Information for suppliers
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Guidance for suppliers to the Royal College of Art. View our procurement policies, sustainability standards and how to register for tender opportunities.
The Royal College of Art spends around £47m each year on a diverse variety of goods and services, including Estates Services and Works, IT, Professional Services, Academic Services and subject-specific goods/services to support the College's world-class teaching, research and practice.
How we make purchasing decisions
The College aims to build strong, collaborative and high-performing relationships with its key suppliers operating in a wide range of industries. We aim to support the College’s departmental stakeholders guided by principles that focus on both economic and ethical factors:
Value for money
Ensure that goods and services purchased are worth the cost incurred, are cost-effective, and offer benefits to our stakeholders during the whole life of the goods and/or services purchased.
Modern slavery legislation compliance
The College also aims to protect workers in its supply chains from labour rights abuses. Each year, it publishes a Modern Slavery Statement, setting out its progress in achieving greater transparency in its business and supply chains.
Sustainability
As a responsible customer, the College also understands that its supply chains have an impact on our environment. This is why the College has set out its Responsible Procurement Policy (PDF) to govern its approach to supply chain management.
Financial & data regulation compliance
The RCA aims to buy goods, services and works in a manner that complies with its Financial Regulation. The Financial Regulations (PDF) set out the processes by which contracts are awarded and managed.
The College’s policies can be found at:
Policies and codes of practice
Terms & Conditions of Purchase
The College uses standard Terms & Conditions of Purchase, but trades under alternative conditions where appropriate. If you are a new or existing supplier, please ensure you agree to RCA’s terms and conditions of purchase.
Encouragement of small/medium size business
We welcome suppliers of all kinds, including small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector (VCSE) and engage with suppliers via a tender, accessing national framework agreements or undertaking tendering processes ourselves.
The RCA does not accept speculative sales calls or meetings; instead, please register on Delta, where we advertise opportunities.
If you wish to contact us more generally about your products and/or services, contact procurement at procurement@rca.ac.uk or register on our tender portal.
Procurement status
The Royal College of Art is not a "contracting authority" or a "body governed by public law" as defined by the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 or under the Procurement Act 2023. This procurement process is not regulated by UK public procurement law. Where the Royal College of Art advertises contracts in Find a Tender (FTS), it does so voluntarily and does not undertake any obligation to comply with the procurement legislation. Royal College of Art reserves its rights in full to adapt or step outside the procedures in the procurement legislation as the Royal College of Art considers necessary.
If you wish to bid for tenders run by “contracting authorities”, please visit the FTS website to view current opportunities, which can be found below.
LUPC membership
The RCA recognises the power of collaborative procurement in the higher education, arts, sciences and cultural sectors. As such, it is an active member of the London Universities Purchasing Consortium. The RCA uses a variety of LUPC Frameworks. Please visit their website to learn how to become an LUPC supplier.