Our approach
The Bank is a Sub-Central Contracting Authority as defined under UK Public Procurement legislation. This means the Bank must encourage open and transparent competition when procuring Goods, Services and Works over certain value thresholds to ensure value for money.
Procurement legislation thresholds
Details of the procurement thresholds and how they are applied by Contracting Authorities such as the Bank of England can be found within the Procurement legislation thresholds guidance (GOV.UK).
Procurement Act 2023
The UK’s public procurement legislation has changed. The new Procurement Act 2023 (‘PA 2023’) went live on 24 February 2025. The legislation governs the Bank’s procurement activities started after the go-live date. Contracts and procurements that predate this are not impacted and will continue to be covered by the previous legislation.
Central Government have a range of resource and knowledge guidance to explain the PA 2023 changes, including:
- The Procurement Act - Introduction For Suppliers
- The Procurement Act - Short Guide For Suppliers
- The Procurement Act - Knowledge Drops For Suppliers
- The Procurement Act - Benefits For Prospective Suppliers
Procurement Act: Central Digital Platform (CDP)
Under PA 2023, the former “Find A Tender” portal, used to facilitate the publication of Contracting Authorities’ procurement notices, has been enhanced with the implementation of the Find A Tender - Central Digital Portal (‘CDP’) which makes it easier to find and bid for contract opportunities, and for Contracting Authorities to meet their transparency commitments under the Act.
Suppliers are to be aware that they need to register on the CDP at the point or before they want to bid for a contract.
To find out more about the CDP, Central Government have published the following factsheet for suppliers: The Procurement Act - Central Digital Platform Factsheet, there is also a step-by step video which will guide you through the registration process: How a Supplier Completes and Updates Their Information.
Potential Suppliers should use the link above to register on the CDP and use the portal to search for the Bank’s procurement notices.
Responsible procurement
Our Supplier Code of Practice sets out our values and principles. Our suppliers must adhere to this code. We are actively developing ways to enhance our approach to responsible procurement (including sustainability and social value) initiatives, ensuring it is effectively integrated throughout our supply chain.
The Bank is committed to the prompt payment of our suppliers and is a signatory to the Government’s ‘Fair Payment Code’. Please also refer to PA 2023 sections 68 and 73 - Mandatory 30-day payment terms for all public contracts (section 68) and sub-contracts (section 73). Suppliers should note that the PA2023 payment terms must be passed on throughout public contract supply chains by applying them into every public sub-contract. This is to ensure that the benefits of prompt payment flow down to the lower tiers of the supply chain, benefitting Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in particular.