Procurement Supply Group minutes: August 2025

Attendees and apologies

Scottish Government

• Nick Ford (NF), Meeting Chair, Director, Scottish Procurement and Property Directorate (SPPD)
• Calum Elliot (CE), Deputy Director, National Collaborative Procurement and Innovation
• Nikki Archer (NA), Deputy Director, Head of Procurement and Commercial Policy and Strategy
• Rachael Hughes (RH), Presenter, Communications & Strategic Engagement
• Steven Patterson (SP), Presenter, EProcurement Management Information Team
• Collette May (CM), Presenter, Procurement Policy Portfolio Manager
• Ruari Watt (RW), Secretariat, Strategic Engagement Officer
• Chris Mclean (CMc), Senior Media Manager
• Kenny Rankin (KR), Procurement Policy Manager
• Josephine Mitchell (JM), Procurement Policy Portfolio Manager

Partner organisations 

• Adrian Smith (AS), Presenter, Pye Tait Consulting
• Harry Rowntree (HR), Pye Tait Consulting
• Julia Knyba (JK), Pye Tait Consulting
• Jamie Lawson (JL) for Janice Nichol, Social Enterprise Scotland
• Pauline Gordon (PG), Glasgow Council for the Voluntary Sector
• Gillian Cameron (GC), Supplier Development Programme
• Anna Fowlie (AF), Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations
• Stuart Hamilton (SH), Scottish Chambers of Commerce
• Alistair Taylor (AT) for Alison Christie, Coalition of Care and Support Providers in Scotland
• Peter Campbell (PC), Business Services Association
• Amanda Brown (AB), Food and Drink
• Sarah Dudley (SDu), Soil Association
• Stacey Dingwall (SD), Federation of Small Businesses
• James Finnie (JF), Community Enterprise in Scotland
• Stuart Parker (SPa), Morgan Sindall (Construction Scotland)

Apologies

• Gareth Williams, Prosper
• Jonathon Guthrie, Robertson Group
• Karen Meechan, Scotland IS
• Catherine McWilliam, Institute of Directors
• Linda Somerville, Scottish Trades Union Congress
• Catherine Garrod, Iriss

Items and actions

Items and actions

Welcome

NF (chair) welcomed attendees and outlined the agenda, which included updates on the fair work first evaluation (FWF), Public Contracts Scotland/Public Contracts Scotland -Tender (PCS/PCS-T) system replacement, Economy and Fair Work (E&FW) committee recommendations, the Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) and third sector action plan.

NF highlighted two key documents, that have been published since the last Procurement Supply Group (PSG) meeting in May 2025:

• the Public Service Reform Strategy  identifies and addresses the challenges and barriers we are currently facing
• backing your business was published by UKG, setting out the government’s vision for support for small businesses. The main areas cover new legislation to tackle late payment, business growth services and opening opportunities for SMEs

Fair Work First Evaluation – Pye Tait Consulting

JM introduced AS and Pye Tait Consulting outlining FWF and the e-learning available as part of the sustainable procurement tools. AS outlined his presentation and how PSG can support the ongoing research.

• the evaluation aims to assess the effectiveness and impact of FWF, particularly its use as a policy lever in public procurement
• the scope includes examining how FWF has influenced organisational behaviour, identifying barriers and enablers, and evaluating outcomes for workers, suppliers, and buyers
• the methodology involves three online surveys targeting buyers, suppliers, and workers, followed by in-depth interviews using a variety of chosen interviewees to ensure diversity
• the evaluation will use systems mapping and logic modelling to understand the policy ecosystem and its intended outcomes
• the timeline includes survey deployment from September 2025 to January 2026, interim findings in February 2026, and a final report by June 2026
• support was requested from PSG members to help cascade surveys, encourage participation, and nominate representatives for the research advisory group
• discussion highlighted the involvement of the fair work convention, risks around the preelection period, and interest in how fair work conditionality applies to both grants and contracts

Actions

• AS to return at next relevant meeting to present the interim findings
• PSG members to cascade relevant documentation and encourage participation in surveys
• PSG member/s to volunteer to attend the research advisory group (2 volunteers max).

PCS and PCS-Tender System Replacement

• SP stated the objective is to develop a unified procurement platform to replace PCS and PCS-T, improving efficiency and user experience
• progress includes the draft statement of requirements being reviewed by a technical working group, publication of a prior information notice (PIN), and supplier focus groups to gather feedback
• key feedback included strong support for merging systems, a preference to retain the PCS brand, requests for enhanced search functionality including. Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV) code search, and the need for simplified document submission
• suppliers emphasised the importance of inclusive training and support materials for all sizes of organisations
• the next steps involve finalising procurement documentation, preparing for tendering, and continuing stakeholder engagement
• JF and GC asked around the searching for CPV codes and improved description

Actions

• SP to provide an update on the CPV codes.

Economy and Fair Work Committee Recommendations

• CM outlined the issued seventeen recommendations: two have been completed, eleven are in progress, and three are delayed
• completed actions include improved access to frameworks and lotting strategies, and the launch of FWF e-learning with over 200 completions
• in-progress actions include enhancing supplier feedback mechanisms, updating procurement guidance, promoting recent supported business guidance, and preparing a consultation on procurement thresholds
• delayed actions include case studies on lotting and reserved contracts due to resource constraints
• NA highlighted the supplier survey results had been analysed and will be published shortly. Some actions align with the committee findings so there is already work under way, though there will be a focus on addressing any new or emerging themes
• PG stated the need for buyer support in applying the two-part test for supported businesses, and interest in expanding third sector reporting

SME and Third Sector Action Plan – Year One Update

• RH stated the action plan aims to reduce barriers and improve access for SME and third sector organisations in public procurement. The plan has three key themes oversight and communications, policy and practice, systems and tools
• under oversight & communications, the PSG membership was expanded, SME roundtables were hosted at meet the buyer events, and guidance materials were published
• under policy & practice, construction pipeline forecasting tools were promoted, quarterly forward plans were published, and guidance was issued to ensure SMEs are not disadvantaged in construction frameworks
• under systems & tools, PCS was updated to allow third sector organisations to categorise themselves in the supplier profile for targeted quick quotes, supplier survey results have been analysed
• year two priorities include encouraging wider publication of contract pipelines, using key performance indicators (KPI’s) and survey data to measure impact, and continuing stakeholder engagement
• NA pointed out that the supplier survey feedback continued to indicate a lack of awareness on how to engage with the public sector

Actions

• members were asked to promote one-stop-shop guidance and tools across their networks, specifically raising  awareness of the need for PCS registration and available supplier development programme (SDP) resources

Slido

• RW asked members to complete a short Slido survey, highlighting the importance of feedback in shaping future sessions

Any Other Business (AOB)

• interest was expressed in expanding the Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) model to include broader third sector organisations, Procurement legislation permits the contracts to be reserved for supported businesses only. However, third sector organisations can now the identify themselves as such on PCS, allowing buyers to search for third sector organisations
• consortium development Scotland is not currently running training; new training has been commissioned for September to fill the gap by SDP
• PG shared updates on national guidance development with improvement service and COSLA. Engagement on ethical procurement and market facilitation planning was also highlighted
• emphasis was placed on celebrating progress and continuing collaboration

Actions

• members were asked to promote the training across their networks
• PG to share guidance with NA and the SG Procurement Policy team
• next meeting date to be advised, joint Public Procurement Group (PPG) and Procurement Supply Group (PSG)