Small businesses in Northumberland benefitted from government work as Small and Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs) won a record-breaking amount in contracts last year, new figures released by the Cabinet Office reveal today (Tuesday 15 August).

The new figures, which underline the government’s commitment to helping SMEs benefit from government contracts show that UK small businesses received £21 billion worth of work in 2021/22. This equates to around £3.8k per British small business.

Government work won by small businesses range across all sectors, including public infrastructure - supporting building schools and hospitals, defence - developing high end technology to keep the country safe and healthcare - helping keep the country healthy through clinical, medical and digital health services, as well as many more.

The figure is an increase of £1.7bn on the previous year, and the highest since records began, representing the fifth consecutive year that government work won by small businesses has increased.

Northumberland County Council Leader Glen Sanderson said:

"Creating jobs through economic growth is one of my key priorities for this council, and small and medium sized businesses in the county have to be a key part of that. Not only do they employ local people, but they often have strong links with other local suppliers, and are often committed to giving back to the communities they are part of.

"I am pleased the government is committed to making it easier for SMEs to bid for government contracts. That means firms in our county will have the opportunity to benefit more from government-backed projects, allowing them to create more jobs and grow our economy.

"This also comes at a time when Northumberland County Council is receiving more government money than at any time in the authority's history."

Minister for the Cabinet Office Jeremy Quin said:

"Today’s record-breaking figures demonstrate our commitment to ensure more small businesses benefit from public sector spending, by reducing barriers to entry and encouraging a more diverse market.

"One in three pounds of public money is spent on public procurement, which is why through the Procurement Bill we are improving the way it is regulated to save the taxpayer money and drive benefits across every region of the country."

The government's Procurement Bill will make it even easier for SMEs in Northumberland to successfully bid for government contracts.

Under new rules all departments and public bodies will be required to consider SMEs when designing their procurements, meaning that more SMEs will get to compete for and win government contracts through simpler and more flexible regulations.

The new rules also include:

• Greater visibility of upcoming work, giving SMEs more time to gear up for bidding
• A new central platform showing future work in each area. This means for example a new SME tech firm in Northumberland will be able to search for tech opportunities upcoming in their region
• Creating one single website to register on, rather than the multiple and time consuming systems SMEs currently have to register on before bidding for work
• Reducing unnecessary insurance costs before a supplier has even bid for a contract
• A new Competitive Flexible procedure, which will allow contracting authorities to design more innovation into the process.
• Strengthening prompt payment, so that businesses throughout the public sector supply chain receive payment within 30 days