Procurement framework provider SPA (Scottish Procurement Alliance) has been named as a finalist in the Social Value category of the GO Awards Scotland 2021/22
The award aims to highlight organisations that want to benefit society and the community in their procurement work and they must be able to show evidence of delivering these benefits to people in need.
SPA’s entry at GO Awards Scotland
The procurement framework provider wanted to focus on projects to tackle food poverty and social isolation.
Their funding came from the community benefit fund set up during the pandemic.
Reinvesting back into the community
SPA is a not-for-profit provider and so any surpluses from its projects are put back into the community.
Since 2017, SPA has partnered with Scottish Housing Association charity, Lintel Trust and delivered £520,000 of granting funding.
Using the HACT wellbeing tool it has been calculated that the projects SPA has supported have contributed over £3 million in added social value.
What projects were made possible during the pandemic?
- a collaboration between Eildon Housing Association and FareShare to tackle food poverty in the Borders
- an initiative by West Lothian Council to help SMEs hit by the pandemic to compete for tenders and explore new revenue options
- a project to open the first accessible activity space in Glasgow
Comments from SPA’s director Clive Feeney
“The GO awards showcase the initiatives and innovations that make Scotland a world leader in smart public procurement, so to have been shortlisted for this award is a real achievement.
“The pandemic brought into sharp focus issues such as food poverty and social isolation that were already prevalent in some of our communities and we were very proud to have been able to use our community benefit fund to help alleviate them.”
The GO Awards Scotland 2021/22 gala awards ceremony takes place on 3 March, 2022.
