Streamlining Tail End Spend for North East London NHS Foundation Trust
How BSG helped NELFT take control of its ad hoc procurement and unlock real savings
The Business Supplies Group has supported North East London NHS Foundation Trust (NELFT) with office supplies and associated products for over eight years. But five years ago, the Trust came to us with a different challenge: managing their Tail End Spend.
These are the low-value, ad hoc purchases that fall outside formal procurement contracts - items as random as paving slabs, children’s toys, or hard-to-source products requested by individual departments. For NELFT, managing this category was proving time-consuming, costly and inefficient.
The challenge of Tail End Spend
Across public and private sectors, organisations are under pressure to find efficiencies and reduce costs. Yet many struggle with Tail End Spend - a notoriously complex area that often falls through the cracks.
This kind of spend typically involves:
Low-value purchases from a wide range of suppliers
Poor visibility and data control
High volumes of individual invoices
Time-consuming procurement processes
Missed opportunities for economies of scale
For finance and procurement teams, the result is many hours spent processing small orders, all adding up to significant long-term costs. There’s also an environmental impact, with multiple deliveries from different suppliers increasing carbon emissions. And without a formal route to purchase, there’s a risk of non-compliant or ‘maverick’ buying.
In NELFT’s case, the Trust was managing over £600,000 in Tail End Spend each year across a user base of more than 1,700 staff. Procurement teams were having to source one-off items from dozens of separate suppliers, creating a fragmented supply chain and placing a huge administrative burden on already stretched teams.
A smarter, simpler solution
That’s where BSG’s Tail End Management service comes in.
We worked closely with NELFT to consolidate all their Tail End Spend through one single source. Now, any non-contracted product requests go directly to our customer service team, where they’re triaged and passed through a simple approval process by NELFT’s procurement team and budget-holders.
By centralising requests and orders in this way, we’ve helped the Trust:
Dramatically reduce the number of suppliers and invoices
Improve compliance and governance
Enhance spend visibility and reporting
Cut delivery emissions
Free up procurement time for higher-value activity
We also provide a full logistics service, holding stock and managing distribution so that the Trust receives what it needs, when it needs it - without the hassle of dealing with multiple vendors.
What the service includes
Our dedicated Tail End Spend solution gives public sector clients like NELFT the tools to manage low-value procurement with greater control and confidence. Key features include:
Single-source delivery model – Cutting the carbon footprint and admin associated with multiple small suppliers.
Centralised order and invoice processing – Reducing paperwork and freeing up finance resources.
Improved visibility of spend – Allowing procurement teams to track usage, spot trends and make better-informed decisions.
Standardised processes – Helping teams across departments and neighbouring Trusts work more collaboratively and consistently.
Responsive customer service – End users contact us directly, with approvals routed through NELFT’s internal systems for fast, compliant purchasing.
A long-term partnership
Following the success of our Tail End Spend solution, NELFT renewed their contract with us for another three years, with the option to extend for a further two. We’re proud to continue supporting the Trust as they work towards greater efficiency and sustainability.
In recognition of the value our approach delivers, we’ve also been awarded the Countess of Chester Hospital’s national framework agreement for tail end management. This gives public sector organisations across the UK a fully compliant, streamlined route to manage Tail End Spend - covering any products or services that fall outside their top 80% of spend.
The impact
For NELFT, the benefits have been clear:
Better procurement governance
Reduced costs and improved efficiency
Greater visibility and control over low-value spend
A reliable, simplified service for more than 1,700 Trust-wide users
Fewer deliveries and reduced emissions in support of NHS sustainability targets
Conclusion
Tail End Spend might be low in value, but when left unmanaged, the costs can add up fast. By partnering with BSG, NELFT turned a fragmented, time-intensive process into a streamlined, strategic solution that saves time, money and carbon. It’s a powerful example of how rethinking the small stuff can deliver big results.
"NELFT has maintained a strong and collaborative partnership with The Business Supplies Group (BSG) for several years. Throughout our engagement, BSG has consistently provided exceptional customer service, dedicated support, and enthusiastic collaboration in design. Their expertise has supported a wide range of our tail-end procurement needs, from essential stationery supplies to comprehensive furniture installations for new hospitals and wards. At every stage, BSG has demonstrated reliability and flexibility, ensuring a seamless delivery process tailored to the Trust’s requirements."
Head of Procurement, NELFT and North London NHS FT Procurement Shared Service
Looking to take control of your tail end spend?
Talk to our team today to discover how our tailored solutions can help your organisation cut costs, reduce admin, and stay compliant, without compromising on service.
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