How effective procurement helps schools enhance sustainability

The start of a new academic year is a chance for schools to adopt a fresh approach to how they operate, with the financial pressures on the sector showing no sign of easing.

 

Government funding increases remain below the rate of inflation, and schools must cover 25 per cent of the 4 per cent pay rise agreed with teachers from their day-to-day budgets.

 

Independent schools are also under stress, particularly from the introduction of VAT on fees, which has seen some parents moving children into the state sector and reduced the potential for schools themselves to increase fees to help meet other costs.

 

Financial worries, though, are not the only issue with which schools must wrestle. Many are also having to improve their own sustainability, implementing energy-efficient technologies that can help to cut bills and adopting smart technologies in buildings to help reduce energy usage.

 

Some funding is available through the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, the UKRI Net Zero Fund and industry partnerships, but many are also having to meet costs out of wider budgets. Increasingly, there is also an expectation from students, parents and wider society that schools will lead the way on sustainability initiatives, alongside educating future generations that will be essential to ensuring the UK meets its carbon reduction targets.

 

This pressure to reduce carbon footprint and operate in a responsible manner is impacting how schools spend the budgets that are available to them. According to Amazon Business’s State of Procurement Report, 99 per cent of organisations in general now have mandates for environmental, social and governance goals, and 61 per cent say these have increased in the past 12 months.

 

More than half (61 per cent) aim to purchase from suppliers that follow sustainable practices, while 46 per cent are under pressure to use local businesses.

 

One way schools can impact both financial pressures and their carbon footprint and sustainability credentials is through more effective procurement.

 

A more concerted effort towards buying items such as stationery, IT, furniture and cleaning items, which are essential to the day-to-day running of any establishment, means spend can be controlled in line with organisational policies for both budget and supplier credentials.

 

Such an approach will also provide schools with access to detailed information about how much is being spent and on what, which can help to identify unnecessary spend and the potential for further reductions. 

 

Yet many schools do not have dedicated procurement professionals and the task of buying items is often left to teachers, office managers or secretaries who simply do not have the time to sift through hundreds of potential suppliers, compare prices and research their sustainability credentials.

 

Digital procurement platforms, though, are helping to overcome this. Marketplace services such as Amazon Business allow those tasked with buying items to filter items based on their sustainability credentials.

 

They can also specify the use of local suppliers, which can reduce the distance items travel, and opt to group items into fewer deliveries. This can all be recorded and compared, allowing schools to demonstrate the impact this is having over a period of time.

 

The use of such platforms can also help schools reduce their overall spend, even amid rising prices. Adopting a more rigorous approach towards buying where items can only be bought within agreed parameters – and assessing spend information to identify items that can be obtained for less money or may not be needed at all – could generate savings of around 20 per cent.

 

One educational organisation that has been able to transform its approach to procurement through Amazon Business is Nottingham Trent University. The university prides itself on its sustainability credentials, with the topic embedded into every module and aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. It also has its own ambitious goal to become net-zero by 2040.

 

Using Amazon Business, the university can ensure it only buys items from suppliers that can demonstrate their sustainability credentials. It also prioritises those from the local area, helping to reduce carbon emissions associated with delivery.

 

“Students are looking at more than just the quality of teaching; they’re looking to go to universities that take sustainability seriously,” says Claire Davies, sustainable procurement manager. “We look at whole-life cost and the circularity of the products that we’re buying.

 

“We’ve selected East Midlands suppliers so that they will come up in the product search results,” she adds. “That enables us to support our local economy and to reduce our carbon emissions by cutting the amount of miles travelled.

 

“By turning on the sustainability certificates against the products, we’re going to see a lot more sustainable purchasing taking place as a result of using Amazon Business.”

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To find out more about how Amazon Business could help your school boost its sustainability credentials and get more control over spend, visit business.amazon.co.uk/en/work-with-us/education