The Glasgow and Clyde Valley City Deal is an agreement between the UK government, the Scottish Government and the councils for North and South Lanarkshire, Glasgow City, Renfrewshire and East Renfrewshire, East and West Dunbartonshire and Inverclyde.

Over the next 20 years a total of 26 projects will be put out to contract under the umbrella of City Deal generating countless opportunities for SMEs to benefit as subcontractors delivering all kinds of goods and services.

The Supplier Development Programme (SDP), the tender training programme for Scotland, will be working closely with the City Deal team to offer support to SMEs to develop the skills they need to identify and bid for those opportunities.

In its first major City Deal event the SDP along with North and South Lanarkshire Council is to host a free information event for SME’s.

Taking place in The Banqueting Suite at South Lanarkshire Council’s Headquarters in Hamilton the event has three key goals:

Throughout the morning of Friday 6th November the City Deal Supplier Engagement Event will feature speakers from both Lanarkshire councils and SDP who will provide an overview of what the £1.13 billion City Deal will mean for Lanarkshire and how local businesses can prepare themselves for the opportunities that will arise.

There will also be a mini trade fair with representatives from each of the 8 City Deal council areas available to discuss up and coming and potential projects in their areas and business support agencies will be on hand to advise of the next steps to take.

Places are however limited so booking through the SDP website is essential.

Speakers from both councils will provide an overview of what the £1.13 billion City Deal will mean for Lanarkshire and how local businesses can prepare themselves for the opportunities that will arise. Representatives from each of the 8 City Deal council areas will be available to discuss up and coming and potential projects in their areas and business support agencies will be on hand to advise of the next steps to take.

Gillian Cameron, SDP manager, said “This is the first in what we hope will be a series of SME events across the City Deal regions. It’s an excellent opportunity for businesses to come along and see what City Deal could mean for them.

“We would particularly encourage attendance from businesses with a civil engineering or construction focus, although anyone interested in increasing their awareness of the City Deal projects, potential opportunities and the training and support on offer to help SME contractors and suppliers get tender ready will benefit from attending the event.”