Social Traders has been working with government for over 10 years. Australia’s largest states are leading the way in social enterprise procurement.

Victorian Government: implementing the game-changing social procurement Framework

In 2018, the Victorian Government introduced a social procurement Framework to leverage its everyday procurement spend to deliver social and sustainable outcomes that would benefit the Victorian community. The framework has been rolled out across 275 government agencies and is a key driver of social procurement adoption amongst businesses.

The Victorian Government was the first state government to join Social Traders membership in 2018, and to put a social enterprise Strategy in place.

“Our government is deeply committed to developing the state’s social economy and I’m proud to be part of a government leading the way with Australia’s first Social Enterprise Strategy and our Social Procurement Framework. We recognise that social enterprises are innovators and entrepreneurs, and that innovation is going to be so important for our future economy. We’re committed to supporting the work [Social Traders] does in creating a strong social enterprise sector … and ensuring social procurement can deliver social, economic and environmental benefits to our communities for many years to come. - The Hon. Jaala Pulford, Minister for Employment, Minister for Innovation, Medical Research and the Digital Economy, and Minister for Small Business, Victorian Government

NSW Government: building social enterprise into procurement guidelines

The NSW Government joined Social Traders membership in 2020. To grow Social Procurement activity, it also amended its procurement guidelines to incorporate Social enterprises as a type of supplier that they are encouraging business to engage with.

“There’s an opportunity to use procurement for achieving social outcomes. The agreement with Social Traders acknowledges the worth and benefit of social enterprises to the ecosystem of government.” - The Hon Damian Francis Tudehope, Minister for Finance and Small Business, NSW Government

Queensland Government: piloting a program to boost social enterprise procurement

The Queensland Government is a member of Social Traders and has a social enterprise strategy in place. As well as accessing Social Traders database through membership, the Queensland Government is undertaking a pilot project where five government departments are working with us to grow their social procurement capability.

Alongside government support at state level, all Queensland Local Governments now have access to certified social enterprises through an agreement between Social Traders and Local Buy.

“We can learn a lot from social enterprises when it comes to sustainable job creation and working with those traditionally disadvantaged in the labour market to build the confidence and skills needed to gain and maintain meaningful employment.” - The Honourable Shannon Fentiman MP, Minister for Employment and Small Business, Minister for Training and Skills Development Queensland Government.