Procurement Policy Guidance Notes
Northern Ireland Public Procurement Policy was approved by the Executive in 2002. In approving the policy the Executive took the decision that legislation was not necessary to ensure that Departments, their Agencies, non-Departmental Public Bodies and Public Corporations complied with the policy. Instead it considered that compliance could be achieved by means of administrative action.
The Central Procurement Directorate (CPD) is responsible for disseminating advice and guidance to the NI public sector on public procurement policies and for monitoring implementation. It does this through the production of Procurement Policy Guidance Notes. These Guidance Notes are developed in consultation with the Centres of Procurement Expertise (CoPEs). Once endorsed by the Procurement Board, they are issued to Departments and CoPEs and placed on CPD’s website. They are therefore the administrative means by which the public sector is advised of procurement policy and best practice developments.
The following Guidance Notes have been approved by the Procurement Board for use throughout the public sector.
Procurement Guidance Note 03/09: Procedures and principles for application of threshold limits as part of the Gateway Review process
Guidance Note 03/09 sets out the deminimis limit to be applied for application of the Gateway Review Process. This limit will apply in all cases where a Departmental Accounting Officer does not make a specific ruling. The guidance also includes an upper value limit above which the Gateway Review Process will be mandatory.
Procurement Guidance Note 02/09: Procedures and Principles for the Evaluation of Tenders
(pdf, 312kb)This guidance note provides advice and guidance on tender evaluation. The evaluation of tenders is a crucial stage in the overall procurement process. By observing and implementing these guidelines, the evaluation panel will ensure that the tender evaluation process has been undertaken in an open, transparent and compliant manner. This will reduce the risk of complaints and legal challenges which are very time consuming and costly. The guidance note was approved by the Procurement Board on 12 November 2009.
Procurement Guidance Note 01/09: Best Practice in Programme/project Management
This guidance is designed to further strengthen the management of programmes and projects within the NI public sector. It widens the previous focus on ICT enabled change programmes and projects (via DAO (DFP) 33/03) to cover all programme and project types.
Procurement Guidance Note 02/08: Information disclosure for public sector procurement practitioners -
for procurements commenced before 20 December 2009
(pdf, 297kb)
This guidance note provides public sector procurement practitioners with a framework for standardisation of information disclosure across the procurement community. It only applies to procurements which commenced before 20th December 2009. A new guidance note is being written for procurements which commenced on or after 20th December 2009 which will take into account the implementation of the EU Remedies Directive into UK law. It will be available on this site shortly.
Procurement Guidance Note 01/08: Integrating sustainable development into the procurement of food and catering services
(pdf, 200kb)The purpose of this guidance note is to provide advice and guidance to procurement practitioners on integrating sustainable development and healthy eating objectives into the procurement of food and catering services.
Procurement Guidance Note 01/07: The use of Grant for Procurement
(pdf, 271kb)Updated in August 2009, this guide provides Departments with guidance on best practice procurement as it relates to grant and grant-in-aid. It will also assist in ensuring that grant funding, used for the procurement of goods, services or works by a grant recipient, is spent in accordance with procurement law and policy where appropriate.
Procurement Guidance Note 04/06: Procurement of Timber and Wood Products
(pdf, 175kb)This Guidance Note provides Contracting Authorities with advice and guidance on how legal and sustainable timber can be purchased in line with EU procurement rules and public procurement policy. It has been revised as a result of a new timber policy being implemented in Northern Ireland from 1st April 2009. From that date only sustainable and FLEGT licensed timber has been accepted in government construction contracts. The new policy will not, however, incorporate supplies and services contracts until 1st April 2010. The revised guidance note was approved by the Procurement Board on 12th November 2009.
Procurement Guidance Note 03/06: Use of Rolling Contracts
(pdf, 61kb)The purpose of this Guidance Note is to advise contracting authorities that the use of rolling contracts is not regarded as best practice and is most unlikely to deliver value for money, it also details the parameters under which it may be considered appropriate to enter into such an arrangement
Procurement Guidance Note 02/06: Procurement of Fair Trade Products
(pdf, 81kb)This Guidance Note defines fair and ethical trade, details the range of products currently recognised as fair trade products and provides Contracting Authorities with advice and guidance on the action that can be taken, under the EU procurement rules and procurement policy, to achieve fair trade objectives.
Procurement Guidance Note 01/06: OGC Guidance - Liability in Government Contracts
This guidance note has been withdrawn pending review.
Guidance Note 01/05: Procurement Value for Money and Efficiency Measurement
(pdf, 270kb)This Guidance provides Contracting Authorities with methodologies which can be used to both measure achievement against the Value for Money (VFM) gains from the procurement of goods, services and works and to measure Procurement Efficiency.
VFM Low Value Calculator (Excel, 21kb)
Strategic procurement - Calculating VfM Savings (pdf, 169kb)
Procurement Guidance Note 07/04: Strategic Procurement
(pdf, 88.5kb)This Guidance Note provides advice in respect of strategic and non-strategic procurement. It defines strategic procurement and sets out the role that procurement staff should have in relation to strategic procurement. It also provides direction to contracting authorities on what constitutes a comprehensive procurement strategy and outlines the principles of good practice that should be adopted for all strategic requirements.
Guidance Note 06/04: The Gateway Review Process
This Guidance Note has been replaced by Procurement Guidance Note 01/09.Procurement Guidance Note 04/04: Integration of Environmental Considerations into Public Procurement
(pdf, 249kb)The purpose of this Guidance Note is to assist contracting authorities to identify the most effective ways of integrating environmental issues within the public procurement process while adhering to the UK Public Procurement Regulations and the EC Treaty. The guidance will be useful to officers directly responsible for public procurement, as well as those who are customers of the procurement function and those responsible for managing environmental impacts.
Revised September 2009
Procurement Guidance Note 03/04: Integration of Social Considerations into Public Procurement
(pdf, 114kb)Although the procurement rules do not contain specific provision on the pursuit of social policy goals within the framework of public procurement procedures they do not preclude the pursuit of social objectives. This Guidance Note provides an outline of the range of possibilities for integrating social considerations into public procurement in Northern Ireland under the existing procurement rules.
Procurement Guidance Note 02/04: Evidencing Best Value for Money
(pdf, 164kb)This Guidance Note provides direction on criteria for, and methods of, satisfying the 12 principles of procurement policy stated in the Procurement Review. When the 12 principles are satisfied best value for money is achieved.
Procurement Guidance Note 01/04: Procurement Control Limits
(pdf, 146kb)This Guidance Note sets out the revised ‘Procurement Control Limits’ to be used by NICS Departments and provides advice on the sourcing of suppliers for procurements below £30K.
This document was reviewed in December 2008 and takes effect from 1 January 2009.
Procurement Guidance Note 01/03: Employment Opportunity Scheme - Pilot Scheme
(pdf, 207kb)This Guidance Note outlines proposals to encourage employers to recruit and train unemployed people, who have been unemployed for at least 3 months, to work on significant contracts with Government Departments, their NDPBs and Public Corporations.
Central Procurement Directorate Management Information Guide
(pdf, 401kb)Updated in May 2009, this Management Information Guide provides Centres of Procurement Expertise (CoPEs), Departments, Agencies, Non-Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs) and Public Corporations with details of the management information required to measure, monitor and report on the efficiency and effectiveness of procurement policy and practices across the Northern Ireland (NI) public sector.