Sustainable procurement
We fulfil our sustainable procurement duty under the Procurement Reform (Scotland) Act 2014 by integrating environmental, social and economic metrics into our baseline procurement frameworks.
Through our Procurement Strategy 2023–2028, our buyers must use specialised national prioritisation toolkits and sustainability tests to optimise the outcomes of all regulated council spend.
Our policy priorities
Environmental impact and climate commitments
Our commercial contracts are designed to align with broad net-zero goals and reduce local public sector carbon footprints.
Life cycle impact mapping - our Procurement team analyses contracts through a product’s entire life cycle, from raw material extraction and production to transport, daily use, and final disposal or recycling.
Resource efficiency - technical contract specifications prioritise reduced packaging, low carbon logistics, energy efficiency standards, and circular economy waste-management goals.
Social value and community benefits
For council contracts with an estimated value of £50,000 and above, suppliers are legally required to give back to the local area through mandated Community Benefits. This can include:
- direct funding or equipment donations for local schools and community groups.
- submitting offers to fulfil requests on the council's innovative Community Benefits Hub, matching supplier corporate social responsibility (CSR) capabilities directly with localised community needs
- mandatory compliance with the council's Modern Slavery Charter, requiring contractors to strictly follow the Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Act 2015
Economic stability and Community Wealth Building (CWB)
Sustainable procurement is important for local wealth distribution.
SME and third-sector accessibility contracts are frequently unbundled into localised "Lots" to ensure small-to-medium enterprises, social enterprises, and charities can compete fairly.
Fair Work First Integration - tenders are scored on whether suppliers pay the real living wage, guarantee employee voice channels, and reject zero-hours contracts.
How it is evaluated in bids
We use the Scottish Government's national Sustainable Procurement Tools during the early strategic planning phases of high-value framework agreements. This evaluates how a supplier will minimise environmental damage while maximising local prosperity. This is then translated into standard contract management checklists and legally binding SLAs.