|
|
|
 |
 |
You don't have to spend a lot of time
getting your business ready for the
opportunities the public sector offers. On
this page, you can find out how you can get
your company into the shape it needs to be
in.
Meridian Delta offers all the data and
marketing experience your business needs to
win orders from councils, the NHS, regional
and central government, further and higher
education and more. If you need any help at
any time, please call us on freephone 0800
652 6627 and one of our experienced account
managers will be able to help you. |
 |
 |
|
|
You might have
heard that the public sector
only deals with established
businesses which have worked
with the public sector before.
So, if working with the public
sector before is a requirement
of working with them again, how
do you get in in the first
place?
There is a certain level of
truth to this belief - this is
how you get over it.
Public sector bodies will
generally look for three years'
accounts plus management
accounts. This is to make sure
you are financially strong
enough to do the work.
If you don't have three years'
accounts and you've never worked
with the public sector before,
the best way to get in is by
marketing
to schools. Schools
operate, in the main,
autonomously and have their own
budgets. They do not have the
requirements on buyers that
larger public sector bodies do.
Get some work from schools. They
are great to work with, offer
interesting work and are great
payers. Click here for our
market-leading
UK
Education Disc education
database and marketing package,
or call us on freephone 0800 652
6627. |
|
|
 |
|
|
If you are a limited company, you have a
much better chance of getting business than
if you're a sole trader or partnership. Make
sure that your annual return and company
accounts are filed with Companies House for
inspection.
If you use sub-contractors as
part of your service, the public
sector body will expect you to
be able to name them. It'll be a
good idea to check to see that
they are all up to date with
their regulatory requirements as
well.
Most businesses are good payers
and they'll want to see a
(relatively) spotless payment
record for your company. If
you're severely late on any
invoices companies have sent to
you, try to pay them as quickly
as possible. Public sector
bodies pay within 30 days and
they'll demand you do the same
for any sub-contractors you use
on the contracts that you win. |
|
|
 |
|
|
Public sector
bodies WILL want to know the
quality of your work. There are
two really good ways to do this
and this is the first part.
Get as many referees to vouch
for the quality of your company
and its work as possible. The
bigger and more prestigious the
referees, the better. Public
sector bodies are, by their
nature, large and they will be
instinctively trusting of work
you've done for other large
bodies.
If you've got work from the
public sector already, always
make sure you include them as
referees. Remember, the best way
to get your foot in the door
with the public sector is to
show you've worked for other
parts of the public sector.
Schools are the easiest way to
get this as the rules for their
purchasing systems are a lot
less restrictive - click here
for our
school
database and marketing package,
the UK Education Disc.
Public sector bodies may ask you
for up to 10 different
references, although 5 is more
common. Try to make sure the
referees you give will respond
to the request for information
and that the work you've done
for them is as close as possible
to the type of work you want to
do for the public sector. |
|
|
 |
|
|
Try to join a
professional trade body -
particularly one that's well
established or in the public
consciousness like the Direct
Marketing Association, TrustWise,
NICEIC, Corgi and so on.
Membership of these types of
bodies will cost you money and
most of them will impose
requirements on the way that you
trade as part of the membership
agreement. Trust us, they are
worth it. It separates you from
the competition when you're
pitching for consumer or
business work, let alone work
from the public sector.
It's always good to apply for
quality marques - for example,
ISO 9001 (the international
management quality standard).
Remember, the public sector are,
rightly, paranoid about choosing
the wrong supplier so you have
to give them every reason to
trust you and your
professionalism. |
|
|
 |
|
|
The public
sector considers that it and the
suppliers it uses have a moral
responsibility to protect the
environment for this generation
and for following generations.
Start to prepare a document
about your commitment to the
environment and to the principle
of sustainability.
What's best to put in this?
Around your premises, are you
reducing the amount of energy
you use by switching off lights
and computers when they are not
needed? Think of everything you
can do in your own workplace
that can reduce the amount of
electricity and gas you use and
include it in a statement of
environmental responsibility.
What about the suppliers you
use? Do they have any
environmental or sustainability
pledges? Make sure that you
include them as part of your
statement - demonstrate that
what you do has little impact as
possible and that you are
responsible corporate citizens. |
|
|
 |
|
|
If you are the owner of a business and you
are from an ethnic minority, public sector
bodies are required now to account for
racial equality when awarding contracts. If
you come from any area with a significant
percentage of ethnic minority residents,
this may increase your chances of winning
the contract.
Laws covering gender and
disability and the awarding of
public sector contracts also can
help you if you are a woman
running a business or you are a
disabled business owner. Public
sector bodies wish to reflect
the communities they serve in
the way they award business to
companies.
What's a good way of all
businesses getting a head start
on equality, no matter what the
gender, ethnicity or disability
status of the owner(s)?
• Apply the principles of equal
access to customers and to
potential employees of the
Disability
Discrimination Act 1995 and as
•
amended by the Disability
Discrimination Act 2005 and the
Equality Act
2006. Speak with your local
employment partnership about
•
becoming part of the "Positive
About
Disabled People" scheme,
• Be prepared to disclose the
breakdown of staff by gender,
ethnicity and disability,
• Prepare an Equal Opportunities
statement for the public sector
body to view, and
• Show examples of how you've
recruited in the past
(advertisements, etc) |
|
|
 |
|
|
When working for
the public sector, they'll need
to know that your health and
safety systems are completely up
to scratch and current with the
existing laws.
As stated on the previous page,
they will probably want you to
attach documents showing the
following...
• The procedures to be followed
in the event of an emergency,
• The procedures for reporting
and recording of accidents and
dangerous occurrences,
• First Aid and welfare
provisions,
• Provision of protective
clothing and equipment,
• The name and position of your
safety officer,
• Your actual health and safety
policy (including for
sub-contractors),
• The way your health and safety
policy is disseminated to staff
and
• How staff are trained in
health and safety |
|
|
 |
|
|
Written into
every contract you win will be a
requirement to be covered with
the correct amount and correct
type of insurance.
The three main types of
insurance you'll need to be
covered for are...
• Employers' Liability - in case
a member of your staff gets
injured as part of their duties,
• Public Liability - in case a
member of the public gets
injured as a result of your
activities, and
• Professional Indemnity -
covers for claims due to
professional negligence or
breach of duty |
|
|
 |
| |
|
|
|
