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How public procurement works now: a bidder's map of the Procurement Act 2023

One map of the Procurement Act 2023: what changed, each stage of a contract and your move at it, 2026 thresholds, financial tests, payment and where SMEs win.

SMEsFoundersCharities and social enterprises21 min readChecked 18 October 2026
On this page
  1. The reality
  2. What changed on 24 February 2025, and since
  3. The life of a contract, and where you come in
    1. Open or competitive flexible: read the notice before you commit
    2. Minimum time limits
    3. Routes that skip the open competition
    4. Submission: one registration per portal
    5. Assessment summaries: your scorecard
    6. Standstill and challenge
  4. Thresholds from 1 January 2026, and the regime below them
    1. Below the threshold: the SME-friendly band
  5. Conditions of participation: what a buyer may ask about your finances
  6. Payment: 30 days, and your own record now counts
  7. Where SMEs win
  8. Pitfalls
  9. Checklist: ready to bid under the Act
  10. Questions
    1. When did the Procurement Act 2023 come into force, and does it apply to my tender?
    2. What is the difference between the open and the competitive flexible procedure?
    3. What are the public procurement thresholds in 2026?
    4. What is an assessment summary?
    5. How long is the standstill period under the Procurement Act?
    6. Do I need to register on the Central Digital Platform for a small contract?
    7. Can a buyer require turnover of twice the contract value?
    8. Where do North West councils advertise tenders?
  11. Sources

Public buying in England has run under the Procurement Act 2023 since 24 February 2025. This guide maps what changed, each stage a contract passes through and your move at it, the 2026 thresholds, the financial tests a buyer may set, payment rules, and where small firms win. The other contracts guides go deeper on each stage.

  • The Act replaced the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 on 24 February 2025. A procurement started before that date runs under the old rules to the end1.
  • Register once, free, on the Central Digital Platform (CDP, Find a Tender). Since 1 April 2026 a buyer needs your CDP identifier before it can publish even a below-threshold award, so small-contract winners must register too2.
  • Two procedures only: open (one stage) and competitive flexible (whatever the buyer designs, described in the tender notice). Reading that description is a bid/no-bid step3.
  • Every assessed bidder gets an assessment summary, its own scores and reasons and the winner's, criterion by criterion, then at least 8 working days of standstill45.
  • Financial tests must be proportionate. The "twice the contract value" turnover cap is gone, audited accounts cannot be demanded unless the law already requires them, and insurance is needed at contract start, not at bid6.
  • SMEs took 21% of direct public spend in England in 2025 and 34% in local government, where tenders are smaller. Start there7.

The reality

  • 21% of direct public procurement spend in England went to SMEs in 2025, £45.2bn and a record7
  • 34% SME share in local government, 2025 (£29.1bn)7
  • 77% of suppliers invoicing the public sector in 2025 were SMEs (137,191)7
  • 8 working days minimum standstill after the contract award notice5
  • £12,000 / £30,000 including VAT: where a below-threshold contract must be advertised (central government and NHS trusts / everyone else)8
  • 10+ days of work for a good bid, GOV.UK's own estimate9

Guidance lags the law

GOV.UK's guide for charities, updated 21 July 2026, still sends readers to Contracts Finder, whose rules were switched to the CDP on 1 October 202692. Several North West council pages still quote PCR-era thresholds10. Where a buyer's web page and the GOV.UK Procurement Act guidance disagree, trust the Act guidance; the tender documents are what bind.

What changed on 24 February 2025, and since

The dates that matter, from commencement to the next central government social value model113512221514:

Procurement Act milestones, 2025 to 2027
  1. Act in forceprocurements already started stay on PCR 2015
  2. PPN 002 and PPN 01810% social value minimum centrally; 45-day payment average above £5m a year
  3. New thresholds£135,018 central, £207,720 sub-central, goods and services, incl. VAT
  4. Local reservation OrderEnglish councils may reserve below-threshold work to local or UK suppliers
  5. GCA, CDP identifier, payment dataCCS joins the GCA; buyers need your identifier; payments over £30,000 published
  6. Contracts Finder replacedits rules now point to the CDP
  7. PPN 026central government social value narrows to Good jobs and Skills
Area Before (PCR 2015) Now (Procurement Act 2023) Source
Award basis MEAT, most economically advantageous tender MAT, most advantageous tender: "not a change in policy", but price need not take precedence 11
Standstill and feedback 10 calendar days, started by standstill letters At least 8 working days from the contract award notice; statutory assessment summaries replace the letters 5
Procedures Open, restricted, competitive with negotiation, competitive dialogue Open, or competitive flexible: the buyer designs it and must describe it in the tender notice 3
Rolling supplier lists Dynamic Purchasing Systems Dynamic markets: join any time, no membership cap, no audited accounts or insurance demanded to join 12
Below-threshold adverts From £10,000 / £25,000 net of VAT From £12,000 (central government, now including NHS trusts) / £30,000 (others), including VAT 8
Social value, central government PPN 06/20 PPN 002 from 1 October 2025, 10% minimum of the score13; PPN 026 for procurements started from 1 January 2027: two outcomes (Good jobs, Skills), 10% at £1m to under £5m, 20% at £5m and over 14
Crown Commercial Service A Cabinet Office agency "Became Government Commercial Agency on 1 April 2026" 15
Where notices live Contracts Finder below threshold, Find a Tender above The CDP for all; from 1 October 2026 the rules that pointed to Contracts Finder point to the CDP 2
Exclusion lookback Shorter for discretionary grounds (commonly cited as 3 years) Nothing older than 5 years counts, mandatory or discretionary 16
Financial gates Minimum turnover of up to twice the contract value No multiple. Any condition must be "a proportionate means" of ensuring capacity 6

PPN 026 reaches only departments, executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies on contracts of £1m or more. Tussell estimates that leaves "more than two-thirds of the public sector market unchanged": councils, the NHS and education keep their own social value policies1417. See Social value that scores.

The life of a contract, and where you come in

The life of a contract under the Act
  1. Pipeline noticebig buyers list contracts over £2m, 18 months ahead
  2. Market engagementlots, timescales and evidence tests still open
  3. Tender noticeprocedure, criteria, weightings, pass/fail rules
  4. Clarificationsanswers go to every bidder
  5. Submissionthrough the buyer's own portal
  6. Evaluationconditions, pass/fail, then scores
  7. Assessment summaryyour scores and the winner's
  8. Standstillat least 8 working days
  9. Award and afterKPIs and payments published
Stage What the buyer does Your move
1. Pipeline notice A body spending over £100m a year publishes, within 56 days of its financial year starting, an 18-month pipeline of contracts over £2m (from a June 2024 pre-commencement guide; check the final rules)18 Read target buyers' pipelines each spring. Start the relationship a year out
2. Preliminary market engagement May run webinars, site visits, one-to-ones and sessions only for SMEs or new entrants; must publish a notice before the tender notice or explain why not; must exclude a supplier whose involvement gives an unavoidable unfair advantage19 Go. Say what a proportionate lot, timescale and evidence test look like for a firm your size
3. Tender notice States the procedure, the award criteria and methodology or a summary, "the relative importance of all the criteria", the conditions of participation, and whether failing a pass/fail test disqualifies11 Bid/no-bid: Finding tenders. Map every criterion to evidence you hold
4. Clarifications Must answer; no set deadline, only that answers should come quickly20 Ask in the first week. Answers show what the buyer values
5. Submission Through the buyer's e-sourcing portal, which "will not allow you to submit after the deadline has passed"21 Upload a day early. Keep the receipt
6. Evaluation Checks conditions of participation, applies pass/fail tests, scores against the published method; must hear you before rejecting a tender as abnormally low11 Writing the bid
7. Assessment summary Sends every assessed bidder its own scores and reasons and the winner's, at the same time, before the award notice45 Log it. Compare criterion by criterion
8. Standstill At least 8 working days from the award notice; no signature before working day nine5 Decide within two or three days whether to challenge
9. Award and after Publishes the award notice; over £5m, a redacted contract within 120 days and at least three KPIs assessed yearly18; from 1 April 2026, payments over £30,000, quarterly22 Mine the incumbent's KPIs and the buyer's payment record before the next bid

Behind every stage, the buyer must consider splitting the contract into lots (and give reasons if it does not) and consider the barriers SMEs face (section 12(4))1813. If a tender looks built for a prime contractor, say so at market engagement.

Open or competitive flexible: read the notice before you commit

Open procedure Competitive flexible procedure
Stages One. The tender notice is the invitation to tender As many as the buyer designs: participation (shortlisting), negotiation, dialogue, site visits, demonstrations, presentations3
Who bids Anyone: "any interested party can submit a tender"3 Those taken through each stage. Guidance suggests at least 5 for simple procedures, 3 for complex ones3
Can the criteria change? No Only if the notice said so: related sub-criteria may be added and weightings moved within a stated range; no new main criteria, no pass/fail tests added or removed11
Can you be dropped part way? No Yes. "Intermittent assessment" stops weaker bidders before a full final tender18
Conditions of participation May be checked late, for example only for the leading tender3 Usually at the participation stage, where they may double as shortlisting criteria23

Five lines to find in a competitive flexible notice

  1. The stages, and what each one assesses.
  2. Whether negotiation, dialogue or a "preferred supplier" stage is allowed (only if the notice says so)3.
  3. Whether the award criteria may be refined, and within what range11.
  4. How many suppliers go through each stage.
  5. Which conditions of participation may be met after bidding, if any3.

Minimum time limits

Period (section 54) Minimum Variants
Request to participate 25 days 10 days in urgency
Tender, electronic, all documents with the notice 25 days 30 days if some documents follow
Tender, non-electronic 30 days 35 days if some documents follow
After a qualifying planned procurement notice (published 40 days to 12 months ahead) 10 days Also 10 days for urgency, dynamic-market call-offs, and sub-central or utility buyers inviting pre-selected suppliers
Light touch contracts None

Limits must be the same for every supplier, and urgency "should not be used as a way to 'catch up'" after a buyer's own delays20. A 25-day window for a bid GOV.UK says takes 10 or more days means your bid library (policies, case studies, CVs, accounts) must exist before the notice appears9.

Routes that skip the open competition

Frameworks last at most 4 years unless the notice justifies longer; call-offs can be with or without a mini-competition and carry no mandatory standstill12. Open frameworks must reopen within 3 years of the first award and again within 5 years of the second, 8 years at most, so missing one is no longer a four-year lockout: G-Cloud 15 started on 6 August 2026 and reopens after 18 and 36 months, and DOS7, live since 30 January 2026, "will reopen every 18 months"2425. Dynamic markets accept applications at any time, cannot cap membership, and advertise each call-off on the CDP, so you see the work before you join1218. Detail in How to get on a framework.

Submission: one registration per portal

The CDP holds notices and your supplier record. Bids go through each buyer's own portal, and each portal needs its own registration26. Who uses which, confirmed from the buyers' own pages in October 2026:

Portal Who uses it Notes
The Chest, the North West instance of Proactis ProContract "Over 30" North West councils27, including Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester, Cumberland, Westmorland and Furness, Salford, Wigan, Warrington, Wirral, Blackburn with Darwen and the six STAR Procurement councils (Knowsley, Rochdale, St Helens, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford)2740. Liverpool City Council, GMCA and TfGM call it "ProContract"302829 Free; one registration covers them all. Tick categories and councils for email alerts10. Chorley advertises everything over £25,000 there41
Fusion Supplier Portal Lancashire County Council31 Not on The Chest. Older eurodyn portal kept for legacy contracts; a free Consortium Exchange for joint bids42
Atamis, the "Health Family" system Department of Health and Social Care, NHS England and many trusts32 Each buyer's portal is separate, with its own login33
EU Supply and Multiquote Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Foundation Trust34 The NHS picture is mixed; check each trust
Jaggaer NHS Supply Chain35; Fusion21, the procurement charity for housing, councils, education, health and blue-light bodies36
SAP Ariba NHS Shared Business Services37; Manchester Airports Group, tender notices on the CDP38 NHS SBS also wants you on Find a Tender
In-Tend University of Manchester39
Procure Plus's own portal The Manchester-based housing procurement body: 12 frameworks, five always-open DPSs43 CDP registration required to tender

Gaps in the North West map, and why registration matters

Manchester City Council's and the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority's pages could not be read for this guide; check them directly. Below the threshold, registration is the price of sight: Knowsley's £25,000-to-threshold competitions go on The Chest, and Wigan may invite quotes under £75,000 from a limited list of registered suppliers4434.

Assessment summaries: your scorecard

Regulation 31 of the Procurement Regulations 2024 fixes what you receive4:

What the buyer must show you, in its own words

Westmorland and Furness Council: tender documents state "all evaluation criteria, scoring method, scores available for each question and their weightings"21. The GOV.UK guidance: the buyer "must set out the relative importance of all the criteria"11. If you cannot find the weightings, ask. That question has a legal basis.

Keep a loss log

One sheet: buyer, criterion, weight, your score, the winner's score, the reason given. After three bids you will know which criteria you lose on and by how much. No public UK benchmark for SME win rates exists, so this sheet is the only one you will get.

Standstill and challenge

Thresholds from 1 January 2026, and the regime below them

The advert triggers and the goods and services thresholds, all including VAT, show how wide the below-threshold band is822:

Goods and services: where the rules change (incl. VAT, from 1 Jan 2026)
Advert trigger, central government and NHS trusts£12,000
Advert trigger, other buyers£30,000
Full Act regime, central government£135,018
Full Act regime, sub-central (councils)£207,720
Contract type Central government Sub-central (for example councils) Status
Goods and services £135,018 £207,720 PPN 023/2622
Works £5,193,000 £5,193,000 Law-firm summary; not checked against PPN 023/2646
Light touch services £663,540 £663,540 Law-firm summary, unchanged; same caveat46
Below-threshold advert trigger £12,000, now including NHS trusts and foundation trusts £30,000 GOV.UK guidance8

The thresholds apply to procurements started on or after 1 January 202622. The Act does not cover NHS healthcare services, bought since 1 January 2024 under the Provider Selection Regime with no minimum value47: see Selling innovation to the public sector.

Below the threshold: the SME-friendly band

Rule What it means for you
Section 85: buyers "cannot restrict the submission of tenders by reference to suppliers' suitability to perform the contract", except for works above the goods and services threshold8 No pre-qualification stage. Suitability can still be weighed at award, so keep the evidence ready
Section 86: before inviting tenders the buyer must consider the barriers SMEs face, and may reserve the contract for SMEs, VCSEs or both8; since 24 March 2026 the notice must say if it is reserved2 Read the reservation line first. An SME here has fewer than 250 staff and turnover of £44m or less or a balance sheet of £38m or less3
Location: central government may reserve to UK suppliers or to one county under PPN 005; English councils may reserve to local or UK suppliers under the Local Government (Exclusion of Non-commercial Considerations) (England) Order 2026, in force 4 February 2026, if announced beforehand822 A North West postcode now counts in your home councils. Knowsley already says "some competitions are restricted to local suppliers"44
CDP identifier: since 1 April 2026 (SI 2026/360) a buyer must hold your identifier and confirmation of registration before it publishes a below-threshold contract details notice2 Register before you quote, not after you win

Conditions of participation: what a buyer may ask about your finances

Conditions of participation (CoPs) are the gate before scoring. They may cover only legal and financial capacity and technical ability, each "a proportionate means" of ensuring you can perform the contract, and you must meet every one to win36.

Test Under PCR 2015 Now (section 22 and the Cabinet Office guidance)
Minimum turnover Up to twice the estimated contract value, "except in duly justified cases" (regulation 58(9)), revoked 24 February 202548 No multiple. The guidance names no ratio; proportionality is the only test623
Accounts Accounts information and ratios could be required48 Audited accounts cannot be required unless Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006 already makes you audit; otherwise "alternative evidence", such as bank data or a credit rating, is assessed623
Insurance Professional risk indemnity could be required at selection48 Cannot be required before award. It may be required at contract start, so a broker's quote is enough at bid623
Qualifications and track record Named standards could be specified Equivalents must be allowed; a prior award by a particular authority cannot be required6
Relying on others Allowed Joint tenders, subcontractors and guarantees count if legally binding; relied-on suppliers other than guarantors are named in the award notice623. Every intended subcontractor is checked against the debarment list, and you can replace one that fails16

GOV.UK's SME guide frames the question behind the ratios as "sufficient financial capacity, for example cash flow and working capital" for the contract's size49. The clearest published example of a buyer's rating is NHS Supply Chain's supplier guide of 3 July 2025: a Dun & Bradstreet report and six tests scored 0 to 250.

Test 2 marks 1 mark 0 marks
D&B failure score over 50 30 to 50 under 30
Turnover ratio ("Bidder Annual Revenue / Transactional NHS Supply Chain Last NHS Financial Year") over 2.0 1.5 to 2.0 under 1.5
Net debt to EBITDA under 2.5 2.5 to 3.5 over 3.5
Interest cover over 4.0 2.5 to 4.0 under 2.5
Acid ratio over 0.8 0.7 to 0.8 under 0.7
Net worth above £0 below £0

How NHS Supply Chain reads the score (July 2025)

11 or more is low risk, 8 to 10 low-moderate, 6 to 7 moderate, 3 to 5 moderate-high, 0 to 2 high. "For the majority of our framework awards, there is no intention to exclude a supplier on the grounds of their financial standing": a high-risk firm is asked for full accounts, continuity plans or KPI visibility instead. A firm trading under 12 months may be asked for a parent company guarantee or alternatives, and "Provision of a Parent Company Guarantee would not be a condition of award at the point of tender"50.

If a buyer still asks for twice the contract value

Ask through the clarification portal how the condition is "a proportionate means" under section 22, and offer what the guidance accepts: management accounts, bank evidence, a credit rating, a guarantee, or a consortium partner23. Lancashire's Consortium Exchange exists to find that partner42.

Payment: 30 days, and your own record now counts

Rule Detail
30-day terms Buyers "must use 30-day payment terms and pass them down the supply chain", across a broader range of public contracts than before926
Your record, above £5m a year Under PPN 018, from 1 October 2025, bidders for contracts above £5m a year including VAT must show they pay at least 95% of invoices within 60 days (90% with an action plan) and an average of 45 days or fewer; before 30 September 2025 the average was 55 days. It applies "regardless of size", and a bidder that fails "should be deselected"51
Buyers' records, public Every payment over £30,000 including VAT under contracts procured from 1 April 2026 is published quarterly on the CDP within 30 days of quarter end222; payment compliance notices show whether an authority paid within 30 days18
Complaints Late payment goes to the Public Procurement Review Service45

If you prime or subcontract, track your own payment days now. Above £5m a year they are a bid document.

Where SMEs win

England, 2025, direct spend SME share
All public sector 21%, £45.2bn, up 2 points on the year7
Local government 34%, £29.1bn; risen every year since 2020; spend with local SMEs "continues to far exceed" spend with non-local ones7
NHS and central government "Remained flat at 16% and 10% respectively", says the Tracker's reflections page, naming central government first; its buyer-type page says the NHS share "broadly flatlined" and central government's was below its 2020 level. Other summaries reverse the two figures; check the chart before quoting either7
Central government departments On average 8.4 percentage points below their new three-year SME targets7

Gus Tugendhat, founder of Tussell: "reducing average tender values, as Local Government has done, is one of the most effective ways to increase SME participation. Government must also be willing to back smaller suppliers, rather than continuing to rely on incumbent prime contractors." SME Procurement Tracker 20267.

These are shares of spend, not win rates; no credible public UK figure exists for SME bids won over bids submitted. The rule the data supports: start with councils, lower-value lots and the below-threshold band, where there is no pre-qualification and reservations can run in your favour. Who buys, and what they need covers each buyer type.

Real example: the new stages, visible in the North West in October 2026

  • Pipelines. Wirral and TfGM publish pipeline notices for contracts over £2m on Find a Tender5229; Lancashire publishes a 2026-27 pipeline spreadsheet31 and Wigan its commissioning intentions for 2026 to 202934.
  • Market engagement. Knowsley advertises market engagement exercises on The Chest and holds Meet the Buyer events "on a regular basis"44.
  • Local reservation. Knowsley: "some competitions are restricted to local suppliers"44, now on the footing of the 2026 Order.
  • Consortia. Lancashire's Consortium Exchange is an open directory for firms wanting to form "project teams or joint bids"42: the route to a condition of participation you cannot meet alone.

Pitfalls

Pitfall What happens Fix
Late The portal locks at the deadline21; a late tender may be disregarded11 Internal deadline 24 hours early; upload hours early; keep the receipt53
Over the word count A tender over "the prescribed word count" may be disregarded11; past a 500-word limit the excess is "likely disregarded"53 Count every answer. Nothing essential past the limit
Missing documents An unsigned form of tender, a missing pricing schedule or no insurance certificate makes the bid incomplete53 A compliance checklist per tender, signed off by someone outside the bid
Not on the CDP A buyer cannot publish your below-threshold award without your identifier2; GMCA says CDP registration "will be mandatory"28 Register now, with two years of accounts, connected persons and declarations to hand26
Misreading pass/fail A tender must be disregarded if you fail a condition of participation, and the methodology may make a pass/fail criterion fatal11 List every pass/fail item before you decide where to spend effort
Wrong portal Each NHS buyer on Atamis needs its own registration33; Lancashire is not on The Chest31 One registration per buyer portal, done before the notice
Old thresholds, old alerts Some council pages still quote PCR-era figures and Contracts Finder10; Contracts Finder's rules moved to the CDP on 1 October 20262 Use the GOV.UK Act guidance and CDP alerts
Missing the standstill Only a challenge "issued and notified during the standstill period" suspends signature5 Read the assessment summary the day it arrives

Checklist: ready to bid under the Act

Questions

When did the Procurement Act 2023 come into force, and does it apply to my tender?

On 24 February 2025. A procurement started before that date runs under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 to its end, so check the notice date1. The Act covers government departments, the NHS, councils, universities, schools, social housing, police, fire and utilities26, but not NHS healthcare services, which are bought under the Provider Selection Regime47.

What is the difference between the open and the competitive flexible procedure?

Open is one stage: the tender notice is the invitation and any interested party can bid. Competitive flexible is whatever the buyer designs, which can include shortlisting, negotiation, dialogue and demonstrations, and the tender notice must describe how it will run3.

What are the public procurement thresholds in 2026?

From 1 January 2026: £135,018 for central government and £207,720 for other bodies for goods and services, including VAT22. Law-firm summaries give works at £5,193,000 and light touch services at £663,54046. Below those, contracts from £12,000 (central government and NHS trusts) or £30,000 (others) must be advertised8.

What is an assessment summary?

The statutory feedback every assessed bidder receives before the award notice: your score and the reason for it against each criterion, why you lost, and the winning tender's scores and reasons, sent to all bidders at the same time4.

How long is the standstill period under the Procurement Act?

At least 8 working days from the day the contract award notice is published, which counts as day one; the contract cannot be signed before working day nine. Framework call-offs, dynamic-market contracts and light touch contracts carry no mandatory standstill5.

Do I need to register on the Central Digital Platform for a small contract?

In practice, yes. Since 1 April 2026, under the Procurement (Amendment) Regulations 2026, a buyer must hold your CDP identifier and confirmation of registration before it publishes a below-threshold contract details notice2. Registration is free, and you should never pay to see opportunities26.

Can a buyer require turnover of twice the contract value?

Not as a rule. The "twice the estimated contract value" cap was a PCR 2015 provision, revoked on 24 February 202548. Under section 22 any financial condition must be a proportionate means of ensuring you can perform the contract, audited accounts cannot be demanded unless the Companies Act already requires them, and insurance cannot be required before award6.

Where do North West councils advertise tenders?

Most on The Chest, the North West instance of Proactis ProContract, free to join27; Liverpool City Council, GMCA and TfGM use the same portal under the ProContract name302829. Lancashire County Council uses its own Fusion Supplier Portal31. Above-threshold notices also appear on the Central Digital Platform, Find a Tender26.

Sources

  1. Wirral Council, "Procurement Act 2023: guidance for suppliers", read 18 October 2026. https://www.wirral.gov.uk/business/tenders-and-contracts/procurement-act-2023-guidance-suppliers ↩↩↩

  2. The Procurement (Amendment) Regulations 2026, SI 2026/360, made 23 March 2026: reservation statements from 24 March 2026; CDP identifier before below-threshold contract details notices and payment publication from 1 April 2026; Contracts Finder provisions read as the CDP from 1 October 2026. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2026/360/made ↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩

  3. GOV.UK, Procurement Act 2023 guidance: competitive tendering procedures. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/procurement-act-2023-guidance-documents-define-phase/competitive-tendering-procedures-html ↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩

  4. The Procurement Regulations 2024, SI 2024/692, regulation 31, assessment summaries. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2024/692/regulation/31 ↩↩↩↩

  5. GOV.UK, Procurement Act 2023 guidance: contract award notices and standstill. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/procurement-act-2023-guidance-documents-procure-phase/guidance-contract-award-notices-and-standstill-html ↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩

  6. Procurement Act 2023, section 22, conditions of participation, in force 24 February 2025. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/section/22 ↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩

  7. Tussell and British Chambers of Commerce, "SME Procurement Tracker 2026", May 2026: England, calendar 2025, direct above-threshold invoice spend, data downloaded 27 April 2026; 2025 spend may be understated by publishing delays. https://www.kentinvictachamber.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Tussell__BCC_SME_Procurement_Tracker_2026_FINAL_-_pdf.pdf ↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩

  8. GOV.UK, Procurement Act 2023 guidance: below-threshold contracts, updated 13 July 2026. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/procurement-act-2023-guidance-documents-define-phase/guidance-below-threshold-contracts-html ↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩

  9. GOV.UK, "VCSEs: a guide to working with government", updated 21 July 2026. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/vcses-a-guide-to-working-with-government ↩↩↩↩

  10. Salford City Council, "How to tender for business", still quoting PCR-era thresholds at 18 October 2026. https://www.salford.gov.uk/your-council/finance/supplying-the-council/how-to-tender-for-business/ ↩↩↩

  11. GOV.UK, Procurement Act 2023 guidance: assessing competitive tenders. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/procurement-act-2023-guidance-documents-procure-phase/assessing-competitive-tenders-html ↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩

  12. GOV.UK, the official Procurement Act 2023 e-learning, module 5: frameworks and dynamic markets, based on the draft Regulations and accurate at 26 July 2024. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-official-procurement-act-2023-e-learning/module-5-frameworks-and-dynamic-markets ↩↩↩

  13. GOV.UK, PPN 002: taking account of social value in the award of central government contracts, mandatory from 1 October 2025. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ppn-002-taking-account-of-social-value-in-the-award-of-contracts/ppn-002-taking-account-of-social-value-in-the-award-of-central-government-contracts-html ↩↩↩

  14. GOV.UK, PPN 026: the Social Value Model, published 5 August 2026, practitioner guidance due autumn 2026. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ppn-026-the-social-value-model/ppn-026-the-social-value-model-html ↩↩↩

  15. Government Commercial Agency, "How to supply", read 18 October 2026. https://www.gca.gov.uk/how-to-supply The merger with Cabinet Office commercial teams: Civil Service World, 11 February 2026. https://www.civilserviceworld.com/news/article/commercial-teams-to-merge-into-new-government-commercial-agency ↩↩

  16. GOV.UK, Procurement Act 2023 guidance: exclusions. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/procurement-act-2023-guidance-documents-procure-phase/guidance-exclusions-html ↩↩↩

  17. Tussell, "The central government Social Value Model explained: PPN 026", Ben Pollard, 5 August 2026. https://www.tussell.com/insights/the-central-govt-social-value-model-explained-ppn026 ↩

  18. YPO and Doncaster Council, "Procurement Act Guide for SMEs", June 2024, written before commencement: pipeline, KPI and payment-notice details may differ in the final Regulations. https://www.doncaster.gov.uk/Documents/DocumentView/Stream/Media/Default/Corporate%20Procurement/Procurement%20Act%20Guide%20for%20SMEs%20-%20June%202024%20(1).pdf ↩↩↩↩↩↩

  19. GOV.UK, Procurement Act 2023 guidance: preliminary market engagement. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/procurement-act-2023-guidance-documents-define-phase/guidance-preliminary-market-engagement-html ↩

  20. GOV.UK, Procurement Act 2023 guidance: time periods. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/procurement-act-2023-guidance-documents-procure-phase/time-periods-html ↩↩

  21. Westmorland and Furness Council, "Procurement and tendering". https://www.westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk/business-and-licensing/procurement-tenders-and-social-value-opportunities/procurement-and-tendering ↩↩↩

  22. Osborne Clarke, "Regulatory Outlook, February 2026: regulated procurement": 2026 thresholds under PPN 023/26, payment publication from 1 April 2026, the 2026 local reservation Order in force 4 February 2026. https://www.osborneclarke.com/insights/regulatory-outlook-february-2026-regulated-procurement ↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩

  23. GOV.UK, Procurement Act 2023 guidance: conditions of participation, HTML published 19 July 2024, links updated 20 April 2026. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/procurement-act-2023-guidance-documents-procure-phase/guidance-conditions-of-participation-html ↩↩↩↩↩↩

  24. Government Commercial Agency, G-Cloud 15 (RM1557.15). https://www.gca.gov.uk/agreements/RM1557.15 ↩

  25. Government Commercial Agency, Digital Outcomes 7 (RM1043.9). https://www.gca.gov.uk/agreements/RM1043.9 ↩

  26. GOV.UK, "The Procurement Act 2023: a short guide for suppliers". https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/procurement-act-2023-short-guides/the-procurement-act-2023-a-short-guide-for-suppliers-html ↩↩↩↩↩↩↩

  27. Cheshire East Council, "e-tendering" (The Chest). https://www.cheshireeast.gov.uk/business/procurement/doing_business/e-tendering.aspx ↩↩↩

  28. Greater Manchester Combined Authority, "Procurement". https://www.greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk/who-we-are/accounts-transparency-and-governance/procurement/ ↩↩↩

  29. Transport for Greater Manchester, "Procurement". https://tfgm.com/procurement ↩↩↩

  30. Liverpool City Council, "Tender opportunities". https://liverpool.gov.uk/business/procurement-and-contracts/tender-opportunities/ ↩↩

  31. Lancashire County Council, "How to do business with the county council". https://www.lancashire.gov.uk/business/tenders-and-procurement/how-to-do-business-with-the-county-council/ ↩↩↩↩

  32. Atamis, "Health Family" single eCommercial system, welcome page. https://atamis-1928.my.site.com/s/Welcome ↩

  33. Atamis supplier support, "Registering with a supplier portal". https://suppliersupport.atamis.co.uk/hc/en-gb/articles/4613254620319-Registering-with-a-Supplier-Portal ↩↩

  34. Wigan Council, "Business and tendering". https://www.wigan.gov.uk/Business/Council-Procurement/businessandtendering.aspx ↩↩↩

  35. NHS Supply Chain, "Contract and tender process". https://www.supplychain.nhs.uk/suppliers/contract-and-tender-process/ ↩

  36. Fusion21, "Become a supplier". https://www.fusion21.co.uk/become-a-supplier ↩

  37. NHS Shared Business Services, "Framework agreements: supplier information". https://www.sbs.nhs.uk/supplier-information/framework-agreements/ ↩

  38. Manchester Airports Group, "Procurement and contracts". https://www.magairports.com/work-with-us/procurement-and-contracts/ ↩

  39. University of Manchester, "Bidding for contracts". https://www.staffnet.manchester.ac.uk/procurement/supplying/bidding-for-contracts/ ↩

  40. STAR Procurement, home page: the six partner councils. https://www.star-procurement.gov.uk/ ↩

  41. Chorley Council, "Register on The Chest". https://chorley.gov.uk/transparency/procurement-1/3 ↩

  42. Lancashire County Council, "Consortium Exchange". https://www.lancashire.gov.uk/business/tenders-and-procurement/consortium-exchange/ ↩↩↩

  43. Procure Plus, "Procurement Act 2023 and social housing", with its frameworks and DPS pages. https://www.procure-plus.com/procurement-act-2023-social-housing/ ↩

  44. Knowsley Council, "Working with the council", a page that still cites PCR 2015. https://www.knowsley.gov.uk/business-licences-and-consumers/procurement-and-contracting/working-council ↩↩↩↩

  45. DLA Piper, "Procurement Pulse", April 2026. https://www.dlapiper.com/en/insights/publications/2026/03/procurement-pulse-april-2026 ↩↩

  46. Blake Morgan, "New public procurement thresholds from 1 January 2026", read 18 October 2026: works £5,193,000; light touch £663,540, unchanged. A law-firm summary, not checked against PPN 023/26 for this guide. https://www.blakemorgan.co.uk/new-public-procurement-thresholds-from-1-january-2026 ↩↩↩

  47. NHS England, "Provider Selection Regime: frequently asked questions". https://www.england.nhs.uk/commissioning/how-commissioning-is-changing/provider-selection-regime/ ↩↩

  48. Public Contracts Regulations 2015, regulation 58 as made, with the twice-contract-value cap at 58(9) https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2015/102/regulation/58/made; the current version shows it revoked on 24 February 2025 https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2015/102/regulation/58 ↩↩↩↩

  49. GOV.UK, "How to bid for government contracts as an SME effectively", Cabinet Office and Department for Education, last updated 23 March 2023. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/how-to-bid-for-government-contracts-as-an-sme-effectively ↩

  50. NHS Supply Chain, "Economic and Financial Standing Supplier Guide", 3 July 2025 (PDF). https://media-nhssc.azureedge.net/datashare/Economic-and-Financial-Standing-Supplier-Guide-3-July-2025.pdf ↩↩

  51. GOV.UK, PPN 018: how to take account of a supplier's approach to payment in the procurement of major contracts, guidance, replacing PPN 015 from 1 October 2025, read 18 October 2026. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ppn-018-how-to-take-account-of-a-suppliers-approach-to-payment-in-the-procurement-of-major-contracts/ppn-018-how-to-take-account-of-a-suppliers-approach-to-payment-in-the-procurement-of-major-contracts-guidance-html ↩↩

  52. Wirral Council, "Tenders and contracts": pipeline over £2m on Find a Tender. https://www.wirral.gov.uk/business/tenders-and-contracts ↩

  53. Grahame Steed, "Common mistakes suppliers make in tender submissions", Tracker Intelligence. https://www.trackerintelligence.com/resources/procurement-news/common-mistakes-suppliers-make-in-tender-submissions/ ↩↩↩

Written for businesses, founders and researchers in the North West of England and checked against the sources listed above on 18 October 2026. Funders change their rules, so always read the current call before you apply. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.

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