Information

Invitations to tender

Police, Fire and Crime Commissioners are required to publish a copy of every invitation to tender for a contract with an expected value exceeding £10,000, to which they or the Chief Constable is a party.

All tenders may be viewed on the Bluelight emergency services tendering website.

What is EMSCU’s procurement strategy?

In order to benefit from economies of scale, a quick route to market and risk mitigation through pre-agreed terms and conditions, EMSCU initially searches for an appropriate framework agreement or collaborative/corporate contract once it has created a client requirement.

If an appropriate framework agreement/contract is not available then EMSCU will commence a tendering exercise.

EMSCU is currently working to align its member Forces’ Contract Procedure Rules. At present it is generally the case that, as a minimum, all contracts with a total value of £25,000 and above (i.e. the threshold at which its member Forces engage EMSCU to manage the procurement exercise) are advertised.

How do I find out about opportunities to compete for contracts tendered by Northamptonshire Police?

The OPFCC uses a number of channels to advertise contract opportunities:

• Bluelight (Emergency services eTendering system)
• Source East Midlands (Regional public sector advertising portal)
• Tenders Electronic Daily (European public procurement journal used for all requirements with a total contract value above the EU thresholds, i.e. £173,934 for Supplies and Services and £4,348,350 for Works)
• Relevant trade publications

Contracts

Where contracts are of the appropriate value, the OPFCC advertise in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU). A list of contracts can be found online via the bluelight emergency services e-Procurement website.