Housing is one of the most emotive issues in the country, no matter if you’re a builder, developer, council or potential home owner. So can we build more and better Welsh homes?

CEW and Welsh Government are running a series of events across the country in June that will focus on how Welsh SMEs can meet the housing needs in Wales. These workshops will allow Welsh Government and SME developers a chance to share their experiences of building new homes as well as review current policies and the use of new technologies to achieve low carbon targets. Whether your business is leading the way with sustainable design or integrating fabric first principles you should join us, share your experiences or learn from others.

Getting housing right in Wales is fundamental to the future of local people and our half day workshops will allow Government and SMEs the chance to debate some difficult questions and try to take housing policy in Wales forward. There are events scheduled in Carmarthen, Llandudno and Cardiff. Join us at your local workshop to hear directly from Welsh Government and to ensure you share your organisations’ successes and that any barriers are discussed.

Through this series of workshops we hope to determine whether Welsh SME developers are keen and able to offer a different delivery model to meet our housing needs in Wales.

To register please email CEWales Events.

Title: Supplier Briefing: Knowledge Transfer, Innovation and Advisory Service for Farming Connect
Date: Wednesday 6th May 2015
Location: Hafod a Hendre, Royal Welsh Showground, Builth Wells, Powys LD2 3SY
Time: 10am - 3pm
Cost: Free

This event will be an opportunity to learn about the Farming Connect 2014-2020 procurement process.

The event is intended to provide potential contractors with the opportunity to receive an update on the new programme, as well as the procurement process and Welsh Government expectations from tenderers.

It will also provide a networking opportunity for potential contractors who wish to explore the potential of collaborative working.

To register a place at this event please click here

In this edition

1. Regional events - postponed
2. We want your Community Benefits Measurement Tools!
3. Community Benefits: Community of Practice (CoP) event
4. Important information for Barclaycard customers
5. eProcurement Benefits Models
6. NPS awards three new contracts
7. CIPS Congress: Your representative wants your views
8. Workshops: Spaces available
9. Do you influence procurement decisions?
10. SBV Courses for April / May 
11. Vacancies 

Regional events – postponed

Due to the election date clashing with one of our regional events, we will be postponing these. Whilst we haven’t got a new date set for either event, please keep checking the bulletin for future updates. 

We want your Community Benefits Measurement Tools!

Community Benefits is one of the key principles of the Wales Procurement Policy Statement. The policy is a strategic procurement tool to deliver training & employment, community engagement and supply chain opportunities through the application of social clauses in public sector contracts.

The impact of the policy is measured using the Community Benefits Measurement Tool, developed with industry to capture the benefits achieved through your contracts.The Measurement tool should be completed annually, or at project close if sooner and can demonstrate to your organisation the added value procurement can deliver.

Why use the Measurement Tool?

• Easy      to complete by the contractor/supplier -  an      easy spreadsheet that needs basic information about the contract;
• Measures      the impact of your projects - Results provide fantastic      information to share with councillors/boards/senior      managers/stakeholders/residents about the impact that the project has had      in the surrounding area on jobs/growth and supply chain engagement;
• All      this information will be easily accessible for the      suppliers/contractor;
• Adds      value and demonstrates that public spending is being maximised      by the project and the approach taken.

The attached guide covers how to use the measurement tool and for the latest version please click here. This is an opportunity to review your projects and apply this tool to capture your benefits.

Please share your successes with us, and send us your completed Measurement Tools. For more information about Community Benefits please contact us via the mailbox or via the project lead: Nina Ruddle 07805 791389

Community Benefits: Community of Practice (CoP) event

You are invited to the next Community Benefits Community of Practice (CoP). The event is an opportunity to share best practice, network with fellow practitioners and gain some training too! The focus of this meeting will be non construction Community Benefits for lower value or service based contracts/frameworks, and to also look at the corporate approaches being delivered.

Held at the Metropole Hotel, Llandrindod Wells on 20 May from 10.30 – 3pm, the CoP is open to buyers and suppliers, and procurement and non procurement professionals. Please find attached the agenda for the day.

To register your attendance, please email Harriet Farley confirming your choice of workshop and any special dietary requirements. 

We look forward to seeing you there!

Important information for Barclaycard customers

IE7 was released by Microsoft in October 2006 and no longer supports modern web standards or the latest security mechanisms. We want to continue to deliver great technology and a great online experience which means using up-to-date web standards, some of which are not compatible with IE7. While users of IE7 will still be able to access the application, new features and functionality will not be tested or supported using this browser version.

Beginning with the May 2015 release, the list of supported browsers will be:

• Internet      Explorer 8.0+
• Firefox      2.0+
• Chrome      6.0+
• Safari      4.0+
• Opera      7.5+

Microsoft will end support for IE8 in January 2016 and Barclaycard Spend Management support will be withdrawn in line with this date as well. To ensure full functionality is supported, we recommend you update to a later version of the Internet Explorer browser (IE 9,10 or 11), Chrome (from v6), Firefox (from v2), Safari (from v4), or Opera (from v7.5). Please also see the Microsoft Internet Explorer Support Page for supported versions, as of January 2016: http://support.microsoft.com/gp/Microsoft-Internet-Explorer

eProcurement Benefits Models

Following the launch of the eProcurement Benefits Models at Procurex, Value Wales will be holding a number of workshops to help the Welsh Public sector understand their eProcurement maturity and the benefits that can be achieved, when implementing eProcurement.

Completion of the models will help you to identify your eProcurement capability and prepare you for the mandatory requirement for electronic trading and invoicing as set out in the new Directive.

If you are interested in joining one of these workshops please complete the attached form and return to us at benefitsmodels@wales.gsi.gov.uk

Date                                                      Venue

28th April 2015                                    WG Llandudno Junction

5th May 2015                                       Waterton Centre Bridgend

19th May 2015                                     WG Llandudno Junction

16th June 2015                                   WG Llandudno Junction

23rd June 2015                                  Waterton Centre Bridgend

We will be announcing further dates over the coming weeks but if none of these dates or venues suit, please let us know and we will do our best to accommodate your needs.

NPS awards three new contracts

CIPS Congress: Your representative wants your views

Kerry Stephens, Acting Deputy Director, Value Wales has been appointed as one of four Congress representatives for the Three Nations region and is seeking the views of CIPS members.

Please email your thoughts on the following through to Rebecca.Rees2@wales.gsi.gov.uk by 30th April so that Kerry can feed these into her overall response to Congress:

• What      are the important issues within procurement and supply in you region for      the next 3-5 years?
• What      are the major challenges within your region for the next 3-5 years?       E.g. Capability, capacity or is it raising your game, fraud and      corruption? 
• What      are the main regional drivers with regards to procurement and supply?
• Are      there any major risks to the profession within your region within the same      time period?

Workshops: Spaces available

Value Wales will be hosting two workshops, to provide training and awareness on the Procurement Competency Framework. The workshops are aimed are at line managers with procurement responsibilities. Please see attached a draft agenda, please note this is subject to change.

• South      Wales - Monday 11th May 2015: 10:00 to 15:30, Waterton Centre, Bridgend;
• North      Wales - Wednesday 6th May 2015: 10:00 to 15:30, Welsh Government offices      Llandudno Junction,

In conjunction with our colleagues in ES&T, SBV and the University of South Wales, Value Wales will be running two Innovation Workshops in May.  The purpose of these being to assist Public Sector organisations to procure more innovatively whilst remaining compliant. They will be beneficial for Heads of Procurement or staff who are involved in significant procurement projects. 

Again, places are limited to 25 delegates per workshop and the sessions will be led by experts within the fields of innovation and law. Please see attached a draft agenda, please note this is subject to change.

• South Wales - Tuesday 12th May: 10:00 to 15:30, Waterton      Centre, Bridgend;
• North      Wales -  Friday 22nd May: 10:00 to 15:30, Welsh Government office,      Llandudno Junction

To register your interest for either workshop, please email Daniel Duddridge.

Do you influence procurement decisions?

In order to engage senior level staff who influence Procurement decisions, Value Wales will be hosting two Leader lunches. The sessions will focus around new and innovative ways to improve procurement with the theme being; “Creative and imaginative solutions to public sector problems- how we can get the full value of the £5.4 billion we spend on external goods and services by realising creative capacity”.

• South      Wales – 13th May 2015: 12:00 to 14:00, Waterton Centre, Bridgend;
• North      Wales – 22nd May 2015: 12:00 to 14:00, Welsh Government offices Llandudno      Junction,

The sessions are aimed at local Government CEOs and Directors of Finance who influence decisions on how goods, services and works are procured.

To register your interest for either session, please email Amy Watts.

SBV Courses for April / May

April

22nd – Developing a Business Case, Ruthin

23rd – Supplier Relationship Management, Ruthin

30th – Competitive Dialogue, Ruthin 

May

6th – Contract Law, Ruthin

8th – Preparing for the new EU Directives, Pembrokeshire Council, Haverfordwest (Please note that the venue change)

12th – Contract Law, Bridgend

14th - Preparing for the new EU Directives, Ruthin

15th – Introduction to Category Management, Ruthin

19th –Community Benefits, South Wales (date and venue provisional at present)

21st – Community Benefits and Procurement, Ruthin 

Vacancies

Head of Procurement, Qualifications Wales

Salary: £57,550 - £68,150

Working Hours: Full time, Permanent

Location: Bedwas transferring to Newport in September 2015

Details, contacts and applications can be found on the Welsh Government website.

Deadline for applications: 28 April 2015

Senior Procurement Officer, Bridgend Council (Ref: E/06497/LRS)

Salary: £25,440 - £27,123

Working Hours: Full time, Permanent

Location: Civic Offices, Bridgend

Details, contacts and applications can be found on the Bridgend Council website. 

Deadline for applications: 29 April 2015

If you would like to recieve this bulletin in Welsh please click here.