The Scottish Government’s Social Research and Analysis Framework is a list of appointed firms in three lots: consultation analysis, evaluations and social research. Its contracts were concluded on 11 April 2025 and run for 24 months, with up to two one-year extensions. No new firms can join. Core Scottish Government departments award work under it to the firms on each lot.
What it is
A framework is a list of suppliers chosen through one tender (a competition for a contract). This one covers social research and analysis “across the Core Scottish Government departments”. Its reference is CASE/605656 (award notice on Public Contracts Scotland). The contract notice put its estimated value at £15.7 million (notice 015717-2024).
It was set up under Scottish rules. The Scottish Government and other devolved Scottish bodies still follow the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015 and the Procurement Reform (Scotland) Act 2014, not the Procurement Act 2023 (Scottish Procurement Policy Note (SPPN) 5/2026).
What it buys
From the contract notice:
| Lot | Estimate | Includes | Excludes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Consultation analysis | £2.1m | Receiving, storing and classifying responses; analysing them; a full report | Running consultations or surveys; evaluating consultation proposals |
| 2 Evaluations | £5.5m | Process evaluations; small evaluations up to £65,000 per project; economic evaluations; statutory monitoring and reviews | Experimental or quasi-experimental impact evaluation; horizon scanning; meta-analysis; feasibility studies |
| 3 Social research | £8.1m | Surveys, focus groups, interviews, public panels, deliberative and lived experience research; evidence reviews and secondary analysis; data linkage | Impact assessment; evaluation; consultation analysis; econometric or financial analysis; modelling |
The notice says the Scottish Government publishes about 100 consultations a year, so it always needs consultation analysis.
Who can join and how
No new firm can join. Under the Scottish rules, call-offs go only to the firms that signed the framework when it was concluded (regulation 34(4)).
The award notice gives these counts (notice 018509-2025). SMEs are small and medium-sized enterprises.
| Lot | Bids | From SMEs | Firms appointed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Consultation analysis | 17 | 14 | 7 |
| 2 Evaluations | 32 | 25 | 5 |
| 3 Social research | 30 | 22 | 7 |
The appointed firms are named in the award notice; we don’t name them here. All of them committed to Fair Work practices, including the Real Living Wage. They also committed to community benefits once they win £50,000 or more of work in a reporting period. The Scottish Government hasn’t published a date for a replacement framework yet.
How work is awarded
A call-off is a contract awarded under the framework. The Scottish rules allow call-offs with or without a new competition, depending on what the framework documents say (regulation 34(7)). This framework’s call-off rules are in its tender documents, which are not public. So it isn’t known whether any lot allows a direct award.
A mini-competition (the Scottish term for further competition) works like this under regulation 34(10):
- The department writes to the framework firms that can do the work.
- It sets a deadline long enough for the work’s complexity.
- Bids are in writing and stay sealed until the deadline.
- The contract goes to the most economically advantageous tender, judged on criteria fixed when the framework was set up.
How PCS Quick Quotes fit in
Quick Quote is the online tool on Public Contracts Scotland (PCS) for asking firms for quotes. PCS says buyers use it “for low value/low risk procurement exercises or for mini competitions within framework agreements” (PCS FAQ).
- For framework call-offs: the Scottish procurement policy handbook says Quick Quote can run a mini-competition, because the buyer can invite only the framework’s suppliers (handbook).
- Used for this framework: a Lot 3 call-off awarded on 26 June 2026 was published on PCS as a Quick Quote award (notice JUL561069). The public notices don’t show which tool other call-offs used.
- Quick Quote requests are not public. Only supplier accounts the buyer invites can open them. The award may be published afterwards, as it was for that call-off.
- For small jobs outside the framework: buyers search the PCS Supplier Finder directory to choose who to invite (Supplier Journey).
Key dates
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| 17 May 2024 | Contract notice published |
| 18 Jul 2024 | Tender deadline, after two extensions |
| 11 Apr 2025 | Contracts concluded for all three lots |
| 1 May 2025 | Award notice published |
| Apr 2027 | First 24 months end |
| Apr 2029 | Latest end, if both one-year extensions are used |
What to do now
- On the framework? The Supplier Journey suggests a shared mailbox for PCS, so that Quick Quote invitations are not missed during leave.
- Not on it? Register on PCS, switch on your Supplier Finder profile, and set alerts for research and evaluation notices.
- Planning ahead: the first term ends in April 2027. Watch PCS for any notice about extending or replacing the framework.
Questions people ask
What are the lots?
Lot 1 consultation analysis, Lot 2 evaluations and Lot 3 social research.
Can my firm join the framework now?
No. It is a closed framework. Your firm could bid if the Scottish Government tenders a new one.
Can I see Quick Quotes on PCS?
Only if the buyer invites your supplier account. The requests are not published, though some awards are.
Does the Procurement Act 2023 apply to this framework?
No. The Scottish Government follows Scottish procurement rules.
How Tenderhooks helps
Tenderhooks reads Public Contracts Scotland four times a day, including notices below the UK-wide thresholds. It reads Find a Tender and Contracts Finder through the day. Your Monday plan carries the open Scottish Government research and evaluation tenders that fit your firm best; it holds at most five. Quick Quote requests go only to invited firms, so no alert service can show them. Our free Scotland research report shows who buys research in Scotland.
Sources
- Find a Tender: contract notice 015717-2024, via the official API: lots, scope, estimates, duration, extensions. Checked 2 Nov 2026.
- Find a Tender: notices 016872-2024 and 020862-2024, via the API: deadline changes. Checked 2 Nov 2026.
- Find a Tender: award notice 018509-2025, via the API: bids, firms appointed, contract date, commitments. Checked 2 Nov 2026.
- PCS: contract notice MAY505522: 24-month duration and two one-year extensions. Checked 2 Nov 2026.
- PCS: award notice MAY529436: reference, scope, contracts concluded 11 April 2025, publication date. Checked 2 Nov 2026.
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- PCS: Quick Quote award JUL561069: a Lot 3 call-off run as a Quick Quote. Checked 2 Nov 2026.
- legislation.gov.uk: regulation 34: framework call-off rules. Checked 2 Nov 2026.
- gov.scot: SPPN 5/2026: which rules Scottish bodies follow. Checked 2 Nov 2026.
- gov.scot: procurement policy handbook, section 7: Quick Quote for mini-competitions. Checked 2 Nov 2026.
- PCS: FAQ: what Quick Quote is and who can see it. Checked 2 Nov 2026.
- Supplier Journey: PCS: Supplier Finder, shared mailbox advice. Checked 2 Nov 2026.
This page explains official rules and guidance in plain English, checked on the date above. It is not legal advice. The official sources it links to are what apply.
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