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Best Practice Procurement Guidelines

Best Practice Procurement Guidelines for Victorian Local Government 2024 (PDF - 2.8MB)

"Built by the sector, for the sector."

The Victorian Local Government Best Practice Procurement Guidelines (the guidelines) provide a practical framework to help councils strengthen procurement governance, achieve value for money, manage risk and meet their obligations under the Local Government Act 2020.  

Developed by the Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV) in collaboration with Victorian local government procurement professionals, the Guidelines bring together contemporary best practice, legislative requirements, and practical tools to support procurement activities across the full procurement lifecycle.

Whether you are developing a procurement policy, planning a sourcing activity, evaluating submissions, managing contracts, or seeking to improve procurement capability across your organisation, the Guidelines provide clear, practical guidance to support informed and accountable decision-making.

The Guidelines are designed to help councils:

  • Deliver value for money and better community outcomes
  • Strengthen governance, probity and transparency
  • Manage procurement risks effectively
  • Support legislative compliance
  • Drive continuous improvement and procurement maturity
  • Build capability and consistency across the organisation.

The policy and practices should reflect best practice local government procurement processes to:

  • Achieve value for money outcomes and continuous improvement in the provision of services for the community.
  • Ensure resources are used efficiently and effectively to support councils’ strategic objectives and improve the overall quality of life of people in the local community with sustainable future outcomes in mind.
  • Comply with relevant legislative requirements.
  • Achieve high standards of openness, fairness, accountability, risk management, probity, and transparency.
  • Minimise the cost of preparing submissions for potential suppliers by ensuring a competitive process.

Updating the Guidelines

MAV Procurement is currently working with the Sector Reference Group (SRG) to refresh the Victorian Local Government Best Practice Procurement Guidelines, ensuring they remain practical, relevant and aligned to the evolving needs of councils.

The updated guidelines will continue to support councils in achieving value for money, strengthening governance, and maintaining high standards of probity, transparency and compliance, while enabling flexibility to respond to changing market and legislative environments.

Creating the Guidelines

The Municipal Association of Victoria accepted a request from Victorian local government procurement professionals to assist them in preparing updated procurement guidelines for the sector. The aim of the guidelines was to address current local government procurement best practice and the requirements for procurement under sections 108 and 109 of the Victorian Local Government Act 2020. A sector reference group of procurement professionals from the sector was established to undertake this task.

MAV Procurement would like to acknowledge the following people for their contribution to the development of the Guidelines: Marnie Benny, Tony Caccaviello, David Cecala, Danielle Cox, Luke Crampton, Julia Cushing Marcus Daniel, Jason Farrugia, Nicole Kennedy, Fran Miller, Greg Painter, Molley Qi, Georgina Riddington, Samantha Rodriquez, Paul Sherwood, Kelly Stevens, Miranda Somers, and Julie Wiggins.