Clarity, Click Travel, Diversity Travel, Key Travel, Selective Travel and STA Travel have all been appointed to handle business travel services (Lot 1), with all bar Click Travel additionally handling student group travel services (Lot 2).

The arrangement gives members access to a fully managed service for all UK and international travel for staff and will run until August 2023.

SUPC members will benefit from competitive rates and academic fares, a wide choice of suppliers, process savings, reduced risk, rigorous duty of care procedures and various service level agreements, says the organisation.

The agreement also included a focus on corporate responsibility, with 10% of supplier score weighting assigned to sustainability.

“We are incredibly pleased to launch this new agreement which will help universities across the UK ensure they get value for money through their staff and student travel spend,” says SUPC Category Manager, Jayne Thorn.

Paul Casement, Director of Sales and Account Management at Clarity, says: “We already work closely with a number of academic institutions and the challenge of time and resource comes up frequently.

“Being able to offer Universities an easy route to choosing the right travel management company for them is a great feeling, knowing we can build long, lasting partnerships in a sector where we already have a strong reputation.”

Vicki Williams, Director of Sales at Click Travel, says: “Universities and colleges are under increasing pressure to deliver substantial cost savings, particularly through their procurement activities, so it makes sense for them to use a trusted travel management company.

“We are committed to continuous innovation, which helps us provide the most intuitive booking platform on the market. We are already recommended on frameworks for the public and third sectors, and are excited that we are now able to help more members from further education achieve real savings.”

SUPC is a membership-based buying organisation for universities and further education colleges that develops and manages framework agreements.