Information for Prospective Suppliers
This page provides information about supplying goods and services to Cardiff Metropolitan University.
The majority of goods and services purchased by the university are in accordance with contracts created either by the university itself or through collaboration with other like-minded public-sector organisations, for example through HE consortia or Crown Commercial Services.
Many of the contracts we let as a university are subject to the Procurement Act 2023 and the Procurement Regulations Wales 2024.
The university operates a centrally-led procurement structure, with fully devolved ordering.
Whilst our schools and departments have reasonable autonomy in their purchases, most of our expenditure falls within the scope of existing supply agreements. Where such agreements are in place, our schools and departments are required to support them. We also expect prospective suppliers to respect both the agreements that are in place and our end-users support of those contracts. Consequently, in order to supply to the university, any potential supplier needs to achieve either 'preferred' or 'approved' supplier status.
We aim to ensure all our business is conducted in accordance with our Procurement Business Principles and expect our suppliers to work with the same objectives and ideals. The university also fully supports the principles set out in the Welsh Government's Procurement Policy Statement.
Preferred suppliers are those who have been successful in bidding for tendered requirements. These tendered opportunities fall into two broad categories - either above or below the threshold at which the Procurement Act 2023 (the Act)
The Act applies to all public organisations letting contracts above a certain value, these are detailed in Schedule 1 of the Act and differ for goods/services and works. VAT for goods and services. Public organisations are obliged to 'advertise' all opportunities worth more than this value threshold in the UK's Find a Tender Service (FTS). These opportunities can be found by searching either the Find a Tender Service or Sell2Wales.
Please note that we publish all our contract notices through Sell2Wales, so to search opportunities advertised by Cardiff Metropolitan University, you only need to be registered on Sell2Wales - you will receive free email notifications of relevant opportunities.
A summary of the requirements of the Act may be found below under the Procurement Act heading below.
Extensive guidance for businesses, including how to understand and engage with public procurement in Wales may be found on the Sell2Wales website.
Approved suppliers are those who have demonstrated, generally through a competitive quotation or tender exercise, their suitability to supply the university. As with preferred suppliers, unless the Procurement Act thresholds are exceeded, when undertaking quotation exercises, we usually invite suppliers who are registered on Sell2Wales.
All of our contracts and Purchase Orders are subject to specific contract terms and conditions arising out of a formal tender process or Purchase Orders. These are based upon the university's Standard Terms of Contract for Goods and Services or upon the Terms and Conditions for the Purchase and Installation of Goods.
No deviation from these standard terms is permissible unless formally agreed by the procurement team, purchasing@cardiffmet.ac.uk.
The Procurement Act 2023 (the Act), implemented in Feb. 2025, govern how public sector procurement should be undertaken. If the value of a proposed contract exceeds certain thresholds, then, as with all public organisations, we are required by law to comply with the rules and procedures contained within the Act. The Act requires any contracts where the total value over the term of the contract exceeds specified thresholds to be advertised in Sell2Wales and the UK’s Find a Tender Service. The contract notice will detail the procurement procedure being utilised and detail any time limits for tender opportunities.
It is recommended that all prospective suppliers register and maintain a current profile on both Sell2Wales and the Find a Tender Service.
Sell2Wales is the Welsh public sector portal that brings together Welsh public sector buyers and the supply market. There is no charge for suppliers to register on Sell2Wales, and registered suppliers receive email alerts of all relevant contract opportunities posted on Sell2Wales, both above and below the Procurement Act thresholds, as well as have an opportunity to register details about their organisations.
This notification service is reliant upon suppliers registering with the correct Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV) codes - there is guidance on the Sell2Wales site about CPV codes.
If you are, or wish to be, registered on Sell2Wales, we strongly recommend that the main contact email address is a 'generic' address, such as sales@ or information@ - we have seen many examples where communication on opportunities has been lost due to the main registered email address belonging to a staff member on holiday, maternity leave or no longer with the company.