procurement

Scottish policy and practice update: Sept 2025

This update is part of a regular series of rundowns of policy developments and reports on our work in Scotland, by CLES Head of Scotland, Naomi Mason.

More than “just” action plans

A few weeks ago, I was chatting to someone about CLES, our work in Scotland and our expertise in community wealth building. They made a comment about us “just” designing action plans for local authorities. I explained we did a lot more. Afterwards I paused to reflect, if they don’t know what we do, perhaps it’s time to explain? So, this blog is a little different, not so much Scotland focused, but CLES focused. If you’ve ever thought, “what do they do at CLES?”, then this blog is for you.   

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Boosting local economies. How can we grow what we aren’t measuring?

Early in 2025, the Scottish Government announced the world first Community Wealth Building (Scotland) Bill. This bill has reignited conversations around the opportunity that Community Wealth Building (CWB) could bring for Scotland and its people and places by enshrining into law new ways to build and retain wealth in our communities. This activity can support flourishing local economies, and considering SMEs make up 99.3% of all private sector businesses in Scotland there is a huge opportunity for this legislation to bolster their role in Scotland’s economic landscape.
“huge opportunity for this legislation”
CWB practices enable us to rethink and rewire our local economies around the people and places that they serve with the objective of increasing the flow, circulation and ownership of wealth. Using CWB, large public, private and third sector organisations (sometimes known as anchor institutions) working in collaboration can use their joint economic power including spend and employment to shine a light on how wealth and power leaks out of our economies, and how it can be redirected to benefit places. Traditionally CWB is delivered using five pillars, and for Federation of Small Businesses in Scotland (FSB) and their members, the procurement pillar is of particular interest.

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  • FINDINGS

    Boosting local economies

    22nd July 2025
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    • Power in procurement: anchor networks could be the engine of the Procurement Act

    The new National Procurement Policy Statement (NPPS) marks a decisive shift in the government’s approach to public spending. It sets out a clear ambition to increase public sector procurement through small businesses and social enterprises and to foster greater collaboration between contracting authorities in order to secure broader social and economic value.

    With the Procurement Act (2023) now in operation, the London Anchor Institutions’ Network (LAIN) and CLES convened a workshop to explore how an anchor network approach could help bring these ambitions to life and, in doing so, strengthen local economies. LAIN, convened by the Mayor of London in 2021, is committed to driving inclusive economic growth through anchor institutions buying more of their goods and services from smaller and diverse-led local businesses. The Network was keen to share practice with other anchor networks around the country and explore ways for anchor institutions to capitalise on the opportunities afforded by the Act.

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    2024: our greatest hits

    As the year draws to a close, our Chief Executive, Sarah Longlands, looks back at the last twelve months of CLES’s work.

    It has been a turbulent 12 months, with change – both good and bad – very much at the forefront on the domestic and international stages. Yet, despite the uncertainty of the times in which we find ourselves, at CLES we remain simultaneously pragmatic and optimistic about the power of our mission: delivering local economic change. As we wrote in our general election manifesto – Our Local Economic Future – change may be dreamt of by aspiring national leaders, but it is both delivered and felt in communities.
    “the growth of ideas, of confidence, of time and of resources”
    But this kind of change doesn’t happen by invoking economic growth as the key to every lock. The kind of change that our communities need comes instead from the growth of ideas, of confidence, of time and of resources: to challenge preconceptions and tired economic assumptions, to think differently and with ambition.

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  • Changing places

    25th April 2024
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    • Buying benefits for communities

    This article originally appeared in The MJ.

    The everyday activities of local anchor institutions present numerous opportunities to advance social value. Whether it’s a local authority commissioning a new homecare service or the use of targeted pre-employment training programmes by the NHS, these practices can be used to generate wider social, economic and environmental outcomes for people, place and planet.

    Social value and public expenditure

    Social value has traditionally been associated with procurement activity and the use of social value frameworks. Over the last 18 months, however, the Government has published a raft of procurement policy notices, which encourage the adoption of more progressive practice to support local economies and enable more SMEs and social businesses to enter public sector supply chains. This guidance was reaffirmed and strengthened within last year’s procurement green paper and, following public consultation, the publication of the Government’s new Procurement Bill is now imminent.

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    Covid-19, Brexit and a reconfiguration of public spend

    This article originally appeared in the Local Government Chronicle

    The context around public expenditure is changing dramatically. With the continued impact of Covid-19 and with the UK no longer subject to European procurement law both opportunities and sticking points are cast into sharp relief. Will the government continue with a system that seems to advance “cronyism” and wealth extraction, or will new process and legislation be used to promote the idea that the public pound must always be used wisely and well – flowing through our economy in the pursuit of social, economic and ecological justice?

    Over the course of the last year, the government has published a raft of procurement policy notices, both in response to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and the UK’s exit from the European Union. These notices apply to local authorities, NHS bodies and the wider public sector.

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    Maximising social value to build back better

    Despite initial talk of a “bounce-back”, with Covid-19 we now face unprecedented economic and social crises. Economic recovery looks set to be a long and painful process, characterised by business failure, huge levels of unemployment and social hardship. In CLES’ policy provocation, Restoring public values: the role of public procurement, we explore the role for public values in public procurement in the light of Covid-19 and proposes a way forward that considers how the spending of public money can be harnessed to maximise its social value and deliver greater social, economic and environmental justice.

    Whilst there is now talk of a UK national stimulus package, we must also redouble our efforts to ensure that every single pound of existing and new UK public money is used wisely and well. Public money should flow through our economy to maximise social value in the form of Jobs, opportunities for local enterprises, and advancing zero carbon objectives.

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  • POLICY PROVOCATION

    Restoring public values: the role of public procurement

    29th June 2020
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    • Climate emergency requires local economic restructuring

    This article originally appeared in the Local Government Chronicle

    The community wealth movement has four key actions that will help councils meet the challenge of climate change – ‘greening’ existing practice is insufficient.

    Around 70% of all councils across the UK have now declared a climate emergency, with ambitious carbon reduction targets. While acknowledgment of the crisis is an important first step, the pressing need is to now make these declarations meaningful in terms of radical action and progressive practice.

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    Social Value 2020: people, place and planet 

    Since 2008, CLES have been working with Manchester City Council to harness its procurement spend and maximise the economic, social and environmental benefit generated for its people, place and the planet.

    Our collaboration has helped build a more inclusive economy over the last decade. The early adoption of an ethical procurement policy, a unique social value weighting of 20% in the tender process and a focus on supplier engagement in areas of deprivation has put Manchester City Council at the forefront of progressive procurement practice.
    “CLES is working with councils across the UK to build community wealth and create good local economies for all.”
    Progressive procurement is one important part of community wealth building: a systems approach to economic development built on local roots. It aims to reorganise local economies to put control back in the hands of local people, with wealth being generated, circulated and held locally. CLES is working with councils across the UK to build community wealth and create good local economies for all.

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  • Manchester City Council’s procurement spending is building wealth in communities

    14 Feb. 2020