The Procurement Act 2023 came into force on 24 February 2025, replacing the 2015 Public Contract Regulations. The Procurement Act changes how public bodies buy goods and services with the aim of improving and streamlining the way procurement is carried out.
The Act aims to create a simpler, more flexible commercial approach opening up public procurement to new entrants, such as small businesses and social enterprises. It also aims to enable tougher action to be taken on underperforming suppliers, and to embed transparency.
What does the Procurement Act mean for my school?
Once you have identified what product or service you need to buy and how much you will be spending, you then need to identify the best way to procure that product or service in line with the Procurement Act.
The table below sets out the financial thresholds as at 24 February 2025 above which the goods and services need to be procured in line with the Procurement Act. For procurement commenced before 24 February 2025, the Public Contract Regulations 2015 apply if the relevant thresholds are reached.
| Contract type | Public procurement threshold (inclusive of VAT) |
| Public supplies and public services contracts | £214,904 |
| Light touch regime contracts | £663,540 |
| Works contracts | £5,372,609 |
| Utilities supplies and services contracts | £429,809 |
| Utilities light touch regime contracts | £884,720 |
| Utilities works contracts | £5,372,609 |
| Concession contracts | £5,372,609 |
You should be aware that the cost of a contract is deemed to be the total cost over the time period of the contract. For example, the cost of a 5 year cleaning contract will be the cost for the 5 years in total.
If your contract meets the thresholds in the above table, you will need to understand your obligations regarding contract management and the publishing of appropriate notices. The Cabinet Office has launched a Procurement Pathway tool to enable public bodies to do this.
The Procurement Pathway
The Procurement Pathway tool enables public bodies to:
- Access relevant policy, legislation, guidance and standard templates in one place.
- Provide a high-level overview that identifies what may need to be considered and/or acknowledged across the commercial stages in your procurement approach.
- Access a guide to plan, define, procure and manage procurement activities supporting effective decision-making.
The Procurement Pathway tool is divided into 4 sections as follows:
- Plan – Develop a procurement strategy and plan, prepare and maintain a tracker for current and future contracts that need to be procured, and assessing the marketplace for your contracts.
- Define – Defining your business needs, engaging with the market, and identifying an appropriate procurement route.
- Procure – Constructing and publishing a procurement pack including the relevant notices required under the Procurement Act, carrying out the appropriate procurement process for your contract, and awarding and implementing the contract.
- Manage – Monitoring and managing the contract, modifying the contract if required, and transitioning out of the contract upon contract expiry.
Identifying the most appropriate procurement route
The following procurement routes are available to schools with guidance provided by the Department for Education:
- Route 1 – Use a framework agreement.
- Route 2 – Use catalogues to find low value goods. Check your school’s procurement policy to see what is defined as “low value”, typically less than £10,000.
- Route 3 – Obtain at least 3 quotes from suppliers. Use this route if you cannot obtain what you need through a framework agreement, and what you are buying is of low to medium value (typically between £10,000 and £40,000).
- Route 4 – Advertise a contract and run a procurement process in accordance with the Procurement Act 2023 for procurements under the financial thresholds. Use this route if you cannot obtain what you need through a framework agreement, and what you are buying is of high value, typically over £40,000.
- Route 5 – Advertise a contract and run a procurement process in accordance with the Procurement Act 2023 for procurements over the financial thresholds. Use this route if you cannot obtain what you need through a framework agreement, and what you are buying is over the public procurement thresholds set out in the Procurement Act.
Further information can be found at:
- https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/procurement-act-2023-short-guides/the-procurement-act-2023-a-short-guide-for-suppliers-html
- https://www.procurementpathway.civilservice.gov.uk/?mc_cid=efe7cfcd3c&mc_eid=44998c4254
- https://www.gov.uk/guidance/buying-procedures-and-procurement-law-for-schools/route-1-use-a-framework-agreement
- https://www.gov.uk/guidance/buying-procedures-and-procurement-law-for-schools/find-the-right-route-to-buy
- https://www.gov.uk/guidance/buying-for-schools–2#:~:text=Framework%20agreements%20help%20schools%20to,provide%20specific%20goods%20and%20services.
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