Royal British Legion Industries’ Chief Executive Lisa Farmer OBE has heralded the 2025 Procurement Act as “game-changing legislation” which has the power to transform the business landscape for charities and social enterprises.
Launching on Monday 24 February with cross-party support, the Act will mean the biggest change to public procurement in a generation. New rules, and the sweeping away of some old ones, will make it easier for new entrants, such as small businesses, social enterprises and voluntary organisations, to apply for Government contracts and will increase transparency around how public money is spent.
The legislation is part of the Government’s commitment to deliver social value and to strengthen local economies by supporting community wealth-building. This includes a focus on awarding a greater number of large public contracts to the type of businesses, such as social enterprises, which are most likely to invest in their own communities.
Buyers will now be required to prioritise ‘maximising public benefit’; to consider social value when awarding their contracts; and to publish key performance indicators detailing how they met these commitments. Buyers have also been set mandatory targets for spending with voluntary, community and social enterprises as from April 2026.
While ensuring a competitive price will still be a high priority for buyers, there will be a greater emphasis in the future on the ways in which a contract will benefit the wider community, such as increasing local employment opportunities, making use of local supply chains and reducing carbon emissions.
Charities, which currently capture only a small percentage of public contracts, will find themselves in a more favourable position under the new rules, with the Act’s focus upon ‘public good’ aligning with the missions of many charitable organisations, including RBLI.
Lisa Farmer said she looks forward to “competing on a more level playing field” when RBLI makes its bids for future business. “The National Procurement Policy Statement recognises how social enterprises are more likely to generate diverse and thriving local economies, creating jobs and economic growth, and this is something to which I give my wholehearted agreement and support,” she said.
“Through our award-winning employment programmes and our social enterprises across the UK, RBLI has great expertise in supporting veterans and people with disabilities into employment, and this legislation now gives us the greatest opportunity we’ve had of expanding further. Demonstrating the unique ways in which we achieve both national and regional impact may well prove valuable in crowded bidding environments.
“Therefore, I see the Procurement Act as a game changer, not least as it simplifies bidding procedures, reducing the red-tape and administrative hurdles that can deter smaller organisations such as ours.”
She added: “The positive news goes far beyond RBLI: more charities across the country will be encouraged to participate in Government procurement from now on, and this is a development that will serve the country well. Successive governments have, for many years, highlighted social value as fundamental to economic growth: now it’s the time to deliver on these promises.”
The news comes at an exciting time of expansion for RBLI, with plans having been unveiled for its state-of-the-art, energy efficient social enterprise factory, which is due to open in 2027 and will see the creation of more jobs as well as the opening of a training academy.
RBLI also aims to expand its UK-wide signs business, and to further develop its social value partnerships with major organisations including Network Rail and National Highways.
Social Enterprise UK is among those organisations acclaiming the Procurement Act. “We’re celebrating a big win for the future of procurement in the UK – one which puts social enterprise in the spotlight,” its statement reads. “We look forward to supporting more Government departments and agencies in the future to achieve fairer and more sustainable use of taxpayers’ money that delivers the greatest economic and social value.”
