Two primary schools approached Schools’ Buying Club when the Local Authority announced that they were ceasing their cleaning service.  It was the first time the schools had gone to tender for a fully outsourced contract, and Schools’ Buying Club supported the end to end procurement process. The process resulted in savings of £84k against the most expensive bidder.

“Having been unsatisfied with our existing cleaning contract and contract performance, I was introduced to Schools’ Buying Club at an ISBL Conference. I have been working with them since the start of the year to run a joint procurement process in conjunction with another school in our West Harrow cluster. The process has been efficient and well led and we are very pleased with the outcome and contract award to our new provider. The procurement advice and support we have received during this process has been invaluable and we have felt well supported during the transitional period.” Kirsten Beaven, Schools’ Business Leader

Schools’ Buying Club helped a cluster of 4 primary schools in Enfield to go out to tender for their cleaning service. The new service is compliant, fit for purpose and has been tailored to each school’s individual needs. We also managed to secure a contract £293k less than the most expensive bidder.

“SBC made the process very straightforward and clear. Delighted with the outcome and would use SBC to support procurement again.” Sophie O’Shea, Office Manager

“In a large, busy primary school, running a procurement project alone seemed very daunting. Schools’ Buying Club were brilliant from start to finish with excellent support and proactive guidance. Thank you team!” Esther Campbell, School Business Manager

Schools’ Buying Club is the strategic procurement partner for Havering Council. It advises, adds capacity to the internal team at the Council and helps deliver with hands on support. Recently Schools’ Buying Club has put eight new frameworks in place for Havering Council including cleaning, security, telephony, small building works, waste management, MFDs (Multi-functional devices), EAP (Employee Assistance Programme) and educational supplies.

“Through their methodical and painstaking approach, SBC’s professional input over the past three years has made a significant difference in ensuring that we continue to provide a robust brokerage service to schools, enabling them to purchase goods and services cost effectively and compliantly. SBC’s willingness and readiness to collaborate in developing our service specifications continues to give us added value in ensuring that tender documents published are comprehensive and fit for purpose. A key strength of SBC is their personnel, they are very knowledgeable and can be completely trusted to deliver results.” Shola Omogbehin, Head of Education Traded Services

Powys Local Authority commissioned Schools’ Buying Club to engage with their schools in order to better understand their current use of technology as well as how they might use technology in the future.

Schools’ Buying Club supported the Local Authority in designing an engagement programme that included gathering data from stakeholders using an online questionnaire and hosting two online round table events for secondary and primary schools.

Both mechanisms yielded meaningful data and Schools’ Buying Club published a detailed report with a series of recommendations and next steps. Powys Local Authority was able to use this report to inform their upcoming ICT spend as well as inspire and shape their long-term ICT digital aspirations for schools in the region.

“We enjoyed working with the team from Schools’ Buying Club and were delighted with their input and contributions from start to finish. The report from Schools’ Buying Club has helped guide our ICT procurement strategy, not just in the short term, but inspired us to consider the long term possibilities and options open to us to enhance outcomes for all of our learners. We would thoroughly recommend their services.”