Procurement Consultant

Procurement Consultant - Outside IR35 (3 months rolling contract - Likely 12 months)

The Opportunity

Our local authority client is strengthening its procurement and contract management capability and is seeking a specialist consultant to lead and support work across the Children’s Services category.

This is an opportunity to join an established, delivery-focused interim team tackling significant procurements and building stronger commercial capability across the Council. The assignment requires someone who can work closely with commissioners, bring genuine insight from the Children’s Services provider market, and turn emerging requirements into practical category and procurement strategies. Please note: this is a true category specialist role, not a generalist procurement post.

Background & Context

Around 18 months ago, our client began a major review of its procurement and contract management functions. While a target operating model was designed, the Council’s financial position meant the full structure is being introduced through a phased transformation.

The Assignment

Children’s Services is the next major category to be addressed. As the Council establishes its full pipeline, it needs a consultant who can quickly grasp the service context, develop the category approach, and work alongside commissioners to progress priority procurements.

You will provide informed, diplomatic challenge while helping stakeholders reach solutions that are commercially credible, compliant, and tailored to a large rural authority. Because there is significant crossover with Adults and Public Health, your category approach will need to recognise shared markets, services, and commissioning priorities.

Key Responsibilities

• Stakeholder & Pipeline Discovery: Engage with Children’s Services commissioners to map the current pipeline, service pressures, priorities, and intended outcomes.
• Category Strategy: Develop a coherent Children’s Services category plan that aligns with related activity across Adults and Public Health.
• Sourcing Design: Translate commissioning requirements into clear, proportionate, and commercially robust procurement strategies.
• End-to-End Delivery: Lead and support complex, high-value procurements from early market engagement through to contract award and mobilisation.
• Market Intelligence: Use sector knowledge to test assumptions, identify commercial risks, and shape realistic sourcing options.
• Constructive Challenge: Act as a "critical friend" to commissioners, offering diplomatic challenge where proposals carry unintended commercial, contractual, or delivery risks.
• Balanced Decision-Making: Help stakeholders weigh compliance, value for money, provider-market capacity, service quality, and outcomes for children and families.
• Capability Building: Bring structure and expertise without judgement, helping the service build sustainable commercial capability as work progresses.

Candidate Profile

Our client is looking for a credible specialist with deep Children’s Services category knowledge. Ideal candidates will demonstrate:

• Sector Expertise: Significant procurement and category management experience within Children’s Services, ideally in a local government setting.
• Market Knowledge: Strong familiarity with relevant provider markets—such as children’s social care, social worker supply, SEND, early intervention, specialist placements, and third-sector services.
• Commissioning Partnership: A deep understanding of commissioning environments and a proven ability to collaborate effectively with commissioners.
• Strategic Track Record: Experience developing category plans, sourcing strategies, and procurement pipelines, alongside leading complex or high-value service procurements.
• Executive Influence: The confidence to challenge senior stakeholders constructively and influence decisions using evidence and market insight.
• Cross-Service Awareness: The ability to connect Children’s Services requirements with parallel activity in Adults and Public Health.
• Way of Working: A pragmatic, outcome-focused approach with the autonomy to thrive in an evolving environment.

What Success Looks Like

• A clear, prioritised Children’s Services procurement pipeline.
• A practical category plan that commissioners understand and actively support.
• Priority procurements progressing at pace with sound governance and commercial rigour.
• Better-informed decisions balancing market conditions, risk, cost, quality, and service outcomes.
• Stronger collaboration across procurement, commissioning, finance, and operational teams.
• A sustainable platform supporting the Council’s longer-term transition toward permanent capability and apprenticeships.

Rate of Pay

£500-£550 (Flexible for a specialist)

Location: Fully Remote working