Three local boroughs in London have set up an electronic marketplace to source temporary social workers.

Tower Hamlets, Lewisham and Newham are using the marketplace to reduce costs and gain greater visibility into their spending on agencies. There are 18 agencies on the system which supply quotes, and boroughs choose the rates that suit them and order staff through the system.

The system is hosted by Best Value Procurement, an initiative aimed at helping local authorities to purchase their goods and services electronically.

Sue Chappell, procurement manager for the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, said they decided to start using the marketplace because they felt agencies were charging too much. Firms on the list have gone through a stringent evaluation process.

A number of private sector firms have already begun purchasing temporary staff through electronic marketplaces, including American Express and Prudential.