Tag: Guidance & Procurement Policy Notes

The Commercial Continuous Improvement Assessment Framework is designed to help drive continuous improvement in commercial practices across the public sector. Government Functional Standard GovS 008: Commercial and Commercial Continuous Improvement Assessment Framework – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) Commercial Continuous Improvement Assessment Framework Onboarding Guidance V2.3 (HTML) – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

A new national procurement policy statement (NPPS) was published on 13 May 2024. This NPPS sets out strategic priorities for public procurement and how contracting authorities can support their delivery, and will come into effect on 28 October 2024 Guidance: National Procurement Policy Statement (HTML) – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

This Procurement Policy Note updates the Selection Questionnaire (SQ) and accompanying statutory guidance. It applies to all contracting authorities and must be implemented by 27 June 2024 (although can be implemented now). The following questions in the standard SQ have been updated, so authorities will need to ensure they are using the latest version where…

Note on differences between Contracts and Grants Cabinet Office guidance on grants 2021-08-27_Grants-Standards-Guidance-INTRO.pdf (publishing.service.gov.uk)

Welsh Government updates WPPN 10/21 concerning blacklisting in the construction industry. On 29 January 2024, the Welsh Government published an updated version of WPPN 10/21: Blacklisting in the construction industry: advice for the Welsh public sector, replacing the version that was first published in 2013 and last updated in May 2017. WPPN 10/21 is not…

Public Sector procurement professionals will need to consider the implications of IFRS 16 when undertaking procurements. IFRS 16 sets out the principles for the recognition, measurement, presentation and disclosure of leases. IFRS 16 requires a lessee to recognise assets and liabilities for leases with a term ofmore than 12 months, unless the underlying asset is…

This Procurement Policy Note (PPN) sets out new requirements for contractingauthorities following North Macedonia’s accession to the World Trade Organisation’s(WTO) Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA), and amendments to twoCommon Procurement Vocabulary (CPV) codes to address outdated language.

This guidance focuses on the contract management activities undertaken during the period from the award of contract to contract completion. The purpose of this guidance on Contract Management: Practice (guidance) is to supportcontract management practice by illustrating some of the key aspects and issues. This guidance starts from the general and relevant aspects of contract…

This PPN sets out how payment approaches can be taken into account in the procurement of major government contracts. It replaces PPN 08/21 from 1 April 2024. Where this PPN applies, In-Scope organisations must use the questions inPart 3 (Technical and Professional Ability) in the standard selectionquestionnaire2. The questions require bidders to demonstrate they are…

Social value in procurement is about making sure that what you buy creates additional benefits for society. To get it right, you need to start thinking as early as possible about how to apply it to what you are buying. Social value in procurement – Procurement Essentials – CCS (crowncommercial.gov.uk) What is social value and…

There are some good (and not so good) examples of KPIs for a broad range of different contracts. This will be a useful resource to all Contracting Authorities in designing their own KPIs. A list of central government’s most important contracts, also showing up to four relevant Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for those contracts, and…

The financial thresholds for the application of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 will change from 1 January 2024. The Public Procurement (Agreement on Government Procurement) (Thresholds) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (SI 2023/1117) set out the position. The Public Procurement (Agreement on Government Procurement) (Thresholds) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (legislation.gov.uk) The threshold amounts of most thresholds will be…

Local authorities are increasingly using AI technologies and algorithmic systems to operate their territories and provide services to citizens. With AI having a bigger impact on citizens’ lives, there is a growing need for instruments that can guarantee the use of AI in a responsible and secure manner, ensuring for example transparency about the decision-making…

We assist public authorities by providing independent non-binding advice in relation to certain subsidies. Subsidy Advice Unit – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

This PPN sets out the actions organisations should take to identify and mitigate cyber threats, along with resources to support implementation. PPN 09/23: Updates to the Cyber Essentials Scheme – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

This note provides high-level guidance for departments on the Competitive Dialogue (CD) and Competitive Procedure with Negotiation (CPN) procurement procedures building on the requirement set out in the Sourcing Playbook under chapter 6. It is a collection of best practice to be used by commercial practitioners in applying these procedures, including avoiding common pitfalls and…

This note builds on chapter 8 in the Sourcing Playbook to provide more detailed guidance for departments when they are considering risk allocation in devising the commercial strategy for any contract or outsourcing initiative. Inappropriate or disproportionate risk allocation is recognised widely by government, suppliers and independent bodies (such as the NAO) as one of…

This note builds on chapter 3 in the Sourcing Playbook to provide more detailed guidance for departments on carrying out a delivery model assessment in order to decide whether to deliver a service, or part of a service, in-house, procure from the market or adopt a hybrid solution. It is aimed at supporting departments in…

This Guidance Note follows on from publication of the Sourcing Playbook and Construction Playbook. It explains how Contracting Authorities can reduce the risks of interruption to UK public services arising from Supplier Insolvency by requiring the supplier to provide Resolution Planning Information.

A guide for contracting authorities preparing for a PFI Expiry Health Check undertaken by the Infrastructure and Projects Authority

Government guidance on service delivery, including outsourcing, insourcing, mixed economy sourcing and contracting. The Sourcing Playbook is aimed at Commercial/Procurement, Finance, Project Delivery, Policy, and any professionals across the public sector who are responsible for the planning and delivery of insourcing and outsourcing services. It sets out how we make sourcing decisions, and deliver publicservices…

Assessing and monitoring the economic and financial standing ofsuppliers is about understanding the financial capacity of suppliers toperform a contract in order to safeguard the delivery of public services. This Guidance Note provides advice on how to:● assess the EFS of bidders during a procurement;● monitor the ongoing EFS of suppliers during the life of…

This Guidance Note provides high-level guidance for contracting authorities on ‘Should Cost Models’ (SCMs), the term used in the Sourcing Playbook and the Construction Playbook to describe whole life cost modelling.

These changes have been introduced in light of the requirements of the UK’s new Free Trade Agreements with Australia and New Zealand and apply to all public procurement. The main change to current procurement regulations is the removal of the use of the Prior Information Notice for making a call for competition (and the Periodic…

This Guidance Note sets out the four minimum requirements that departmental commercial teams must meet when measuring the realisation of commercial benefits for in-scope procurements.

Good practice guidelines aimed at practitioners who areresponsible for designing and running robust bid evaluation processes.

Glossary – CCS (crowncommercial.gov.uk)

Market management is about understanding the markets that we source from, recognising our influence on these markets, and designing commercial strategies and contracts that promote healthy markets over the short, medium and long term. Better market management should lead to more competitive markets, fewer situations where we are over reliant on one or two suppliers,…

This National Procurement Policy Statement sets out the strategic priorities for public procurement and how contracting authorities can support their delivery. This Statement applies to contracting authorities as defined in section 39(3) and (4) of the Small Business Enterprise and Employment Act 20151 . This includes central government departments, executive agencies, non-departmental public bodies, local…

This collection brings together all procurement policy notes, providing guidance on best practice for public sector procurement. Procurement policy notes – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)