Help the council to buy local!

Local small businesses are being invited to find out about becoming a supplier of products or services for Rochdale Borough Council at a special event at the Town Hall this coming Monday morning.

The council spends millions of pounds each year on a massive variety of products and services - everything from gardening tools, office suplies and ingredients for school meals to plants, printers and photographers.

The Buy Local session is running from 8.00am to 10.00am on Monday 24 November at Rochdale Town Hall. There’s no need to register – just turn up before 8.30am.

Another session will be held in Middleton next month - at 10.00am on 3 December 2008. To attend, email corporate.procurement@rochdale.gov.uk Further events are planned for the New Year, so don’t worry if you can’t make it this time!

Councillor Gregory Couzens, cabinet member for finance, said: “Decisions on what we buy and where we buy it from always come down to value for money – the best price for the right product or service. We are very keen, however, to make sure businesses based within the borough have as much chance as possible to pitch for contracts and tenders that are available. This event will give firms an opportunity to hear about some of the things we procure and how to find out about future opportunities to supply to the council.”

As part of a drive to help local residents and businesses through the credit crunch, the council’s cabinet will consider a proposal on Monday to speed up the time the council takes to process and pay invoices it receives from small businesses – so local firms interested in becoming council suppliers can be assured they will be paid quickly for the services or products sold.