Free Guide: Derby Spending & Supplier Profile
A free spending & supplier guide for Derby City Council · Unitary authority · East Midlands
Data covering 2011 to 2026
Recorded Spend
£3.8bn
Transactions
731,770
Suppliers
5,939
Key Takeaways
- £3.8 billion in recorded spend across 731,770 transactions spanning 2011 to 2026
- 5,939 identified suppliers with an unconcentrated HHI of 69, the top 5 accounting for 12.9%
- 4 out of 6 procurement-detail contracts were direct awards, with a median contract value of £575,000
£3.8 billion from 2011 to 2026: how big a buyer is Derby?
Derby City Council is a unitary authority serving around 257,000 people in 30 square miles of the East Midlands. Our dataset covers £3.8 billion in recorded spend across 731,770 transactions, drawn from 141 source files and spanning 2011 to 2026. We have matched 6,163 suppliers against Companies House records, spread across 22 sector categories. The council is a member of Efficiency East Midlands (EEM), a consortium open to all public sector bodies. On the tenders side, 204 published notices carry a combined value of £310 million. Beyond the tender notices, our data includes 206 contracts with a recorded value of £3.4 million, plus a more detailed procurement breakdown covering six above-threshold contracts. Between the transaction volume, the breadth of supplier relationships, and the range of sectors involved, the spending records paint a picture of a council with broad purchasing activity.
Construction and health dominate, but concentration stays low
Health and social work is the largest sector in our data, accounting for 24.8% of matched spend at £418 million across 685 identified suppliers. Construction follows at 17.8% (£300 million, 365 suppliers), and education sits third at 11.3%. Among the top suppliers we have tracked, construction firms stand out. Bowmer and Kirkland leads with £51.5 million, closely followed by Derby City BSF Limited at £49.2 million, both in the construction sector. Matrix SCM, classified under administrative and support service activities, sits third at £39.8 million. Derby's HHI score is 69, which is classed as unconcentrated. The top five suppliers account for 12.9% of recorded spend, and the top ten for 20.4%. With nearly 6,000 identified suppliers in the mix, spend is spread across a wide base. The top two sectors together account for over 42% of recorded spend, with the remaining 20 sectors sharing the rest.
Four out of six procurement-detail contracts went direct
Our detailed procurement breakdown covers six above-threshold contracts, separate from the 206 contracts recorded in the broader dataset. Of these six, four were direct awards and two went through open tender. The median contract value across these six sits at £575,000. That is a small sample, so the ratio between direct and open awards should be read with that in mind. Derby has 204 published tender notices worth a combined £310 million, which shows the council does use formal competitive routes. The 731,770 payment transactions in our records far exceed the formal contract count. The gap between transaction volume and published contract numbers is common in council spending data, where much day-to-day purchasing flows through frameworks and standing arrangements. The six contracts with detailed procurement method data give a narrow but useful window into how Derby structures its above-threshold buying.
| # | Supplier | Spend |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | BOWMER AND KIRKLAND LIMITED | £51,531,231 |
| 2 | DERBY CITY BSF LIMITED | £49,214,771 |
| 3 | MATRIX SCM LIMITED | £39,808,526 |
| 4 | SERCO LIMITED | £31,640,857 |
| 5 | DERBY SCHOOL SOLUTIONS LIMITED | £29,828,457 |
| 6 | WATES CONSTRUCTION LIMITED | £26,509,767 |
| 7 | SJS (4) LIMITED | £23,315,043 |
| 8 | HERITAGE EDUCATION TRUST | £22,959,500 |
| 9 | SENAD LIMITED | £22,457,076 |
| 10 | EUROVIA INFRASTRUCTURE LIMITED | £21,512,059 |
About Us
CouncilLedger brings together spending records, contract awards, and tender notices from over 400 UK local authorities into one procurement intelligence platform. Our data covers 16 years of transactions, collected directly from council transparency publications and government procurement platforms. Search suppliers, track spending trends, discover tender opportunities, and monitor the contracts that matter to your business.
