Local Spend & Social Value in Care: Building a Practical Procurement Plan

Economic social value is often treated as a “nice to have”, but many councils and NHS commissioners now score it heavily because it links to resilience, local growth and value for money. Local spend is one of the easiest social value commitments to understand, but it’s also one of the easiest to mark down if a provider can’t show a credible plan, governance and evidence. A good local spend approach should connect directly to social value in social care and tenders and reinforce operational resilience expectations seen in business continuity in tenders.

This article sets out a practical procurement plan you can implement without building a new bureaucracy. It’s written for registered managers, operations leads and bid teams who need to turn day-to-day purchasing into tender-ready evidence.

What commissioners mean by “local spend” (and what they expect)

In a tender context, “local spend” is rarely just a percentage figure. Commissioners typically want confidence that you:

  • understand your current spend profile (baseline)
  • can increase local spend without increasing risk or cost
  • will support SMEs, social enterprises and VCSE partners appropriately
  • will pay suppliers fairly (especially smaller providers)
  • can evidence progress quarterly, not just at year end

They are also alert to tokenism: claims like “we will use local suppliers where possible” score poorly unless backed by process, targets and reporting.

Step 1: Set a baseline that is auditable

Start with a simple baseline that you can reproduce. You do not need perfect data to start, but you do need a method that is consistent:

  • Define “local”: e.g., within the LA boundary, within 10–20 miles, within the region, or within ICB footprint. Use the commissioner’s framing if specified.
  • Define spend categories: agency, training, food, PPE, transport, maintenance, assistive tech, recruitment, printing, clinical supplies, etc.
  • Use a 3–6 month window: pull a supplier list from finance and tag each supplier by location and type (SME, VCSE, social enterprise, national).
  • Record assumptions: if a supplier’s HQ is elsewhere but the branch is local, note how you classified it.

Commissioners don’t expect perfection, but they do expect you to be able to explain how you arrived at a figure and to repeat the method later.

Step 2: Create a local supplier map (not just a list)

A supplier map is a commissioning-friendly way to show you understand the local economy. It’s also operationally useful for continuity planning. A good map includes:

  • core categories (food, facilities, transport, recruitment, training, assistive tech)
  • primary supplier plus at least one contingency option per category
  • which suppliers can support urgent delivery (same-day, 24–48 hours)
  • which suppliers have safeguarding-ready staff (e.g., drivers, trainers visiting services)

This map becomes evidence that local spend is not a bolt-on: it’s part of “how we run services safely” when supply is disrupted.

Step 3: Set targets that won’t undermine quality or value for money

The fastest way to lose credibility is to promise an unrealistic local spend percentage. Instead, set a small number of targets that are:

  • specific (which categories you will shift)
  • measurable (how you will calculate and report)
  • achievable (based on your baseline and local market capacity)
  • relevant (linked to service outcomes, continuity, quality)
  • time-bound (quarterly milestones, annual review)

Example: “Increase local spend in facilities maintenance from X% to Y% within 12 months by onboarding two local SMEs and establishing a rota for reactive call-outs.” That is far stronger than “increase local spend by 20% across all categories.”

Step 4: Build procurement controls that support local suppliers

Local suppliers often lose out because of your internal process, not because of cost or capability. Practical controls include:

  • Prompt payment standards: e.g., 14 days for SMEs/VCSEs where feasible, with escalation for late invoices.
  • Transparent onboarding: a one-page checklist that covers insurance, safeguarding expectations, data protection (where relevant) and SLAs.
  • “Meet the buyer” sessions: short virtual briefings explaining what you buy, how you buy it, and what standards apply.
  • Breaking spend into lots: avoid bundling categories into single large contracts that only nationals can service.

This is where social value becomes operational reality: you remove friction that prevents local partners from working with you.

Step 5: Governance – who owns local spend and how it is reviewed

Commissioners expect ownership and oversight. Keep it simple:

  • Owner: usually an operations lead or finance lead, with a named deputy.
  • Monthly review: spend by category, supplier performance, risks (supply failures, quality issues), and improvement actions.
  • Quarterly report: local spend KPI dashboard with narrative explaining what changed and why.
  • Annual refresh: re-baseline, reset targets, and update supplier map.

If you already have governance forums, integrate local spend into them rather than creating a new meeting. The goal is control, not admin.

Step 6: Evidence packs that win tenders (and survive audits)

Build an “evidence pack” as you go, so you’re not scrambling at bid time. Useful artefacts include:

  • baseline methodology note and supplier classification rules
  • local supplier map with contingencies
  • quarterly KPI dashboard and action log
  • case studies: e.g., a local partnership that reduced response time or improved continuity
  • supplier performance metrics (on-time delivery, quality issues, corrective actions)

The key is that evidence shows a system: plan → implement → review → improve. That’s what commissioners score as “low risk” and “credible delivery”.

Common pitfalls to avoid

These are the issues that typically reduce scores:

  • claims without baseline data or a method to evidence progress
  • targets that ignore market capacity (local suppliers can’t meet volume)
  • no governance, no owner, no reporting cycle
  • local spend commitments that conflict with safeguarding or quality requirements

A practical plan avoids all four by linking local spend to continuity, quality and governance from day one.

How to position this in a tender response

In a method statement, present local spend as part of your delivery model: it strengthens resilience, improves responsiveness and supports the local economy. Keep the narrative grounded in what you already do, plus what you will implement in the first 90 days of mobilisation. If you can show early milestones and quarterly reporting, you’ll usually score higher than providers promising large percentages with no plan.

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Written by Impact Guru, editorial oversight by Mike Harrison, Founder of Impact Guru Ltd — bringing extensive experience in health and social care tenders, commissioning and strategy.

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