How we work

The Met Office procurement routes and access to our supplier Opportunities Portal.

We implement best practice in line with the requirements of the Cabinet Office, focusing on achieving value for money, transparency and ensuring the fair and equitable treatment of suppliers. Our team holds certification from the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply.

Routes to market

We use a number of methods to purchase goods and services. The approach taken will depend on the contract value, type of product/service, the complexity of the requirement and the duration of the agreement.

Government Procurement Card (GPC) - the procurement team and selected key purchasers throughout the organisation hold Government Procurement Visa Cards. A VAT invoice is required for all purchases unless the supplier is VAT-enabled. This is our preferred payment method for purchases under £5,000.
Low value purchases (current threshold <£25,000) - a simple purchase order form with terms and conditions printed on the reverse is issued for low value purchases. Suppliers are asked for a quotation (without commitment) prior to order placement. Different conditions apply for services, goods and works.
Standard contracts - contracts are set up following either a desktop competition (a number of quotations obtained via e-mail); single supplier tender (only in exceptional circumstances) or a full competitive tender exercise. All tender opportunities are published on the Met Office Opportunities portal.
Collaborative supply agreements - the Met Office takes full advantage of government-negotiated collaborative agreements, and places contracts through the Crown Commercial Service.
Framework agreements - a framework agreement is an arrangement where terms, conditions and often pricing are agreed with a supplier(s) for a set period, which then allows orders to be placed quickly without a full tender being completed. A tender exercise is undertaken to set the Framework up in the first instance.
Public Contract Regulations 2015 (PCR) - we observe the requirements of the PCR regulations for all contracts over a £138,000 inc. VAT estimated budget. Invitations for Expressions of Interest are advertised in the Find a Tender service. All tenders placed on the Find a Tender portal are also published on the Met Office Opportunities portal. More information is also available at the government website https://www.gov.uk/find-tender.

Competitive tendering

It is widely acknowledged in the public sector that the best way to obtain value for money is via competition. We use tendering to establish the quality of products and services, as well as competitive pricing. Ideally four or more companies are invited to compete for a contract. The tender documentation usually comprises of:

Terms of reference for public sector tendering and how tenders must be submitted
Specification/statement of requirement
Pricing document/matrix
Conditions of contract
Key contacts and addresses

Future Tender Opportunities

The Met Office Pipeline provides a forward look at our anticipated procurement activity over the next 12 months.

Where possible, we have included all our major projects and anticipated procurements. Neither the publication of this pipeline, nor any of the information presented in it should be taken as:

a commitment
or representation

on the part of the Met Office to enter into a contractual arrangement or to proceed with a procurement.

Circumstances may change and we cannot guarantee that the requirements, contract value, and/or timeline will be as stated. There may also be further procurement activity that takes place that we are not currently aware of and which may therefore not appear on this Commercial Pipeline and some opportunities could be purchased through government frameworks.

Met Office Pipeline - February 2023

To view details of our current procurement activity, use the link below to our eTendering Opportunities Portal.

Met Office eTendering Portal

Visit our eTendering Opportunities Portal for details of all Met Office procurement activity.

Once you register your company details on the portal you will be able to:

Search for supply opportunities and make expressions of interest
Download tender documents instantaneously
Preview copies of our standard terms and conditions
View a list of our recently awarded contracts

Please use the appropriate link below to access the Portal.

Procurement Strategy and Policy

If you would like further information on how our procurement team approaches purchasing for the Met Office, please read our Environmental and Sustainable Procurement Policy, along with our Met Office Procurement Policy

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (ED&I)

Equality, diversity, inclusion and accessibility are considered as part of all of our procurements. Suppliers are encouraged to review the Met Office ED&I policy.