About us

The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) Educational Procurement Centre is a unit within the Department. Established in 2007, EPC works across the schools sector to promote and support more sustainable procurement practices and effective contract management.

EPC has been developed from the work of the Centre for Procurement Performance (CPP) which was set up within the then DfES (Department for Education and Skills) following the Gershon efficiency review, to work across the whole of the education, skills and children and families system.

EPC will focus on supporting those responsible for procurement in schools through provision of, and access to, experience and knowledge in category management, eProcurement, best practice and training opportunities. It has at its core the objective of allowing schools to maximise their budget and enhance their business skills.

More information about the other areas of schools' procurement being looked at by EPC can be found at www.dcsf.gov.uk/epc