Client Testimonials
NEUPC Ltd
NEUPC Ltd is an organisation that packs a big punch when it comes to purchasing. Since the North Eastern Universities Purchasing Consortium was first formed in the 1970s, it has grown to include 23 university and associate members, who pool their considerable purchasing power to get the best deals when buying everything from IT to office furniture.
Today, Leeds-based NEUPC controls more than £123 million a year on behalf of its members, who include Newcastle University in the north and the Open University in the south. Its work also involves teaming up with other regional consortia and their national umbrella body on even broader purchasing arrangements, such as an annual £33 million stationery contract.
As an organisation that is very much focused on achieving the best possible value for its members, the same rule applies when NEUPC spends its own money, an approach that has led to a long-standing and successful relationship with accountants Watson Buckle.
Simon Toplass, head of the consortium, explains: “I joined NEUPC in February 2000 and the following month, we became a private company limited by guarantee, which requires us to undergo an annual audit. For our first audit, we appointed a ‘big four’ accountancy firm that one of our members was using at the time, but their costs were very high.
“We don’t have a massive budget and we couldn’t sustain that sort of cost, so we went out to the market. Universities generally have a requirement encouraging them to work with local suppliers, so we also wanted to do that, if possible.
“Watson Buckle were one of three or four firms that we looked at. Their costs were competitive and their approach was both professional and friendly.”
NEUPC was originally based in Bradford, which helped the organisation to quickly build a good working relationship with Watson Buckle – Simon says: “They were always more than happy to come in and have a chat, which made the relationship both workable and informal” – and that has continued since NEUPC moved a little further away, to Leeds.
Simon works most closely with partner David Warren, who has attended NEUPC’s annual meeting to talk through the audit and annual accounts and to answer any queries.
Other support comes in the form of tax and general business advice, as and when required, and Simon says David’s expertise was particularly useful in guiding him through the process required for NEUPC to dispense with a traditional annual general meeting, a format it felt was inappropriate for a small organisation.
Simon describes NEUPC’s priorities as “better pricing and better services” when it comes to negotiating on behalf of its members: qualities it has clearly also found at Watson Buckle.