Sustainable procurement

In 2007, we spent just in excess of £1billion on construction and goods and services, including:

  • Chemicals
  • Pipes, pumps and valves
  • IT equipment
  • Office supplies
  • Waste disposal services
  • Grounds maintenance
  • Catering and cleaning
  • Streetworks for mains replacement and repair

Our agreements are made following an open, non-discriminatory, competitive bidding process and where applicable, complying with the requirements of the EU Directive on Utility Procurement.

All our published notices under European legislation make direct reference to corporate responsibility.

Payment to agreed terms

It is our policy to pay our suppliers, contractors and service providers according to our agreed terms. In 2007, we paid 76% of our top suppliers (representing 93% of all suppliers) according to agreed terms

Sustainable procurement

In essence, sustainable procurement means working with your supply chain to minimise the environmental and social impacts of products and services throughout their life cycle i.e. from raw materials and manufacturing through to their final disposal.

Environmental risks include:

  • Resource use including energy, water and raw materials
  • Emissions to air, land and water
  • Waste disposal
  • Damage to biodiversity

Social risks include:

  • Human rights issues such as poor working conditions and discrimination (i.e. need to promote equal opportunities)
  • Direct impacts on local communities
  • Health and safety implications of products and services

Mitigating these risks

To mitigate these risks we are developing a sustainable procurement strategy.

Environmental stewardship

We promote environmental stewardship with our suppliers, contractors and partners by including environmental criteria, where relevant, into our selection process.

In 2008, we intend to incorporate social and ethical questions and increase the weighting given to environment policies in our selection criteria.

Our environmental purchasing policy will be replaced by a new sustainable procurement policy to reflect these changes.

A senior management role within procurement was appointed in 2007 to develop and implement this policy.

In 2006, we introduced a carbon accounting process on all new capital projects to encourage project teams to assess carbon emission reduction potential at the design phase.

In December 2007, we were awarded the Carbon Trust Efficiency Accreditation in recognition of the real energy savings we are making.


Download our policy