It has long been felt that excellence in higher education and public sector procurement has not been given the priority it deserves. The UKUPC Procurement Awards, which took place at the UKUPC Conference Dinner on 7 September 2023, have been an opportunity to ensure UKUPC members' collective excellence is celebrated more widely and that the learning and outcomes from best practice can be successfully shared with peers in procurement across the UK.

The winners and their respective categories are as follows:

Outstanding Procurement Initiative by a UKUPC member
Winner: Abertay University
Project summary title: Revolutionising the Procurement Function from transactional to strategic partner
The project was aimed to revolutionise Abertay’s Procurement Function, shifting it from a reactive, transactional, and operational discipline to a proactive Strategic Partner, while also fostering a culture of forward planning throughout the University.

Runners Up: York St John University and Queen Mary University of London

Outstanding Responsible Procurement Initiative by a UKUPC member
Winner: University of Lancaster
Project summary title: Procurement & Travel Carbon Dashboard empowering informed purchasing & business travel decisions. 
The University's Procurement and Travel Carbon Dashboard is an effective reporting tool that utilises the HESCET data along with expenditure information to provide staff with a view of their account code or department’s Scope 3 Emissions.
This initiative provides staff with deeper insight into higher-emitting activities and empowers them to make more informed purchasing and business travel decisions.  

Runners Up: University of Exeter and University of Huddersfield

Outstanding Collaborative Project by a framework supplier
Winner: Stone Computing
Project summary title:  Recycling 4,500+ devices with supplier’s zero-landfill recycling saving 624 tonnes of carbon
The University of York has purchased hundreds of devices through the NDNA framework and recycled more than 4,500 devices with Stone’s zero-landfill recycling on the IT disposal framework.
The university has saved 44.1 tonnes of IT from landfill, 624 tonnes of carbon from the atmosphere and the equivalent of 671,000 plastic bottles.

Runners Up: Fujitsu and EFG European Furniture Group Ltd

Congratulations to the winners and to all those that were shortlisted for the awards!