The UK’s Government Opportunities (GO) is the leading media channel for all issues relating to buying for and supplying to the public sector. GO also hosts the UK National GO Awards – which are an annual opportunity for public, private and third-sector organisations to demonstrate and get recognition for their innovations, initiatives and advancements to foster smart and effective public procurement. It’s actually quite a highlight in the public procurement calendar – so here’s a quick rundown of the winners but we’ll be back with a more in-depth look at some of their achievements.
The Winners and Highly Commended in these ‘Excellence in Public Procurement’ Awards were announced earlier this week at an awards ceremony at the Hilton Manchester Deansgate. We’ve attended these events in the past and can testify to their reputation for being glittering, vibrant and exciting. But that’s not what it’s all about – it’s about showcasing the very best that public sector procurement has to offer, following months if not years of dedication from the teams that have put themselves forward.
About 130 finalists were chosen from across the UK, including entries from local and central government and the private sector, and winners and highly commended were selected from those. The winners were per category as follows:
Procurement Team of the Year Award: Other Organisations – Futures Housing Group
Excellence Award 2018/19 – Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust
Customer Engagement Award – Newcastle upon Tyne NHS Foundation Trust
Best Service Award: Micro and Small Businesses and Third Sector Organisations – iCOM Works Ltd
Best Service Award: Medium and Large Organisations – aps Group
Infrastructure Project of the Year Award – Transport Scotland
Procurement Innovation / Initiative of the Year Award: Health and Social Care Organisations – NHS South, Central and West Commissioning Support
Procurement Innovation / Initiative of the Year Award: Health and Social Care Organisations – Liverpool City Council
Procurement Innovation / Initiative of the Year Award: Local Government, Central Government – Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council
Procurement Innovation / Initiative of the Year Award: Other Organisations – Southern Regional College – Armagh
Emerging Procurement Talent Award – Skills Development Scotland
Sustainable Procurement Award – Sustainable Fish Cities (part of Sustain: The alliance for better food and farming)
Leading Procurement Practice Award (Central Government & Healthcare Organisations) – Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust
Leading Procurement Practice Award (Local Government & Other Organisations) – Scotland Excel
Procurement Team of the Year Award: Health and Social Care Organisations – NHS South , Central and West Commissioning Support
Procurement Team of the Year Award: Local Government, Central Government – Department for Transport on behalf of Government Commercial Function
Congratulations to both winners and highly commended – you can view the full list and read more about the awards here, and we’ll be back soon with an inside look at some of the winning initiatives.