CCS champions Contracts Finder platform for helping SME suppliers

Government claims platform is making it easier for SMEs to do business with public sector buyers

Crown Commercial Service (CCS) has claimed that its Contracts Finder platform is seeing 200 new SMEs sign up a week, making public sector buyers more accessible to smaller suppliers.

The Contracts Finder platform allows suppliers to seek opportunities with public sector bodies, with CCS claiming that almost two thirds of the platform's users are SMEs.

The government has in the past received criticism from SMEs, which say that its procurement structure makes it difficult for smaller buyers to compete with large enterprises.

The latest G-Cloud figures, which account for all sales up to 31 July 2017, show that 73 per cent of all sales by volume to date have gone to SME suppliers, representing 47 per cent of sales by value.

Caroline Nokes, minister for government resilience and efficiency, said: "Contracts Finder is a great way for small and medium-sized businesses to search for opportunities in central government and the wider public sector.

"Smaller businesses are the lifeblood of our economy, and I am keen that they are able to access as many opportunities as possible, helping the government to achieve our aspiration of spending £1 in every £3 with SMEs by 2022."

Ian Fishwick, chief executive at £34.4m-revenue Adept Telecom, said the government is making good progress towards having all public sector supply opportunities in one place, which will benefit SME suppliers.

"Almost all public sector buyers are now registered to use the service including councils, emergency services, central government, universities and the NHS," he added.

"We are closer than ever to having a single website where you can find the bulk of public sector tenders."