Contractor Pre qualification /approval systems We are a Council and as a region have banded together to get the same pre-qualification system. We have held workshops outside of office / working hours so that the contractors / sub-contractors can come and chat with us and see how the pre-qualification works. These workshops have worked very well and received with gratitude from the contractors.
At our Council we have also accepted that if a contractor / sub-contractor is pre-qualified with another system, and can prove that by sending us their current certification, then we will exempt them. e.g. they will still be an approved contractor but no need to sign up to our system we use. I feel that this is just and fair as you have all commented, that it costs so much to get pre-qualified. Being practical is what we are trying to achieve at our workplace and working with the contractors.