Public sector policy and legislation require that goods, services, and works are procured through genuine and effective competition wherever feasible. However, in exceptional circumstances, a Non-Competitive Action (NCA) may be justified where competition is deemed impractical.
Examples include:
- Work of exceptional urgency caused by unforeseeable circumstances, where competitive tendering would result in unacceptable delay (e.g. breakdown, storm damage, fire, or health and safety risks)
- Where the proposed supplier is the only provider known to possess the unique technical, intellectual, or artistic capability required to deliver the goods or services, and therefore the requirement cannot be met by any alternative source
In these circumstances, an NCA must be completed for all orders exceeding £3,000 (excluding VAT), where the proposed purchase is not being made under a recommended contract and where competitive offers are not, or cannot be, obtained.
- Where the value of the proposed purchase exceeds £3,000 (excluding VAT), the NCA must be completed, approved by the Head of Department, and retained for audit purposes
- Where the value exceeds £25,000 (excluding VAT), the completed NCA must also be submitted to the Head of Procurement for final review
The electronic process for completing and submitting an NCA is available on the Procurement SharePoint site:
(Access requires your DS username and password)
Further guidance is available in the Approvers presentation on YouTube. Please note that the term Single Source Justification (SSJ) used in this presentation is equivalent to Non-Competitive Action (NCA).
Watch Single Source Approvers presentation on YouTube.
Training
Please follow the link to complete the Approver training:
Any queries on the NCA process should be directed towards procurement.enquiries@strath.ac.uk