Procurement supplier guidance

Last Modified January 27, 2025

SME guide to working with Blackpool Council

Please read this in conjunction with the Suppler Guidance – Glossary

Finding local council tenders

There are a couple of ways you can ensure you are up to date with opportunities for working with Blackpool Council

Search for live opportunities on the Find a Tender service website. You can tailor your search by keywords, CPV codes and contract location etc. Once you have searched for relevant tenders by filtering your requirements you can save your search by clicking save search
- Once you have saved a search you can specify how frequently you receive email notifications. Please note you will need to be logged on to Find A Tender service to save searches. Information on how to register can be found below in the Central Digital Platform section
- If you want to search for specific phrase such as Blackpool Council, you need to include a + between each word
All relevant Blackpool Council tenders are advertised on our e-tendering portal The Chest.
- Please note registering on The Chest (also known as ProAactis) is free. You will need to input your organisation’s details to register here. You will need to be registered on this system to apply for tenders
Blackpool Council publishes live data of its contracts, so you can see for your service area, who has the contract now and when it is up for renewal. Regularly checking this website can help you identify opportunities as soon as they arise. Publication of tender opportunities and contracts

Blackpool Council also procures services and products through multiple frameworks:

It may be worth researching these websites to see whether any of the frameworks are relevant to your field of work and to find out how you can become a registered supplier.

Additional information for contracting with Blackpool Council

Glossary

Explanation of terms
Term	Definition
Associated person	A person that the supplier is relying on in order to satisfy the conditions of participation (other than a guarantor)
Central digital platform	The online system The central digital platform will enable: Contracting authorities and suppliers to register and receive a unique identifier Contracting authorities to publish transparency notices relating to public procurement activity which will then be publicly viewable Suppliers to submit and store certain core organisational information in order that they are able to participate in a covered procurement. NB - This information will only be available to those contracting authorities that a supplier chooses to share it with; it cannot be freely accessed Suppliers are required to register and complete information on the CDP in order to be awarded a contract. Suppliers will only need to input their information once and then confirm with contracting authorities that it is up to date.
Conditions of participation	A condition that must be satisfied in order for a supplier to be awarded a contract. Conditions of participation may relate to legal capacity, financial capacity and/or technical ability.
Connected person	A person with ‘significant control' over the supplier (within the meaning given by section 790C(2) of the Companies Act 2006 (CA 2006)) A director or shadow director of the supplier A parent undertaking or a subsidiary undertaking of the supplier A predecessor company Any other person who it can reasonably be considered stands in an equivalent position in relation to the supplier as a person within those defined above Any person with the right to exercise, or who actually exercises, significant influence or control over the supplier g. any person over which the supplier has the right to exercise, or actually exercises, significant influence or control
Contracting authority	The authority who will enter into a contract with the supplier.
Conditions of participation	Set conditions of participation which a supplier must satisfy in order to be awarded a public contract following a competitive tendering procedure. The conditions must only relate to the suppliers: Legal and financial capacity; or Technical ability To perform the contract
Core supplier information	Divided into four key categories of information which suppliers will input on to the central digital platform Basic information – this includes (and is not limited to) the supplier’s name, unique identifier, address, VAT number (if applicable), legal form and date of company registration applicable), details of qualifications/trade associations and classification, for example whether the supplier is an SME and/or a public service mutual Economic and financial standing information – as set out in the supplier’s most recent financial accounts Connected person information – this includes (but is not limited to) information relating to relevant connected persons such as names, date of birth and nationality, service address and legal form Exclusion grounds information – this includes information relating to relevant convictions and events that form either a mandatory or discretionary exclusion ground under the act
CPV codes	Common procurement vocabulary. An EU classification scheme used to standardise the description of goods, services and works for the benefit of purchasers and suppliers. This is always an 8-digit code e.g. 11000000.
Debarment	A mechanism under which a minister of the crown can put a supplier on the centrally published debarment list. This must be following an investigation, whereby the minister is satisfied that a supplier is an excluded supplier or an excludable supplier and should be added to the debarment list. Depending on why a supplier is on the debarment list, contracting authorities either must exclude them or may exclude them from procurements. The list will be managed by the procurement review unit (PRU) and published on GOV.UK
Evaluation criteria	The basis upon which buyers assess and score supplier responses at selection and award stage.
Excluded supplier	A supplier is an ‘excluded supplier’ where the contracting authority considers, firstly, that a mandatory exclusion ground applies to the supplier or an associated person and, secondly, that the circumstances giving rise to the exclusion ground are continuing or likely to occur again. A supplier will also be an excluded supplier where a minister of the crown has already determined this – i.e. where the supplier or an associated person is on the debarment list because of a mandatory exclusion ground.
Excludable supplier	A supplier is an ‘excludable supplier’ where the contracting authority considers, firstly, that a discretionary exclusion ground applies to the supplier or an associated person and, secondly, that the circumstances giving rise to the exclusion ground are continuing or likely to occur again. A supplier will also be an excludable supplier where a minister of the crown has already determined this – i.e. where the supplier or an associated person is on the debarment list because of a discretionary exclusion ground.
Intended sub-contractors	As part of a competitive tendering suppliers must provide details of all sub-contractors that they intend to sub-contract the performance of all or part of the contract to. The contracting authority must check whether any of the intended sub-contractors are on the debarment list and may also request information for the purpose of determining whether any intended sub-contractor is an excluded or excludable supplier.
ITT	Invitation to tender or instructions to tender.
Method statement	A method statement is a written explanation of how you will deliver a specific aspect of a contract. Method statements typically appear as scored quality questions within an invitation to tender (ITT) or tender return document.
Pricing schedule	A form normally in Excel format asking the supplier to input pricing information against pre-set goods, services or works.
Procurement procedure	The process set out within the published procurement documents and relevant transparency notices by which the contracting authority will identify, engage with and enter into contract with suitable suppliers.
Supplier	An organisation or individual who provides or wishes to provide works, goods or services to the contracting authority including any organisation or individual who asks or is invited to participate in a procurement procedure.
Tender response	Tender refers to a formal written submission from the supplier or service provider detailing their offer
The Chest	The contracting authority’s e-procurement portal.
Unique identifier	The unique code which is submitted to the central digital platform and is recognised by that platform or, where no such code is submitted and recognised, it is the unique code which is allocated by that platform when the supplier registers on that platform.
Weightings	The percentage emphasis placed on various criteria and method statements.

Supplier guidance for accessing Blackpool Council opportunities

Along with many other public authorities in the region, Blackpool Council utilise an electronic tendering portal known locally as The Chest.

The Chest not only provides a means of submitting tenders, but it enables suppliers to register the areas in which they are able to provide support and then for local authority buyers to match their requirements against registered suppliers.

The system also enables quotations tenders to be actioned electronically within the same system and for suppliers to receive alerts when any council is in the market.   

We strongly recommend that all potential suppliers register their details on The Chest.  

You should note that registering and using the portal is free of charge.

Getting started with The Chest

Access The Chest

For this you will need to create a username, password and some memorable information.

Once into the system you can find system help on the menu at the top of the screen.  

From your home page you can keep track of all of your activities and search for all available opportunities by pressing the “Find Opportunities” link in the opportunities section. 

In the registration process, you can also choose to be notified of any future opportunities in a given category (e.g. facilities management) or organisation (e.g. Blackpool Council).  This will save you valuable search time in future. 

Once you have either expressed an interest or been invited to apply, then the opportunity will appear in your “Activities” area. Clicking onto these will bring you to the relevant screens to allow you to view the opportunity in full and make any responses / submissions. 

If you encounter any technical problems associated with this opportunity, please log issues via ProcontractSuppliers@proactis.com or go directly to the service desk

For critical and time-sensitive issues (normally requiring resolution within 60 minutes) then you can call 0330 005 0352.

Supplier guidance for registering on the central digital platform (enhanced find a tender service).

Introduction

On 24 February 2025 the rules that shape how public bodies buy goods and services changed. If your business supplies goods, works or services to organisations in the public or utility sectors – or hopes to do so in the future – you need to know about the changes.

More information on the key changes can be found on the following website - Information and guidance for suppliers.

Part of these changes in public sector procurement has seen the introduction of a central digital platform. This is the place for suppliers to see what opportunities are coming along from all public sector bodies that they might wish to bid for. The Platform will also give suppliers visibility of all contracts that have been awarded, any changes made to contracts and other useful information.

Suppliers will use the central digital platform to share their commonly used information with public bodies who are buying goods, works and services. You will only need to input your information once and then this can then be simply shared across multiple bids and customers.

Follow the guidance to be taken through the steps of how to register on the central digital platform

YouTube guidance for suppliers

Example method statement

2 - Example only
Weighting 35%

(Weighting of method statement)

Where you intend to sub-contract a proportion of the contract, please demonstrate how you have previously maintained healthy supply chains with your sub-contractor(s).

Evidence should include, but is not limited to, details of your supply chain management tracking systems to ensure performance of the contract and including prompt payment or membership of the UK Prompt Payment Code (or equivalent schemes in other countries).

Assessment criteria

Response provided includes all relevant information such as how you have maintained healthy supply chains
Response includes but is not limited to, details of supply chain management tracking systems

Use these bullet points of the assessment criteria to help structure your method statement response.

Please respond below in no more than 500 words

(Word count allocation. Do not go over this.)

Your response should cover all information outlined in the question above. It is helpful for the scoring panel to see how you fully address the assessment criteria by structuring your response using sub-headings that align with the question criteria. Such as:

Healthy supply chains

Provide a response here that addresses the criteria and ensure that you have provided evidence to support the detail provided such as a case study of how you promote healthy supply chains.

Supply chain management tracking systems

Provide a response here that explains which systems you use and how they support monitoring and tracking. You might also consider providing a screenshot of the system, with an explanation of its functionality, to give the evaluator a more in depth understanding of what it can do.

It is important to be concise in your response and to cover all the information requested in the question, including any evidence to support your statements. Please note that if you are referencing policies to support your response, these must be clearly outlined. For example, please refer to Attachment 1.a – Business Organogram. Policies and attachments should only be included to support your answer and not provided for the sole purposes of answering a question.

Supplier guidance for applying for a tender via The Chest

Once you follow the link for the advert you will arrive on the landing page. You need to click the button and ‘register interest in this opportunity’
A box will now pop up and under the ‘What happens next?’ section is where you can click ‘to view this ITT event now, click ‘here’ to view the opportunity and all the documents
To begin the process, you need to click ‘Start my response’. It would be useful to download and read through all the activity documentation, files and links to ensure you understand the council’s requirements
Click start my response
1. You will need to click into the Central Digital Platform (CDP) section to confirm that you have registered
2. You will also need to complete the Question Sets section. The set of questions may vary depending on the value and complexity of the process you are applying for
3. In the Response Documentation – Files and Links section, this is where you will upload your submission. This may include, but is not limited to, the tender return document (answers to the method statements), the pricing schedule (if applicable), and any supporting documentation
4. You will also need to accept the terms and conditions before you can submit your response
If you need to raise a clarification regarding this project you can send a message to the project team by clicking view all which will take you through to another page where you can select ‘create message’. In this section you can read all previous messages, if applicable, raised by yourself and others during the clarification stage
If you need to leave ProActis/The Chest at any point, you can return to the opportunity by selecting ‘Last viewed’.
There are also multiple ‘how to guides’ in the help section that provide you with more in-depth guides. You can find these under the ‘Frequently asked questions, Videos & Guides’

If you would like full access to these documents, please email procurement@blackpool.gov.uk