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techUK and the Cabinet Office continue to work with the industry to open doors for SMEs

techUK has today published the findings from its annual SME survey, reaffirmed its commitment to work with Government to remove the remaining barriers for SMEs applying for Government contracts.

One key area outlined in the 2016 survey is the need to further improve accessibility to existing services. The survey found that the majority had not used the Government’s Mystery Shopper Service (86%) and that SMEs were not seeing benefits of the Government’s Contracts Finder (65% did not think it helped them gain access).

The survey respondents of 171 SMEs found 94% did not think that civil servant buyers have a good understanding of how SMEs can meet their needs. This was a 2% improvement on the previous year but highlighted the urgent need to improve engagement between the industry and the Government earlier in the commissioning process to expose civil servants to the range of innovation tech that’s available in a fast moving tech market.

The survey highlighted that many SMEs feel they are struggling to access the public sector market with procurement processes and terms and conditions in contracts being highlighted amongst the top barriers to entry. techUK is working with the CCS and GDS to address these concerns. For example, a new Bidder Pack is currently under development as well as a new model contract that aims to make the procurement process simpler.

Responding to the findings, techUK is working with the Cabinet Office, Government Digital Service (GDS) and the Crown Commercial Service (CCS) to align with our Six Point Plan to support the Government’s £1 in £3 procurement spend for SMEs.

Crown Rep Emma Jones held a Twitter Q&A on Friday to discuss some of the issues that SMEs face, and the Government has now also set up a new SME advisory panel with 24 entrepreneurs across a range of industries, launched just last week.

Naureen Khan, Director of Public Services, explained: “There is no doubt that British based SMEs have a key role in driving innovation in Government. It’s clear that changes must be made to develop simple and accessible procurement processes and our survey findings show that we need swift action to ensure the public sector benefits from harnessing the very best of UK tech.

Ben Gummer, Minister for the Cabinet Office, said: “SMEs are a central part of the Government's efforts to improve innovation and modernise our public services so that they work for everyone. That is why we are committed to spending £1 in every £3 of government procurement spending on SMEs by 2020.

“This Government is firmly on the side of the entrepreneurs and small businesses that are the lifeblood of the UK economy - so we will do everything we can to make their lives easier.”