The National Audit Office and the Audit Commission have jointly produced this review. It draws on Audit Commission research in local government, carried out during the autumn of 2009.
The review finds that although collaborative procurement has the potential to improve value for money, the public sector procurement landscape is fragmented, with no overall governance. Consequently, public bodies are incurring unnecessary administration costs by duplicating procurement activity, and they are paying a wide range of prices for the same commodities, even within existing collaborative arrangements.
It recommends that, given the size of public sector procurement spend and the potential to significantly improve value for money, public bodies should work together much more effectively than they currently do. And there should be a clear framework to coordinate public sector procurement activity.
Download A review of collaborative procurement across the public sector from the National Audit Office website.