Restricted procedure under the Single Procurement Document (Scotland)

[edit] Introduction

In January 2021, the Scottish Government’s Single Procurement Document (Scotland) - also referred to as SPD (Scotland) - replaced the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) procurement procedures. The SPD Scotland website is used to identify suitably qualified and experienced bidders for public sector procurement in Scotland.

[edit] Overview

The Supplier Journey portion of the Scottish Government’s procurement guidance website offers an overview of the different types of procurement procedures that are available under SPD (Scotland). One such type of procurement is referred to as a restricted procedure. This one of the most commonly used procedures along with the open procedure.

For more information, see Open procedure.

A restricted procedure under the SPD (Scotland): '...is used where there are likely to be many suppliers interested in the opportunity. This is because procurement officers using the restricted procedure can limit the number of bidders to invite to tender to those with the best capacity and capability to meet the contract requirements, meaning bidders not meeting this criteria do not waste time and resources completing a full tender response.’

Restricted procedures have two stages; the selection stage comes first, followed by the award stage. Because of the two stage process, the restricted procedure may take longer than an open procedure.

[edit] Stage one: selection

During the selection stage, an SPD (Scotland) must be completed by all interested suppliers.

For more information, see Single Procurement Document (Scotland).

To expedite the completion of the SPD (Scotland), the procurement officer will publish a contract notice including details of how interested suppliers can access the SPD (Scotland). A contract notice is how a public sector procurement officer formally tells all potential suppliers about a public sector contract opportunity. Contract notices must be published on Public Contracts Scotland (PCS), which provides free access to contract opportunities from Scottish local authorities, NHS Scotland, the Scottish Government, agencies and non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs), higher and further education and emergency services.

After the contract notice is published, interested suppliers typically have at least 30 days to respond. Procurement officers may not provide all procurement documents during this first stage.

Bidders who satisfy the criteria of the SPD (Scotland) will be shortlisted by the procurement officer. These suppliers may be asked to provide additional documentation to confirm they meet criteria and prove they are not subject to exclusion grounds.

For more information, see Exclusion grounds under the Single Procurement Document (Scotland).

[edit] Stage two: award

Suppliers who meet the selection criteria (and are not excluded) will progress to the award stage, where procurement documents will be issued. Selected suppliers are advised to prepare their bids as they would for an open procedure. Bidders typically have at least 30 days to respond.

At this stage, bidders may be asked to explain how they plan to satisfy the award criteria. This could include requests for project plans and resources for specific tenders.

[edit] Related articles

• Bidder.
• OJEU procurement procedures.
• Procurement route.
• Public procurement.
• Single Procurement Document (Scotland).
• Tender processes for construction contracts.

[edit] External resources

• Scottish Government, Supplier Journey, Procurement Procedures.