The government must take action to ensure that its commitment to boost the UK’s small and medium-sized enterprises is realised at the working level, the chairman of the REC Technology sector group has said.

Speaking exclusively to Recruiterat an REC Technology sector group meeting, Jeff Brooks said recent discussions with “a major infrastructure deliverer” had revealed that whilst public sector and quasi public sector organisations value agency bids, “there was an awful lot that said ‘small companies may not apply’ ”.

The government must “form a landscape where they help small companies become part of a consortium”, Brooks said. “It’s not good enough just to say, ‘Go and find someone you can bid with’. They should be bringing companies together to say: ‘These are the right companies to bid in all our categories, and if you align yourself to those, you have more opportunity to become a supplier.’ That’s the missing bit.”

Brooks said the government’s aim to boost opportunities for the UK’s SMEs was not reflected in the depth and complexity of the bidding process.

“A lot of small companies still struggle to bid properly… to get through the gates to get through the procurement process,” Brooks said.