Welcome to the Brokerage website.
Click on the image to enter the schools' password protected area of the site.
Barnsley schools spend millions of pounds in goods, works and services. Although schools have individual delegated budgets they have a responsibility to ensure that the procurement of goods, works and services represents the most cost-effective and best-possible value for money option.
Children's Services Procurement Section provides a Brokerage Service for schools which, aims to provide a range of quality-approved providers of services that schools can access and use with total confidence.
Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council began the brokerage process in 2002 to take effect from the financial year 2003/04. This service has helped facilitate a mixed economy of suppliers in the schools' market and in 2011, 87% of Barnsley schools made the decision to buy one or more of their services from suppliers other than BMBC traded services.
The work of the Brokerage Service has put Barnsley at the leading edge in supporting the delivery of best value to schools.
The service was highlighted for praise in the LEA inspection 2004 and achieved a grade 1 as a result of this:
“There is now an innovative brokerage system that enables schools to choose from a range of quality-assured service providers, including the council itself. The system is making schools more effective purchasers of services as well as putting pressure on the services to improve. The schools have all the information on price and quality they need to make informed choices and the suppliers are required to produce improvement plans.” Ofsted 2004
In September 2003 the brokerage process was awarded a Society of Purchasing Officers Award for Outstanding Achievement in Procurement and continues to be held up as the leading edge brokerage process in the country.
According to the Institute of Public Finance:
“Barnsley Brokerage Service is at the cutting edge of offering services to schools and for the first time offers schools a real choice of service providers”
Barnsley schools can use their delegated budgets to buy from a wide choice of quality approved contractors. The brokerage process has facilitated the review of existing practices and procedures, providing a culture where innovation is pursued to further improve the services that are offered to Barnsley schools.
Key documents
