Guide / Choose your route
Start with your school: which energy buying route applies?
A sound energy decision starts with who is buying, who can approve it and which rules apply. Use this first check before requesting prices or signing a letter of authority.
One market, three governance routes
Schools may buy similar gas and electricity products, but their authority to purchase and their evidence requirements differ. Begin with the legal entity named on the existing supply agreement. An academy trust, a maintained school acting within its local arrangements and an independent school company or charity should not be given the same compliance checklist.
This programme starts with England. Energy-market information may be useful elsewhere, but education governance and procurement requirements must be checked for the relevant nation. The route below is a starting point for planning, not a legal determination about an individual organisation. Guidance checked on 2 November 2026.
| Your setting | First check | Decision record to build |
|---|---|---|
| Academy trust | The current Academy Trust Handbook energy requirement and its alternative-agreement exception | Approved-deal benchmark, evaluation, recommendation and governance approval |
| LA-maintained school | Your LA financing scheme, delegated authority and current contract commitments | Required competition, approvals, comparison and recorded reasons |
| Independent school | Purchasing entity, governing documents, procurement status and business model | Commercial evaluation, authority, conflicts and trustee or board decision where required |
Establish who can make the commitment
Ask your finance lead to identify the budget holder, the person authorised to approve the procurement route and the person authorised to sign the supply contract. These may be different people. Include any central trust team, governing body, proprietor or LA approval needed before an order can be placed.
Our recommendation is to record this in a one-page authority note. State the legal name, sites covered, maximum commitment permitted, escalation point and approval timetable. Arrange a deputy for time-sensitive quotations. A short offer window should trigger a prepared decision process rather than a hurried assumption that normal approvals can be skipped.
Decide what you need the buying route to deliver
Write down the operational problem before choosing a product. You might need greater budget certainty, clearer bills, coordinated renewal dates, support for several meters or better control of consumption. Distinguish these aims from a forecast about future wholesale prices.
Turn each aim into a question you can test. If you need bill checking, ask who checks, how often, against what data and how errors are resolved. If you need help reducing use, ask for the deliverable, baseline and named responsibility. A promised service only has decision value when its scope and cost are clear.
Understand what a TPI changes
If you choose support from a third-party intermediary, it can help prepare data, explain products, obtain offers and manage the chosen arrangement. Appointing that adviser is a separate decision from awarding the energy supply contract. The school or trust should understand how each decision is authorised and evidenced.
Where TPI support is chosen, we recommend one accountable adviser for the agreed exercise, selected with appropriate competition and due diligence. Give it a clear brief and a limited quotation authority. Preserve independent checks on the recommendation. One adviser can coordinate the process while the school retains its own evidence and buying decision.
Create your starting folder
The next guide follows your governance route. Complete that check before treating any supplier comparison as a buying decision. Your first useful outcome is a procurement brief that someone else can understand and audit.
- Existing supply and TPI contracts, expiry dates, notice provisions and any commitments already made.
- Site and meter schedule, recent bills, annual consumption and available interval data.
- Approval rules, proposed timetable, decision owners and conflict declarations.
- Expected changes to consumption or sites, including operating hours, boarding, commercial use, closures and additional premises.
- A short statement of service needs, budget priorities and acceptable risks.