The Supplier Readiness Programme

Westminster Council has partnered with Westminster Business Council (WBC) to deliver a Supplier Readiness Programme. The programme aims to help Westminster-based small and micro businesses, which are diverse-led and mission-led, to contract more with the council and our partners.

Benefits for your business

The Supplier Readiness Programme aims to provide hundreds of businesses with support to help enhance their skills, build professional networks, and become a successful bidder.  

The programme will be delivered online and in-person until March 2025, and support will be tailored to individual businesses.  

Apply now to find out more by emailing [email protected]

Eligibility

To be eligible for the programme, your organisation must be at least one of the following:

A Westminster-based small, medium or micro (including sole trader) business (for example, under 250 staff).

A London-based diverse business (for example, 51% or more owned and led):

• global majority-led
• woman-led
• disabled-led
• LGBT+-led

A London-based mission-led business:

• Social Enterprise
• Community Interest Company
• green/circular SME (for example, specifically supplying green products, services or solutions)
• cooperatives
• mutuals or employee-owned businesses

Support and guidance

Throughout the programme, Westminster Council and Westminster Business Council specialists will support you in the best position to win contracts with the council and other public and private organisations.

The support package offers:

• tailored guidance, workshops, and tools to facilitate SME supplier bidding for public and private contracts.
• training sessions through hybrid delivery for greater accessibility to upskilling and knowledge-sharing opportunities.
• sharing best practices to prepare target organisations for contract bidding and delivery.
• B2B mentoring, business shadowing, advice and training from larger companies in your sector.
• sector-specific 'meet the buyer' events and relevant networking opportunities.

By the end of the programme, you will be better placed to:

• increase your business' turnover, efficiency and effectiveness through the skills and networks developed on the programme
• submit compliant, high-quality bids
• win contracts directly with the council and other public sector organisations, as well as private companies

For any questions or further information, please contact [email protected]

Upcoming events

To register for any of the events or to find out more, please email [email protected].

Introduction to bidding for public procurement.

• Date: Wednesday 21 February 2024.

• What to expect: Introduction to the tender process, documents, do's and don'ts and responsible procurement.

Pitch Coaching

• Date: TBC
• What to expect: how to deliver a strong pitch.

'Meet the Buyer' event

• Date: Wednesday 12 March 2024.
• What to expect: Joint meet the buyer event with Westminster Council, MSDUK, City of London Corporation, Islington and the Greater London Authority. 
• Session covers: how to bid for public sector contracts, introductions to corporate buyers and upcoming opportunities.

Business Planning

• Date: Wednesday 24 April 2024.
• What to expect: how to write a good quality business plan. For start-ups.

Funding

The government funds the Supplier Readiness Programme through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF). The UKSPF is part of the government's 'Levelling Up' agenda, providing £2.6bn of funding for local investment across the UK by March 2025. The Supplier Readiness Programme aligns with the UKSPF investment priority of supporting local businesses.