A raft of national firms have won roles on the first panel for the London Universities Purchasing Consortium (LUPC).

The line-up, which was announced earlier this month (1 August), sees 13 firms appointed to provide legal advice to the LUPC's 60 members, which include the London School of Economics and Political Science, the Royal College of Music and the British Museum.

Thirty-four firms submitted pre-qualification responses for roles on the panel, with a shortlist of 15 subsequently tendering. The successful firms will advise for a three-year period with an option to extend for a fourth year.

Collectively, the LUPC's members have a total legal spend of £30m over three years.

Firms to have won roles included Addleshaw Goddard, Barlow Lyde & Gilbert, Bates Wells & Braithwaite, Berrymans Lace Mawer, Blake Lapthorn, Cobbetts, Farrer & Co, Mace & Jones, Martineau, Michelmores, Mills & Reeve, Shoosmiths and Veale Wasbrough Vizards.

Work will cover areas including employment, commercial, litigation, education, property, contracts and regulatory matters.

The collaborative arrangement is one of the biggest for legal services in the public sector and comes as a result of demand from LUPC members, who will now enjoy improved rates, standardised service levels and a range of added-value opportunities.

LUPC director Andy Davies said: "Our members identified legal services as a major area of spend with opportunities to add value and make significant cash savings.

He added: "This result demonstrates the benefits that can be achieved through collaborative procurement and we look forward to working with the successful firms to deliver these benefits."

Barlows healthcare partner Claire Petts said: "We went through an extremely competitive process, which required us to present various case studies we had worked on and prove our expertise, so we were extremely pleased to make it onto the panel after several knockout stages.

"Many NHS trusts are going into these consortiums at the moment, so this will place us well for the future."