prospective supplier to the Council, you need to know about the changes. 

Although we expect the new regulations to be in place on 24 February 2025, the existing rules will continue to apply to our procurement tenders that are already in progress -and contracts already awarded before this date.

Procurement strategy

Our procurement strategy sets the direction for both procurement and contract management from 2024 to 2026. 

Its focus is on delivering high quality, well researched and insightful commercial strategies as part of our business cases, supported by early supplier engagement. ​At the same time, we will ensure that robust contract and supplier management arrangements are in place to ensure the value captured through the above is not eroded in the delivery of our contracts. ​

​Importantly, the strategy also provides a direct link to the Mayor’s priorities as set out in his business plan, particularly social value. Furthermore, it will look to ensure we reap the benefits that the Procurement Act offers as well as meeting its obligations in an effective and efficient manner.​

Read our 2024 to 2026 procurement strategy (Powerpoint, 191KB)

Current opportunities

To access our tender opportunities please register on our e-procurement portal. You can then click on the tenders tab to view awarded, current and forthcoming tenders.

Existing procurement contracts

You can also use the e-procurement portal to view current contracts in place.

Procurement pipeline

We are committed to providing a long-term pipeline of proposed future activity to our suppliers. We recognise that this helps you plan and resource more effectively.

Doing business with the council – a guide to our rules and regulations

The tender and contracts regulations are the set of our rules against which we must operate to ensure that our procurements and contract deliver value for money. 

We are also subject to the full suite of UK regulations governing public contracts for procurements above the World Trade Organisation’s Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) thresholds.

Becoming a supplier

If you have been awarded a contract with us for the first time you will need to register as a supplier with us on our Oracle system. Your Croydon contact will send you a link to access our registration form where you'll be able to enter your company, contact and address details.

Once your registration has been approved by our procurement team, you'll get access to our supplier portal area where you can securely enter your bank details as well as view purchase orders, view documents and more.

Purchase orders  

As a local authority, we have a duty to spend responsibly, ensuring that public funds are managed transparently, efficiently, and accountably. 

Our No PO No Pay policy is a key part of this commitment. It requires that every purchase has a corresponding Purchase Order (PO) in place before suppliers commence work on goods or services.

By following No PO No Pay, we can:

  • prevent unauthorised or unplanned spending, ensuring all purchases are approved in advance
  • improve financial oversight and accuracy in reporting, helping us meet both legal requirements and public expectations
  • streamline payment processes for our suppliers, ensuring smooth transactions and stronger relationships
  • suppliers must not undertake or make any further commitment with the Council for the supply of goods and services until the official order has been raised. Failure to comply with this may result in non-payment invoices

Premier supplier programme 

We offer accelerated payment with no factoring, no borrowing, no credit checks and no complicated processes. It offers:

  • faster payment
  • fast-tracked invoice processing and dedicated contacts for when you need to get in touch 
  • fair and transparent pricing
  • No sign up or admin costs, just a small percentage fee deducted from each invoice
  • For more details, please visit the premier supplier programme website. 

Invoicing

  • if you have signed up to the premier supplier programme, invoices must be submitted by email to accountspayable@croydon.gov.uk or e.invoice@croydon.gov.uk 
  • all invoices must contain a valid PO number
  • invoices will be processed from the date of receipt, not invoice date. It is therefore very important that suppliers submit invoices to the correct mailbox
  • valid invoices will be paid within 30 days of receipt (unless signed up to Premier supplier programme)

Feedback and ideas

Within the framework of the regulations we are required to operate within, we are always looking for fresh sources of ideas that can help us delivery better value for money for our residents. We recognise that our supply base is a key asset in helping us to achieve this. Please contact procurement@croydon.gov.uk with any suggestions.