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The Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) programme is the biggest shake-up of local authorities in decades, set to impact 134 existing councils across 21 areas of England.

LGR ends the two-tier system in 21 areas of England, affecting around 20 million people, replacing those councils with a smaller number of larger unitary councils by April 2028. This shake-up is putting pressure on local authorities to move quickly, particularly in areas such as technology procurement.

The G-Cloud procurement framework has been named as a natural route for local councils to acquire technology within LGR, and it’s a great opportunity to showcase the value of procurement frameworks.

Procurement frameworks streamline the process of buying and selling for public bodies and the third sector, acting as a pre-tendered agreement covering pricing, quality standards and legal conditions.

These frameworks are established by central bodies, such as the Government Property Agency (GPA)*, and create a pre-approved, compliant route to buying without the need for a full competitive tender every time a purchase is made.

Under the Procurement Act 2023, frameworks are more formally regulated with clearer rules around transparency, maximum duration and how call-off contracts must be awarded.

They can span multi-supplier frameworks, single-supplier frameworks, Dynamic Purchasing Systems, Dynamic Markets, sector-specific frameworks and GPA frameworks, each with their own nuances and giving buyers a greater range of options that are more tailored to their specific needs.

G-Cloud 14 (expiring 28th October), and its next iteration G-Cloud 15 (live from mid-August 2026), is an example specifically for cloud-based technology, giving public sector buyers access to a pre-approved array of hosting, software and support services.

Frameworks are particularly useful for smaller public bodies and third-sector organisations, who typically lack dedicated resources and procurement teams. They remove the most resource-intensive part of procurement by having the supplier selection and evaluation process set at framework level, with pre-negotiated and pre-vetted suppliers.

For cloud technology specifically, G-Cloud 15 allows buyers to access the latest services, including artificial intelligence tools, data platforms and collaboration software, helping them to keep pace as these technologies evolve and new versions become available.

For G-Cloud 15, buyers begin on the GPA Digital Marketplace, where all approved services are listed with full pricing, service descriptions and supplier information. They can then filter by service category, deployment model, price and other criteria.

For simple purchases, buyers can make a direct award, selecting a supplier directly based on the information provided, without further competition.

For complex or high-value requirements, buyers can run a further competition, inviting a subset of framework suppliers to respond to a more detailed specification before making a selection.

Once a supplier is selected, the buyer issues a call-off contract that draws down from the framework under the agreed terms.

Under the Procurement Act 2023, buyers are required to publish transparency notices for call-offs above defined thresholds, ensuring public accountability for spending decisions.

G-Cloud 15 will make procurement easier for projects such as LGR as councils consolidate their tech systems on a large scale.

It will provide a fully compliant procurement route without the time, cost and legal complexity of an open competitive process, reducing time pressures ahead of the April 2028 deadline. The speed of procurement under this framework also streamlines deployment times to help tech be operationally faster.

Local councils will have access to a broad and vetted supplier market across cloud hosting, software and support to choose the best option for their needs.

Unlike traditional enterprise contracts, G-Cloud services offer many consumption-based. This allows local councils to spend based on usage instead of being locked into lengthy fixed-term licences.

All suppliers on G-Cloud have agreed to standard terms covering data protection, security standards, and service levels, providing greater accountability.

With Local Government Reorganisation set to impact as many as 20 million people across hundreds of councils within England, having procurement frameworks in place will not only make hitting the 2028 deadline possible, but also allow local councils to maintain compliance and a high standard of technology that their communities rely on.