When was the last time you reviewed how much your practice is spending on the products and services you regularly buy?

The cost of living crisis is really starting to bite and even GP practices will be looking for ways to reduce running costs.

This is where your free membership to the LMC Buying Group can really come in handy as it offers practices access to discounts on a wide range of products and services. They can help you save money on the following areas:

• Medical consumables and equipment
• Stationery, Office equipment and furniture
• Workwear
• Insurance
• Confidential information shredding
• Energy
• Recovery Oxygen
• Trade Waste Management
• Telecoms
• Test and Calibration
• Online Training
• DBS Checks Processing

The Buying Group suppliers won’t just offer you a great price one week and then ramp up the price the next so you can be assured that if you order from their suppliers, you’ll get a great price every time you shop meaning you don’t have to ‘shop around’ to find the best deal every month anymore.

If you’re not sure whether you’re a member and/or have access to the Buying Group website (this is where you can view the pricing/discounts and get quotes) then contact the Buying Group team on 0115 979 6910 or info@lmcbuyinggroups.co.uk. They can also help you with any questions you might have about your membership or the suppliers.

The LMC Buying Group helps GP practices save money on products and services they regularly buy. The Buying Group have negotiated excellent discounts on a wide range of products and services from their approved suppliers.

Buying Group membership is completely free and there is no compulsion to use all the suppliers. They do the hard work associated with finding the most competitive suppliers in cost and customer service, so they save you time as well as money on your purchasing!

Although the Buying Group was originally set up to help GP practices save money on the products and services they regularly buy, membership is now also open to GP Federations and Primary Care Networks.

Why use the Buying Group?

• No membership fees
• Excellent negotiated discounts from a range of suppliers
• Quality products and services
• Free cost analysis for members
• No need to ‘shop around’ anymore – we’ve done the hard work already!
• Access to a recruitment platform to advertise your clinical and non-clinical roles for free and a premium ‘Featured Job’ package for a small fee.
• Access to a community resource hub

If you’re not sure whether you’re a member and/or have access to the Buying Group website (this is where you can view the pricing/discounts and get quotes) then contact the Buying Group team on 0115 979 6910 or info@lmcbuyinggroups.co.uk. They can also help you with any questions you might have about your membership or the suppliers.

The LMC Buying Group understand that recruitment is often an expensive and time-consuming business, so they created an eye-catching, easy to use recruitment page where any registered member can post their clinical and non-clinical vacancies at no cost. They also offer practices the opportunity to feature their vacancies with a featured package which comes at a small fee.

What they offer

As well as posting the job on their website, they also highlight any new job posting at least once across their social media platforms. This is a free service to any member practice interested in expanding their vacancy reach beyond their region.

They have also introduced a ‘Featured Job’ option for those members that want to draw more attention to their advert. The featured role will appear at the top of the Jobs page in a bright colour and be highlighted on their social media channels each week for a month. This service only costs £50+VAT.

To place an advert, visit the Jobs page  https://www.lmcbuyinggroups.co.uk/job-vacancies/gp-practice/uk and upload your vacancy using the application form template below. If you choose the Featured Advert option, they will send you an invoice once the advert has been posted online.

The Buying Group have developed an initiative for GP practices working together so they can help each other save money on their purchasing.

They provide a bespoke service by loaning out their procurement consultant Gary, who has over 35 years procurement’ experience and 15 years specific to healthcare. Gary will work with your group e.g. Primary Care Network (PCN) or GP federation to help identify savings that can be made with Buying Group suppliers.

The Process

1. Gary will carry out a cost analysis for up to three practices you nominate within your group
2. The findings of this cost analysis will be presented to the three nominated practices and then to the entire group
3. Gary can answer any questions you have about the suppliers and if you are happy, they can help your group of practices switch to Buying Group approved suppliers.

The Buying Group have been helping individual members save money on the products and services they regularly buy for over 15 years and can now support groups of providers in the same way.

Email the Buying Group at info@lmcbuyinggroups.co.uk to find out more.