Framework / DPS operator
ESPO (Eastern Shires Purchasing Organisation)
Also known as Eastern Shires Purchasing Organisation.
Public sector buying organisation running over 100 frameworks and a catalogue of more than 28,000 products, much of it bought by schools.
Visit espo.orgOpens in a new tab. We are not affiliated with ESPO, a joint committee owned by six councils (Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Warwickshire and Peterborough).
Who uses it
Public bodies across the UK: councils, schools and academies, central government, police, fire and coastguard, charities and housing associations, and NHS bodies on some frameworks. Each framework's notice gives the exact list.
What ESPO is
ESPO (Eastern Shires Purchasing Organisation) is a public buying organisation owned by six councils: Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Warwickshire County Councils, and Peterborough City Council. It was set up in 1981, is based in Leicester, and runs over 100 frameworks and a catalogue of more than 28,000 products, much of it bought by schools.
Any surplus goes back to the member councils: £5.4 million in 2024-25. ESPO says it works with around 1,300 suppliers.
How to win a place on an ESPO framework
ESPO does not keep an approved supplier list. The only way in is to win a place in an open tender, and every ESPO tender runs on the East Mids Tenders portal (eastmidstenders.org). Register there, choose the CPV codes that match what you sell, and you get an email when a matching tender opens.
ESPO also advertises its opportunities on Find a Tender, and you must be registered on the government's Central Digital Platform before you can bid. Its procurement pipeline, published once a year, shows which frameworks are coming up for renewal.
What it costs
Bidding is free. If you win, you pay ESPO a framework fee as a percentage of the sales you make through that framework. The rate is set for each framework and published in the tender notice: recent notices ranged from 1% to 5%.
Build the fee into your prices from the start, and make sure you can report your sales to ESPO on time.
Small suppliers and the catalogue
ESPO says 71% of the suppliers awarded framework places in 2024-25 were small or medium-sized businesses, and that it often splits tenders into lots by region or product type.
Catalogue products are bought through separate catalogue frameworks, which ESPO uses to stock its warehouse in Leicester or to deliver direct to customers. They are tendered on East Mids Tenders in the same way, so the same registration and alerts apply.
ESPO in the contract data
ESPO publishes its own tenders and awards, so the frameworks it has let, the suppliers on them and the contracts coming to an end are all on record.
- Espo: 779 contract awards on record, 51 ending in the next 18 months
Getting registered
ESPO keeps no approved list: every place is won in an open tender. All ESPO tenders run on East Mids Tenders (ProContract); register there with your CPV codes for alerts, and on the Central Digital Platform before you bid.
All four UK portals in one email
Find a Tender, Contracts Finder, Public Contracts Scotland and Sell2Wales, read every weekday and scored against what you do, in one email before 9am. You only register on a buyer's platform when a tender is worth bidding for. 30 days free, no card needed.
Watch out for
Tenders are advertised on Find a Tender and run on East Mids Tenders, not on ESPO's own website, which publishes a yearly procurement pipeline instead. Build the framework fee into your prices from the start.
Tender Radar shows you when framework contracts are due to come round again, months before the re-let is advertised. Start a free trial.
At a glance
- Run by
- ESPO, a joint committee owned by six councils (Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Warwickshire and Peterborough)
- Type
- Framework / DPS operator
- Covers
- UK-wide
- Sectors
- Education, Local government, Facilities management, Goods
- Cost
- Free to bid; winners pay a framework fee on sales through the framework, set per framework (recent notices 1% to 5%)
- Website
- espo.org
Common questions
Can I ask ESPO to add my business to its supplier list?
No. ESPO says it cannot simply approve or add suppliers: every place is won through an open tender run on East Mids Tenders.
Where are ESPO tenders published?
On Find a Tender, and they run on East Mids Tenders. Register on East Mids Tenders with your CPV codes to get alerts.
Do I need to register anywhere else?
Yes. ESPO requires suppliers to be registered on the government's Central Digital Platform before they can tender.
Is there a fee to sell through ESPO?
Bidding is free, but winning suppliers pay a framework fee based on their sales through that framework. The maximum rate is in each tender notice; recent ones ranged from 1% to 5%.
Who buys through ESPO frameworks?
Public bodies across the UK, including councils, schools and academies, central government, police, fire and coastguard services, charities and housing associations, and NHS bodies on some frameworks. Each framework's notice sets out the exact list.
Last reviewed 2026-09-14. Something wrong on this page?
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