Implementing our policy
Tenders worth over £1 million
Looking at our contract records [Footnote 1], contracts worth more than £1 million, accounts for approximately 75 per cent of the council’s total spending [Footnote 2] but only represents 15 per cent of all contracts. Because of this, the policy will:
- expect more from suppliers bidding for contracts over £1 million, including clear plans on how they will deliver their sustainability commitments
- make the procurement process simpler for local small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) applying for contracts worth up to £1 million
- use the policy to help these smaller suppliers grow, so they can compete for higher-value contracts in the future, both with the council and other organisations
How we will apply the threshold throughout all stages of the contract is explained further.
Mandatory requirements
These requirements apply to all tenders:
| Description of requirement | What suppliers need to do |
|---|---|
| Acceptance of our Code of Conduct We have created a supplier code of conduct which sets out our values and what we expect from suppliers. |
Suppliers must confirm that they have read and understood the supplier code of conduct, and that they will follow it when working on council contracts. |
| Modern slavery We work with many suppliers across different sectors, and see this as a valuable opportunity to help tackle modern slavery. |
Suppliers must demonstrate they comply with the Modern Slavery Act 2015 (opens in new window), where applicable. |
| Prompt payment of suppliers We are committed to making sure our suppliers — and their supply chains — are paid on time, usually within 30 days of receiving a valid invoice. |
Suppliers must confirm that they have policies and procedures in place to make sure their own suppliers and supply chains are paid on time. |
| Real Living Wage We are the first local authority in Northern Ireland to become an accredited Living Wage Employer. This means we pay all our staff at least the Foundation Living Wage and makes sure that regularly contracted workers are also paid the Living Wage rate. |
Suppliers must pay all staff working on council contracts at least the real living wage, as set by the Living Wage Foundation. |
| Zero Hours Contracts A zero hours contract is an agreement where the employer does not have to give any set number of work hours, and the worker does not have to accept any work that is offered. |
Suppliers are not permitted to use zero hours contracts for any employee working on council contracts. |
| Cyber Essential Certification Cyber Essentials is the minimum standard of cyber security recommended by the Government for organisations of all sizes. This certification scheme, developed by experts at the National Cyber Security Centre, is based on five key security measures designed to protect against the most common online cyber threats. |
Suppliers must, as a minimum, be Cyber Essentials (opens in new window) certified (or national equivalents) and maintain a valid certification when working with the council [Footnote 3]. If a supplier does not have Cyber Essentials certification when applying for a contract, they must get it within 12 months of being awarded the contract [Footnote 4]. |
If a tender is worth more than £1 million, these extra requirements apply:
| Description of requirement | What you need to have |
|---|---|
| Ethical Procurement Policy We want to contract with suppliers who have strong ethical purchasing practices and who treat their own suppliers fairly. |
Suppliers are required to have policies and procedures which show their commitment to ethical procurement practices and fair treatment of their suppliers. |
| Supply Chain Audits and Mapping It is important that we clearly understand the supply chains involved in delivering our contracts, so we can make sure our spending supports suppliers who follow good ethical practices. |
Within 12 weeks of contract award suppliers must carry out a check of their supply chain. This is to make sure that, at a minimum, their direct (1st tier) suppliers follow our supplier code of conduct. Suppliers will provide a report showing the results of this check. This should include a map of the supply chain, showing who is involved and what role each supplier plays in delivering the contract. If a contract is considered higher risk, using the anti-slavery risk tiering tool (ARTT), the supplier may also need to check and map suppliers further down the supply chain, not just their direct suppliers. |
| Human Resource policies and procedures – Equality, Diversity and Inclusion We want to work with suppliers who have strong policies and procedures in place and treat their employees fairly and equally. |
Suppliers must have policies and procedures that show their commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion in the workplace. They must also provide evidence that staff have been trained on these policies. |
| Human Resource policies and procedures – Employee Development and Wellbeing We want to work with suppliers who have strong policies and procedures that show their commitment to the development, health and well-being of their employees. |
Suppliers are required to have in place policies, procedures and employee contractual terms which clearly set out their commitment to the development, health and wellbeing of their employees. |
| Carbon Reporting and Carbon Reduction Plans It is important that we understand our supplier’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and have clear information on supplier’s carbon reduction plans so we can track and evidence our progress to net zero. |
Within 12 weeks of being awarded a contract, suppliers must upload their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions data using our carbon reporting tool. They must also publish a carbon reduction plan showing how they will reduce their emissions year by year over the length of the contract. |
| Environmental Management Systems (EMS) We want to work with suppliers who have strong environmental policies and procedures to protect our local environment and reduce our carbon footprint. |
Suppliers must have an environmental management system accredited by UK Accreditation Standard (for example, ISO 14001 or an equivalent national standard) |
| Single Use Plastics (SUP) Policy It is important that we reduce the amount of SUP used both within the council and our supply chains. |
Suppliers are required to have in place policies and procedures which clearly set out their commitment to reducing SUP within their organisation |
For tenders worth less than £1 million a supplier can be rewarded as part of the tender process by choosing to implement these requirements in their sustainable offer.
Contract lifecycle
To achieve the goals of this policy, it’s important that it is applied at every stage of a contract, from start to finish. The three stages of the contract lifecycle are:
- Pre-tender – this stage covers identifying what is needed through to finalising procurement documents. At this point, a procurement strategy must be developed that includes appropriate sustainability requirements in line with this policy. This may also include early planning, project design, and developing the business case.
- Evaluation and award - this stage covers how tenders are assessed to make sure the council gets the best value for money, while meeting the requirements set out in this policy.
- Contract and performance management - this stage covers how we will manage supplier performance and ensure they deliver on the commitments they made in their tender.
Contract lifecycle – stage 1 pre-tender considerations
Commissioning and business cases
We will look at environmental risks and sustainability goals when a project is first planned, including during the business case stage if needed. We will then include the results of this work in the procurement stage, in line with this policy.
Reserving contracts
Where appropriate, the council will use reserved contracts to support:
- Social enterprises
- Businesses based in Belfast (for lower value contracts, in line with the rules)
- Businesses based in Northern Ireland (for lower value contracts, in line with the rules)
This supports our aim to use our spending to help local businesses, boost the local economy, and reduce our carbon footprint.
We will also put monitoring and reporting processes in place to make sure decisions to use reserved contracts are properly reviewed and justified.
Procurement strategy development
A procurement strategy [Footnote 5] will be prepared for each tender at the pre‑tender stage to make sure we get the best value for money.
For short‑term contracts (less than six months), a simpler and proportionate approach may be used. This will be considered as part of the procurement strategy, while still aiming to apply the policy as much as possible.
Templates, guidance, checklists, and supporting tools will be provided to help staff apply the policy consistently.
Tenders worth over £1 million – Sustainability review
For tenders with a value over £1 million there will be an extra sustainability review at the pre-tender stage. This is a more detailed review that focuses on three key areas.
Staff with the right skills and experience will carry out this review. It will include:
- Ethical procurement – looking at ethical risks and issues related to the contract, such as modern slavery or human rights concerns and deciding if extra standards or contract terms are needed.
- Social value – identifying ways the contract could benefit local communities and including clear targets or requirements in the tender documents.
- Climate action – considering environmental risks, how to reduce carbon emissions, and setting clear environmental requirements in the tender.
Tender evaluation – looking at different ways to assess bids that support sustainability, such as giving weight to carbon reduction or using tailored sustainability criteria and scoring.
This review may also lead to a specific set of sustainability actions for the contract.
Sustainable standards database
The review process will ensure that the latest best practice is considered for each relevant tender across the three key themes above. Any new or improved approaches will be recorded and shared so they can be used in future tenders and help improve the policy over time.
Clear processes and checks will be put in place to make sure that staff use and keep this information up to date.
Contract lifecycle – stage 2 evaluation and award
Sustainable criteria weighting and points targets
All tenders will include a minimum 10 per cent weighting for sustainable criteria as follows:
- Tenders worth up to £1 million will have a minimum 10 per cent weighting
- Tenders worth over £1 million will have a minimum 15 per cent weighting
Where relevant this will be reviewed and decided as part of the Sustainable review to increase the impact of the offer in meeting the policy aims.
For each tender, a sustainability score will be set. This will be based on 1 point for every £10,000 of the contract value, with a minimum of 10 points for all tenders.
An example of how this will work is:
- Tender value up to £100,000 will have 10 points target
- Tender value of £1 million will have 100 points target
- Tender value of £5 million will have 500 points target
The points target can then be reviewed to check that they are proportionate to what we are buying, what suppliers are able to deliver and to meet the aims of the policy.
Supplier offers and evaluation
We have created a list of sustainability initiatives that link to our policies and goals. Each initiative has been given a points value. These points reflect both the level of effort and cost for suppliers, and how important the initiative is in helping achieve the policy’s aims.
As part of the tender process, suppliers will choose which initiatives they can deliver. Together, these must add up to the required points target for the contract — this is called the “Supplier Offer”.
Suppliers must also explain how they will deliver their chosen initiatives. This should show they understand what is required and that they have the right resources and support in place to deliver them.
Each supplier offer will then be assessed as part of the tender evaluation using a set scoring system.
Private and social enterprises partnerships
We want to use the policy to encourage the creation of partnerships between private businesses and social enterprises (called PSPs) to help deliver our sustainability goals. This means a private company working with a registered social enterprise to deliver a sustainable initiative as part of their bid.
To support this, extra points will be awarded to suppliers who include this type of partnership in their supplier offer. This reflects the added benefits these partnerships can bring in helping meet the policy’s aims.
We will also help suppliers build these partnerships by connecting them with social enterprises based in Belfast.
Minimum scoring threshold
To make sure contracts deliver a minimum level of sustainability, bids must meet a set standard. Suppliers must score at least 60 per cent on the sustainability criteria to be considered acceptable, in line with our scoring system [Footnote 6]. This is explained:
Sustainability weighting
- If the sustainability criteria is weighted at 10 per cent, the bid must score at least 6 out of 10 to meet the minimum requirement
- If the sustainability criteria is weighted at 15 per cent, the bid must score at least 9 out of 15 to meet the minimum requirement.
This approach sets a clear and fair minimum standard for suppliers to meet. It also increases the chance for sustainability to make a difference when deciding who wins the contract.
If a supplier does not meet the minimum score after evaluation, their tender will be rejected and will not be considered any further.
Contract lifecycle – stage 3 contract management and delivery
We will measure and monitor the supplier’s delivery of their sustainability offer. Suppliers are expected to provide reports on what they have delivered.
Depending on the contract, we may also include the following:
- Sustainable key performance indicators (KPIs) – these are targets that the supplier must meet
- There may be financial consequences if a supplier does not deliver their sustainability commitments. For example, we may hold back some payments until those commitments are fully met.
In all cases, suppliers will be given a fair chance to fix any performance issues before further action is taken.
To support our contract managers will we make sure:
- There are enough staff in place to manage the contract properly
- Training, guidance and support is available
- Contract managers have the right management systems and tools to do their job
- We regularly work with contract managers to understand Policy impact, gather feedback and keep improving.
Footnotes
[Footnote 1] - Based on available contract records in September 2025.
[Footnote 2] - Based on total of 458 contract records and total combined contract value of £389 million. Contracts worth more than £1 million value would account for 65 contract records (15 per cent) and total combined contract value of £291 million (75 per cent).
[Footnote 3] - Suppliers might need additional certification (such as Cyber Essentials Plus or SO/IEC 27001:2022) depending on what the contract is for and the types of data processed or handled (such as personal and sensitive data).
[Footnote 4] - If the supplier doesn’t gain Cyber Essentials within this timeframe the contract may be ended.
[Footnote 5] - Procurement strategies typically include consideration of reserving contracts; procurement route; Pre-market engagement ‘PME’ planning; sustainable standards and best practice; SME consideration and removal of barriers; risk assessments; evaluation strategies; and conflict of interest assessments.
[Footnote 6] - The per cent minimum threshold may be amended in line with what is considered ‘Acceptable’ in line with the scoring mechanism included in the Tender.
