The Council recognises it has a vital role in furthering sustainable development, through its procurement of buildings, goods, works and services. Procurement decisions have a major socio-economic and environmental implication, both locally and globally, now and for future generations. The Council will therefore strive to:
People, education and awareness
- Educate, train and encourage internal purchasers to review their consumption of goods and services, reduce usage and adopt more environmentally friendly alternative products.
- Communicate the sustainable procurement policy to all staff, suppliers and stakeholders.
Policy, strategy and procurement process
General:
- Promote and embed best practice for sustainable procurement.
- Work in partnership with other south east region councils to maximise sustainable procurement gains.
Environmental products:
- Consider the costs and benefits of environmentally preferable goods, suppliers and services.
- Wherever possible and practicable, specify a requirement in line with nationally or regionally agreed minimum specifications.
- Where such exact specification is not possible, offer a facility for suppliers to submit offers for environmentally friendly alternatives.
Environmental construction, biodiversity & recycling:
- Set targets for carbon management, building research establishment environment assessment method (BREEAM) and sustainable construction, refurbishment and maintenance.
- Fulfil obligations under the biodiversity duty as part of sustainable development plans.
- Investigate opportunities for recycling, reduced usage, bulk delivery and better packaging.
Socio-Economic:
- Fully support the Council's commitment to the small business friendly concordat and VCS (Voluntary and Community Sector) compact.
- Ensure that where appropriate and allowable, sustainability criteria are part of the supplier evaluation process and are used in the award of contracts.
Engaging suppliers
- Communicate the Council's sustainability objectives to our suppliers.
- Encourage and persuade suppliers to adopt environmentally friendly processes and supply environmentally friendly goods and services as part of their corporate social responsibility.
- Address barriers to the Council doing business with small business and voluntary sectors.
Measurement and results
- Comply with all legislation relevant to sustainability.
- Collaborate with south east region councils to meet the targets of a joint action plan.
- Support achievement of local council targets for sustainability improvement.
East Sussex County Council