AA-101-26 Vending Beverage and Snack Products and Services

About the buyer

NHS Ayrshire and Arran is a territorial health board within NHS Scotland, buying as a healthcare organisation with its own procurement department. Tenders are advertised on Public Contracts Scotland, the national portal for Scottish public sector opportunities. Purchasing follows the McClelland Review of Public Procurement in Scotland and the Public Procurement Handbook. Suppliers can register with the NHS Scotland Community Benefits Gateway to connect with local community organisations. Procurement also partners with neighbouring NHS boards and the three Ayrshire Councils on shared local contracts.

UK health spending has nearly quadrupled to £241.8bn in 2024/25, £20bn up on the year before. £140.6bn of that went to procurement, the biggest sector of UK public spending and the fastest-growing.

Over the past 5 years, most of NHS Ayrshire and Arran's contract awards have been in medical equipment and pharmaceuticals, software and information systems, and health and social work.