Procurement and Supply Chain
Find out about LNER's procurement procedure, what products and services we procure and how you can become a supplier.
LNER has a robust and effective supply chain to help us deliver our services to customers across the East Coast Main line and add value back into the communities we serve along our route.
LNER procures a variety of complex products and services, and we are keen to engage and learn from our suppliers to innovate and improve our services moving forward.
Policies
It is LNER’s policy to procure all goods and services in a fair, transparent and ethical way and comply with all required regulations and legislation.
It is important to us that any current or future suppliers align with our core values and principles. You can see our Supply Chain Code of Conduct that sets out how we wish to engage with our supply chain and business partners.
Visit our Policies page for all other LNER policies.
Sustainable procurement
We aim to source goods and services from suppliers who share our commitment to being a responsible business. Our Code of Conduct for Suppliers sets out the principles we expect our suppliers to uphold.
Our commitment explains our dedication to achieving value for money, while also generating societal, economic, and environmental benefits.
Working with LNER
As a public sector rail operator, we must comply with the Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016.
We advertise relevant tender opportunities and periodic indicative notices on the government’s Find a Tender website.
We also utilise government framework agreements for call offs and further competitions. For all safety critical work we currently use the RISQs accreditation scheme.
LNER uses an e-tendering system called Proactis. If you are interested in becoming a supplier or would like to view LNER upcoming opportunities, you can register at the Proactis supplier network.
LNER is taking its commitment to delivering social value seriously, and therefore works with the Social Value Portal to evaluate and monitor social value delivered by contracts.
Suppliers are required to seek LNER’s approval before publishing any external communication in reference to their contract with or services they supply to LNER.
On Tuesday 5 March 2024 we achieved our CIPS Corporate Ethics Kite Mark.
This is a statement of our commitment to ethical sourcing and supply within the procurement team. We are extremely proud to have achieved this status and have our name listed on the CIPS professional register, made up of companies worldwide who have also made this commitment.
If you would like more information about our procurement services please get in touch with our procurement team.
Our Social Value Report
At LNER, we believe that social value means delivering wider economic, social, and environmental benefits beyond the provision of core contract requirements.
Achieving additional social value through procurement leads to greater value for money, improving outcomes for residents while generating long-term savings.
Although we are required to consider social value outcomes on the procurement of services over the Utilities Regulations 2016 threshold, we have decided to lead by example and consider social value outcomes during the procurement of services, works and goods in all contracts over £100,000.
LNER’S expectations in relation to social value outcomes will always be relevant and proportionate, reflecting need and the nature of the supply market as well as ensuring that opportunities for small, innovative, and diverse businesses are not limited by policy requirements. A minimum of 10% evaluation weighting will be applied to procurements that include social value.
We work with the Social Value Portal to evaluate, measure, and report on social value. We have also adopted the National Social Value Framework and created LNER Themes, Outcomes, and Measures (TOMs). These TOMs have been mapped against our responsible business commitments and the core set comprises of 43 measures that bidders can choose from for their responses.
We currently have 35 live projects (as of June 2023), with a further 30 that have closed with committed figures of Social & Local Economic Value (SLEV) of £25,008,684.
The Social & Local Economic Value (SLEV) unlocked clearly shows the widespread impact and benefit delivered to local communities, as well as wider society. LNER delivered a total SLEV amounting to £23,546,314, exceeding the committed SLEV for the year 2022-23.
LNER’s suppliers were able to provide employment to 775 people (FTE) during the reporting period, making Jobs the most successful Theme. The Theme delivered against the most, after Jobs was Growth, with a total delivered SLEV of £1.9 million. They were able to spend £2 million in the local economy generating a SLEV of almost £1.7 million.
Please see below social value resources for suppliers and bidders:
Social Value 101 – A getting started summary covering:
- What exactly is social value?
- Why does Social Value matter?
- How do you measure it?
- And where do you go to get started?