Purchasing Goods & Services September 2016
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1. Orders for Work, Goods and Services and Payment of Accounts
1.1 No officer should enter into an agreement with a supplier to make an order or payment other than in accordance with these regulations and with the Parish Administrator approval.
1.2 Where items of anticipated value up to the sum set out at Annex 1 are contained in the current catalogue of the Council’s approved purchasing organisations, and the goods are ordered from that source, orders may be placed direct by authorised officers without the need to obtain further competitive tenders or quotations.
1.3 For all other items,
a) Items up to the sum set out at Annex 1 may be ordered direct by authorised officers in line with the instructions in Annex I, provided the ordering officer is satisfied that the Council has obtained good value for money.
b) Orders must be placed with the supplier offering the most advantageous terms to the Council, having regard to price, delivery, availability and specification, provided the ordering officer is satisfied that the Council would obtain good value for money. Where the lowest quotation is not accepted this should be approved in writing by the Parish Administrator.
1.4 Where quotations are required by these regulations, three shall be obtained, each of which should be in writing. Quotations shall be retained for the current year and one previous year, or as otherwise directed by the Parish administrator.
1.5 Where all items expected to be purchased as a result of a single quotation are anticipated to cost in excess of the value in Annex 1, quotations may only be obtained following consultation with the Parish Administrator.
1.6 In all cases, regardless of anticipated price, where a Council wide contract has been let, orders shall be placed against that contract, rather than separate quotations being obtained, unless otherwise agreed in writing by the Parish Administrator.
1.7 The Parish Administrator shall be authorised to make any payments on behalf of the Council in settlement of amounts due to third parties.
1.8 Apart from payments from advance accounts the normal method of payment of money due from the Council shall be by crossed cheque drawn on the Council’s Bank account(s), signed by two councillors, unless otherwise specified in the regulations. No other method of payment shall be used without the written approval of the Parish Administrator. In particular, no direct debits, standing orders or any form of deferred payment such as leasing or rental shall be used without the written permission of the Parish Administrator.
1.9 The appropriate officer shall be authorised to approve payment of supplier invoices, having satisfied themselves that:
a) The work, goods or services to which the account relates have been received, carried out, examined and approved, both as to quantity and quality;
b) The prices, extensions, calculations, trade discounts, other allowances, credits and tax are correct, having been checked against prior quotes, tenders or price lists;
c) The relevant expenditure has been properly incurred and is within the relevant budget;
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d) Appropriate entries have been made in inventories, stores records or stock books as required;
e) The account is an original, rather than any form of copy, has not been previously passed for payment and is a proper liability of the Council.
1.10 Accounts shall be certified without delay in the format, and with any supporting documentation.
1.11 In certain circumstances, it will be necessary to make payments to external bodies where the placement of an order is not possible, and no invoice will be submitted to the Council for payment. In all other respects, these payments must be processed in the same way as payments to suppliers.
1.12 No officer shall certify any account for payment where that officer is to benefit from the payment. In such cases an independent certification must be obtained.
2. Travelling, Subsistence and Other Allowances
2.1 All claims for payment of car allowances, subsistence allowances, travelling and incidental expenses shall be submitted to the Parish Administrator in the approved form.
2.2 The certification shall be taken to mean the certifying officer is satisfied that the journeys were authorised, the expenses properly and necessarily incurred and that the allowances are properly payable by the Council.
2.3 All claims received by the notified monthly deadline will be paid with that month’s salary.
2.4 Payment of members’ travelling or other allowances will be made by the Parish Administrator upon receipt of the prescribed form duly completed and submitted by the member. All claims received by the notified monthly deadline will be paid with that month’s basic allowance.
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APPENDIX 1
Item
Value
Threshold below which items may be purchased from the Council’s approved purchasing organisation’s catalogue with no further requirement for obtaining quotes.
£500
Threshold below which items may be purchased other than from the Council’s approved purchasing organisation’s catalogue with no further requirement for obtaining quotes or tenders.
£100
Threshold above which 3 quotations must be obtained in consultation with the Parish Administrator.
£500
Thresholds above which tenders must be obtained for the purchase of goods or services.
£20,000
