Manchester City Council’s procurement spending is building wealth in communities
CLES has been working with Manchester City Council since 2008 to analyse its annual procurement spend and to improve its procurement process so that it addresses local need and brings greater benefits to Manchester’s residents and businesses. CLES has analysed this procurement spend to establish where this money has gone and to understand its impact on the Manchester economy and residents. The latest findings are available here.
The key findings are:
- In 2018/19 Manchester City Council spent £461m with its top 300 suppliers.
- The proportion of spend with Manchester-based organisations has increased from 51.5% in 2008/09 to 69.9% in 2018/19.
- This represents an increase in spend in the Manchester economy of £138m.
- The proportion spent with SMEs has increased from 46.6% in 2014/15 to 50.5% in 2018/19.
- 80% of responding suppliers paid all staff an hourly rate in excess of the Living Wage.
A survey of the top 300 suppliers to Manchester City Council revealed that in 2018/19 they created an estimated:
- £107m of social value;
- 561 apprenticeships in Manchester;
- 1,579 jobs in Manchester;
- 7,730 employment opportunities for “hard to reach” individuals in Greater Manchester.
“Manchester City Council have been trailblazers in pioneering progressive procurement.”
Neil McInroy, Chief Executive of the Centre for Local Economic Strategies, commented “Manchester City Council have been trailblazers in pioneering progressive procurement. Working collaboratively with CLES, they have shown the way in advancing the procurement aspects of community wealth building. The learning from this work has inspired many other local councils, places and anchor institutions across the UK. In Manchester, the continued and deepening of progressive actions and change is testament to a restlessness to continually improve, which has been driven by political leadership, officer dedication and supplier support.”
“Social value isn’t just a concept – it’s something which delivers real and lasting benefits to Manchester people.”
Councillor Carl Ollerhead, Manchester City Council Executive Member for Finance, added “Social value isn’t just a concept – it’s something which delivers real and lasting benefits to Manchester people. I’m proud to say that Manchester has taken giant strides in our quest to deliver the maximum social value from our spending in the last 12 years. Through concerted efforts, we’ve ensured that it isn’t an add-on, it’s embedded as a core part of our culture. It’s something I personally will continue to champion and we are determined to keep building on the progress we’ve made. Through innovations such as boosting the chances of environmentally-responsible companies of winning council contracts we are determined to keep driving this agenda forwards.”
CLES has been working with Manchester City Council to analyse its annual procurement spend and to understand its impact on the Manchester economy and residents since 2018. Since then, CLES has worked with the Council’s procurement officers to improve the processes, so that the social and environmental value of their activities are considered alongside cost when selecting suppliers. Additionally, Manchester City Council and CLES have worked in collaboration with the supply chain to change their behaviour to deliver social and environmental value.
The new findings highlight the key changes that have been undertaken in procurement policy and process, and the benefits achieved for the local authority, the supply chain, and the economy and residents of Manchester as a result. This approach has much in common with the much-praised “Preston Model” on which CLES have been key advisors.
