How Public Sector Teams Unlock AWS Discounts Through OGVA

Many UK public sector organisations are overpaying for AWS, even though the One Government Value Agreement (OGVA) offers substantially lower rates.

The challenge is not availability, it is awareness. Many departments are unclear on how to access OGVA and procurement pathways can feel opaque, so optimisation often slips to the bottom of the priority list.

This is not a sales pitch. It is a practical guide to an underused route to better AWS pricing and how a recognised reseller structure can help you unlock it with minimal effort.

Your Timely Cost Advantage

Budget scrutiny is tightening everywhere. Cloud spend is under more pressure than ever, yet rate optimisation, meaning securing the best possible pricing for your existing services, often slips down the agenda because it is seen as overly complex or left entirely to technical teams.

OGVA was renewed in December 2023 for another three years, extending preferential pricing for public sector organisations. It delivers aggregated spend discounts that rival those secured by large commercial enterprises, without the need to rearchitect infrastructure or overhaul processes.

This is a budget lever that works quietly in the background but delivers real results.

Understanding OGVA and why many departments overlook it

The One Government Value Agreement is a three‑year Memorandum of Understanding between AWS and the Crown Commercial Service (CCS). It treats public bodies collectively as one purchaser unlocking better discounts on AWS services along with access to training funding and innovation credit schemes.

In practice you need to go through a qualifying AWS partner listed on frameworks such as G‑Cloud or RM6292 Cloud Compute 2 rather than purchasing directly from AWS. That extra step is often where public sector teams stall or stop altogether.

How public sector teams have been quietly benefiting

A number of organisations have achieved significant savings by accessing OGVA through structured reseller routes, without altering workloads or changing tooling.

Some public sector organisations including universities and local authorities have cut AWS costs by 20 to 30 percent by shifting to a CCS‑approved reseller route and optimising their use of Reserved Instances and Savings Plans.

How to Take Action Without Heavy Lift

1. 1. Audit your AWS purchase route: Is it going through a qualifying reseller or directly from AWS?
      
      
   2. Check OGVA eligibility: Most public bodies qualify automatically through their CCS frameworks

1. 1. Request a no free savings review: Use it to quantify potential benefits and identify quick wins.
      
      
   2. Consider prepaying for some or all of your usage: Full prepay can unlock an extra two percent discount while partial prepay typically adds one percent.
      
      
   3. Explore optional add‑ons: Visibility tools and FinOps services can be introduced once the savings baseline is understood.
      
      

Final thought

Cloud savings often come from smarter procurement, not from new tools or disruptive change.

If your organisation is still buying AWS in the standard way, this is your chance to revisit that route and treat reseller-delivered OGVA as more than just a framework — it is a lever for real savings.

Want to go deeper

• Review the OGVA guide and discount tiers from AWS via their public‑sector OGVA overview
  
• Check out the Strategic Blue blog on Cloud Compute 2 and OGVA 2 for a clear public explanation of how the model fits public sector needs
• Explore the Strategic Blue Savings Review for a clear, no-cost assessment of how OGVA and related frameworks could improve your organisation’s AWS pricing. Start your review here.