EDUCATION

Effective procurement helps to put education first

While a majority of the education sector’s budget is allocated towards staff, for schools to function effectively and comply with public standards, their budget must also include other areas such as energy, catering, transport and insurance.

Having autonomy over the use of their budgets means that schools are responsible for their own financial management, as well as the deals and contracts they have with various suppliers. While this offers a degree of flexibility for expenditure, it also requires bursars to have a detailed understanding of where funds are spent. Schools are often under pressure to spend funds prudently and demonstrate to key stakeholders how they can maximise investment into teaching and learning. Insight into current procurement procedures and transparent expenditure is the first step towards ensuring that funds are being spent in the best possible way.

WHY IS PROCUREMENT IMPORTANT?

Poor procurement decisions can be costly, time-consuming and impact on a school’s reputation, while standards for education and student expectations are higher than ever. Further investment into student learning is often required to facilitate these changes. Therefore, it is essential to be smarter about how all operational costs work together to support this.

Time and budget constraints within the education sector mean that few bursars can ensure that they are getting the best value for money. Without effective procurement of products and suppliers, costs for essential services (such as energy, waste management and school supplies) can quickly erode budgets. As the prices of these services can vary dramatically, being able to effectively benchmark and compare their prices can lead to identifying opportunities to make valuable savings, as well as balance rising costs against shrinking budgets.

HOW WE CAN HELP

Pinnacle Procurement works with privately owned schools to identify areas of significant cost savings and implement a sustainable procurement strategy.

Our knowledge and expertise can provide a clear picture of how your budget is currently being spent and where valuable savings can be made. In addition to tangible cost savings, our insight can lead to confident decision-making when interacting with suppliers and opportunities to reinvest into additional educational resources.