HEPA and EAUC Responsible Procurement Group Events - September, October and November 2025

Please find details of the HEPA and EAUC Responsible Procurement Group (RPG) events, open to members with an interest in responsible procurement including:

• The Responsible Procurement In-Person Workshop, Edinburgh, 17 September; and
• Responsible Procurement Group Circular Economy Discussion Groups in October and December.

HEPA and EAUC Responsible Procurement Group In-Person Workshop, Edinburgh, 17 September

Location: University of Edinburgh, ECCI, Conference Room (EH1 1LT)
Time: Registration and Refreshments from 9am, Seminar 9.30am–3:30pm

The HEPA and EAUC RPG group would like to invite those with an interest in the subject to the forthcoming Incorporating Responsible Procurement across the Further and Higher Education Sector workshop taking place on Wednesday 17 September 2025 at the University of Edinburgh.

It is focussed on those with an interest and understanding of the subject matter who would like to understand more and be part of a group to establish how the sector can best move this area of focus forward.

Register here by 4 September

This workshop recognises that procurement decisions are central to institutional sustainability and offers a platform for open exchange, reflection, and practical learning. We are bringing together experts and practitioners from across the UK to share tools, approaches, and challenges in advancing responsible, ethical, and environmentally conscious procurement.

The event aims to strengthen collaboration, promote alignment, and drive innovation across the FHE sector in support of shared environmental and social goals. We have the following sessions to support this discussion:

• Calculating carbon emissions from Procurement, where we will dive into tools including: the Higher Education Supply Chain Emission Tool (HESCET), APUC Scope 3 report, CO2Analysis, the NetPositive Futures Zero Carbon Supplier Tool, etc.
• Tracking and monitoring progress using supplier assurance tools, which will examine tools including: the Hunter SCM1 (new version), the NetPositive Futures Supplier Engagement HE Tool, and Ecovadis
• Big picture approaches, where we will hear from NHS England about their Supplier Roadmap and of the approach being developed by the University of Edinburgh for the FHE sector.  

For those staying locally the night before, we will also hopefully be arranging a group meal on the evenings of both Tuesday 16^th and Wednesday 17^th September. Further details of these will be sent out to registered attendees closer to the event.

A 10% discount is available to attendees at University of Edinburgh accommodation options. This can be redeemed using the code “EVENT” on the: UoE Hospitality website

Who Should Attend

Colleagues and stakeholders in the FHE sector with an active role in addressing responsible procurement in their institutions or organisations.

Important Notes

The registration platform does not send reminders or support calendar integration. Please be sure to manually save the event in your calendar to avoid missing out.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact the event organisers.

Register here by 4 September

Circular Economy and Waste Discussion Groups

The Circular Economy and Waste RPG Subgroup has two online meetings in the diary which are open to members with an interest in the topics under discussion:

Meeting 1: Including accurate carbon cost for items at point of purchase (for end users) 

When: 1 October 2025 10.00-11.30am
Contact: Email Rica Macdonald, Head of Responsible Procurement APUC, to receive calendar invitation.

Meeting 2: Developing a reuse hub for items from student accommodation

When: 3 December 2025 10-11.30am.
Contact: Email Sion Pickering, Sustainable Business & Fair Trade Programme Manager, University of Edinburgh, to receive calendar invitation (n.b. responses likely from October onwards)

These are both interactive sessions with a 15-minute presentation on the topic followed by group discussion.