Issue - meetings
Procurement and Contract Management Strategy
Meeting: 10/06/2026 - Executive (Item 497)
497 Procurement and Contract Management Strategy 
PDF 68 KB
Purpose
To present an updated draft Procurement and Contract Management Strategy.
Recommendation
That the Executive resolves to:
1. Approve the updated Procurement and Contract Management Strategy.
Additional documents:
- WODC Proc Strategy_Draft 2, item 497
PDF 560 KB
- Webcast for Procurement and Contract Management Strategy
Minutes:
Councillor Andy Graham presented the item, the purpose of which was to present an updated draft Procurement and Contract Management Strategy.
In his presentation, Councillor Graham explained that the report set out how the Council delivered value for money, high-quality services, and broader social, economic and environmental outcomes, and that the strategy also responded to significant change, including the Procurement Act 2023 and upcoming Local Government Reorganisation. The purpose of the strategy was to ensure that the Council remained compliant, resilient and commercially effective.
There were no alternative options considered in the report.
Councillor Duncan Enright seconded the recommendations in the report and stated that the changes would allow the Council to further support the local economy.
The recommendations were put to the vote and were agreed unanimously.
The Executive resolved to:
Approve the updated Procurement and Contract Management Strategy.
Meeting: 03/06/2026 - Overview and Scrutiny Committee (Item 135)
135 Procurement and Contract Management Strategy PDF 68 KB
Purpose:
To present an updated draft Procurement and Contract Management Strategy
Recommendation
That Overview and Scrutiny Committee resolves to:
1. Note the report and make any applicable recommendations for the Executive to consider at the meeting on 10 June.
Additional documents:
- Annex A - WODC Procurement Draft Strategy, item 135
PDF 560 KB
- Webcast for Procurement and Contract Management Strategy
Minutes:
Councillor Alaric Smith, Executive Member for Finance, presented the report, the purpose of which was to present an updated draft Procurement and Contract Management Strategy. Councillor Smith stated that the procurement strategy had mainly been updated in response to the Procurement Act 2023 and recommendations of the Council's external auditors. The new Procurement and Contract Management Strategy would take the Council through to Local Government Reorganisation
The Senior Business Partner for Procurement took the Committee through the report, highlighting the role of the Commissioning and Procurement Board in reviewing contracts, ensuring detailed consideration and protection of WODC’s interests. He confirmed Contract Procedure Rules were now fully aligned with the Procurement Act 2023, and emphasised commitments to sustainable procurement and supporting local small and medium enterprises (SMEs), including the ability to restrict certain opportunities to local suppliers where appropriate, as the new legislation allowed the Council to award some local contracts below a particular threshold to SMEs within Oxfordshire. There were also aspects related to strengthening the safeguarding against modern slavery and ensuring social value and sustainability within the procurement process.
Members discussed the report and noted that:
· There was an ongoing exercise within Oxfordshire to build shared knowledge of contracts, as part of preparing for Local Government Reorganisation.
· The Procurement Act 2023 only allowed closed procurement to be used for in-county procurement or open procurement which needed to be on a national level.