Public tender glossary for research and consulting firms

The notice that tells the market who a contract is going to. Under the Procurement Act 2023 it is the UK6 contract award notice. It is published after the buyer decides and before the contract is signed, and it starts the standstill period. After signing comes the UK7 contract details notice. Under the older rules, the equivalent was the F03 contract award notice, published after the award (Find a Tender notice types). Award notices are where buyer records come from.

A contract worth less than the threshold for its type. Fewer rules apply. In England and Wales, a buyer may want to advertise one worth at least £12,000 (UK central government) or £30,000 (councils, most other bodies and the Welsh Government). It must then first publish a below-threshold tender notice on Find a Tender. Section 87 applies to devolved Welsh authorities directly; the Procurement (Wales) Regulations 2024 only send Welsh notices to Find a Tender through Sell2Wales. Welsh tenders under £30,000 need no Find a Tender notice; when advertised, they are usually on Sell2Wales. A buyer may also ask chosen suppliers for quotes without advertising. In England, when it does tender, it cannot add a separate suitability stage to cut the field (Procurement Act 2023, section 87; Wales regulations; gov.uk guidance). Northern Irish public bodies’ below-threshold contracts are outside these rules (section 84), and Scotland has its own.

A contract awarded under a framework, to a supplier already on it. A buyer can award a call-off after a competition between framework suppliers (a “competitive selection process”). It can also award one without a competition, if the framework sets out the core terms and an objective way to choose. Under the Procurement Act 2023, buyers must publish a contract award notice after a call-off, which they did not have to do before (gov.uk frameworks guidance).

The official online system under the Procurement Act 2023: an enhanced Find a Tender, launched on 24 February 2025. Buyers publish their notices there. Suppliers register, get a unique identifier and store their core details: basic information, accounts, connected persons and exclusion grounds. When they bid, they share these with the buyer using a share code or a downloaded file. It is free for everyone, and you only need to register when you want to bid (gov.uk factsheet).

The word many public bodies use for buying research. “Commissioning” a study usually means running a procurement. Transport Scotland, for example, says its social research is usually commissioned through competitive tendering. The same handbook says procurement law means it cannot fund unsolicited proposals (Transport Scotland). So a good idea usually needs to wait for a tender, a framework competition or a quote request.

The UK7 notice under the Procurement Act 2023. A buyer publishes it after signing a contract, within 30 days for contracts above the threshold. It sets out the final contract, and it is also used below the threshold (Find a Tender notice types). See our guide to Procurement Act notices.

The notice that invites bids. Under the Procurement Act 2023 it is the UK4 tender notice. Buyers use it for the open procedure and the competitive flexible procedure, including when they set up a framework. It is not used for call-offs under a framework. Under the older rules, the equivalent was the F02 contract notice (Find a Tender notice types). Above threshold, bidders usually get at least 25 days if bids are sent online and all documents come with the notice.

The government’s portal for contracts worth over £12,000, including VAT, with the government and its agencies. It covers England and non-devolved bodies. It is free. You can search without an account, but you need one to save searches and get emails (gov.uk). Since 24 February 2025, new below-threshold notices go on Find a Tender. Contracts Finder’s publishing rules still apply to procurements started under the old rules. Its search showed about 640 open notices on 2 November 2026 (Contracts Finder).

A Common Procurement Vocabulary code: a number buyers use to classify what they are buying. The main vocabulary has about 9,450 terms. Each code has nine digits. The first two give the broad division, and more zeros at the end mean a more general code (Sell2Wales). Research codes include 73110000 (research services), 79310000 (market research) and 79311000 (survey services). Portal alerts often run on CPV codes, so choose yours with care.

An open list of suppliers for buying under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. New suppliers can join at any time while it runs. Contracts under a DPS that started under the old rules need no Procurement Act tender notice (Find a Tender notice types). The Procurement Act 2023 replaced the DPS with the dynamic market for new procurements, but existing DPSs carry on until they end. For research, the Government Commercial Agency’s (GCA) Research & Insights DPS (RM6126) runs to 23 February 2029 (GCA). See our guide to RM6126.

The Procurement Act 2023’s open supplier list. It replaces dynamic purchasing systems and qualification systems. Suppliers who meet the conditions for membership can join at any time. Each contract under it must still be advertised in a tender notice, but only members can take part, and the minimum bidding time can be 10 days. Notices UK13 to UK16 track its intention, start, changes and end (gov.uk dynamic markets guidance; gov.uk planned procurement guidance; Find a Tender).

A short first response saying you want to be considered for a contract. Some buyers use an EOI stage to build a shortlist, then invite only those firms to tender. Transport Scotland, for example, invites contractors to complete an expression of interest form for each project. It then sends invitations to tender to those it selects (Transport Scotland). Read what the EOI asks for, because it may already be scored.

The portal where Northern Ireland government departments, agencies and arm’s-length bodies advertise their tenders. It was introduced in April 2015, replacing eSourcing NI for central government (Finance NI). Some councils use it too, and it is free for suppliers to register (Ards and North Down Borough Council). To respond to tenders and get alerts, you register as a supplier organisation. You need a D-U-N-S number for that, which is free to get. Alerts come from the CPV codes you save to your profile (eTendersNI).

The UK government’s tender service, and since 24 February 2025 the Central Digital Platform. It carries both above- and below-threshold notices for new UK procurements. The exceptions are below-threshold notices in Scotland and from Northern Irish public bodies, and Welsh tenders under £30,000 (Find a Tender; section 84; section 87). It is free. With a GOV.UK One Login account you can save searches and get email alerts. It replaced the EU’s Tenders Electronic Daily for UK notices on 31 December 2020.

A contract between a buyer and one or more suppliers that sets the terms for future “call-off” contracts. The Procurement Act 2023 calls it a “framework”. Most can last up to four years, and new suppliers cannot join during that time. The Act also allows open frameworks. These must reopen at least once in the first three years and at least every five years after, for up to eight years in total (gov.uk frameworks guidance). See our frameworks guides.

A competition between suppliers already on a framework, to award one call-off contract. The Procurement Act 2023 calls it a “competitive selection process”. The buyer can only judge proposals against some or all of the framework’s original award criteria, though it may refine them (gov.uk frameworks guidance). On Management Consultancy Framework Four (MCF4), further competition is the standard way to buy (GCA RM6309). No tender notice is published for these competitions, so only firms on the framework see them.

The set of documents asking suppliers for a full bid. A typical ITT includes background, the tender conditions, the specification, instructions, the questions to answer, a pricing schedule and the draft contract (Three Rivers District Council). For research, the specification usually sets out the background, the aims of the research, what the bid must include and the deadline (Transport Scotland). It is the term research and consulting firms meet most often.

A part of a larger procurement that is awarded as a separate contract. A buyer might split work by region, topic or method. Suppliers can bid for one lot or several. Under the Procurement Act 2023, buyers must consider using lots, partly because smaller lots can be easier for small and medium-sized enterprises to bid for (gov.uk lots guidance). Frameworks are often split into lots too. MCF4 has ten.

The basis for awarding contracts under the Procurement Act 2023. The winning tender is the one the buyer judges to meet its requirements and to score highest against the published award criteria, using the stated method and weightings. It replaced MEAT. The guidance says this is not a change in policy. It makes clear that contracts need not go to the lowest price (gov.uk assessing tenders guidance).

The basis for awarding contracts under the older Public Contracts Regulations 2015. It balanced quality and price, so the lowest price did not have to win. For new procurements in England, Wales and Northern Ireland since 24 February 2025, the Procurement Act 2023 uses the term “most advantageous tender” (MAT) instead (gov.uk assessing tenders guidance). You will still see MEAT in older procurements and frameworks.

Scotland’s national tender portal, launched in August 2008. Since 18 April 2016, Scottish public bodies must advertise all regulated procurements there: £50,000 and over for goods and services, and £2 million and over for works. Many also use it for Quick Quotes (PCS about us). Registration is free (PCS). Suppliers set up an Alert Profile with CPV codes (PCS user guides).

The UK1 notice under the Procurement Act 2023. It is for buyers that expect to pay over £100 million under their contracts in a financial year. Such a buyer must list each planned contract worth more than £2 million that it expects to advertise or award directly in the next 18 months. It must publish by 26 May each year. Plans can change, and buyers do not have to go ahead (gov.uk pipeline guidance). See our early notices guide.

The UK3 notice: an optional early notice that a buyer intends to publish a tender notice, with as much detail as it has. It “qualifies” if it is published at least 40 days and no more than 12 months before the tender notice. The buyer may then cut the minimum bidding period for an above-threshold tender to 10 days. It replaced the prior information notice for new procurements (gov.uk planned procurement guidance).

A questionnaire about a supplier’s suitability, such as finances and experience, used to shortlist bidders before the tender stage. Under the older rules, buyers used the Standard Selection Questionnaire (SSQ). The Procurement Act 2023 does not prescribe a form for checking “conditions of participation”, though templates may be used (gov.uk conditions of participation guidance). The government’s template under the Act is the Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ). It collects your core supplier information from the Central Digital Platform, extra exclusion checks and answers on the conditions of participation. It plays a similar role to the SSQ (Procurement Pathway: PSQ template). In England, a separate suitability stage is not allowed below the thresholds.

The UK2 notice. Before a tender, a buyer may talk to suppliers to shape its requirement, design the process or find suppliers. If it does this for an above-threshold contract, it must publish a UK2 before the tender notice, or explain in the tender notice why it did not. A UK2 can invite suppliers to take part or report engagement already done (gov.uk market engagement guidance).

An early warning, under older rules, that a contract notice is coming, often within the next year. On Find a Tender it is notice type F01. For new procurements under the Procurement Act 2023, the planned procurement notice replaced it. You will still see PINs for procurements that began before 24 February 2025, and under Scottish rules (gov.uk planned procurement guidance; Find a Tender).

An online quotation tool on Public Contracts Scotland and Sell2Wales for low-value requirements. The buyer sends it only to suppliers it selects, and it is not made public, so no alert service can show it. Invited suppliers reply through the portal’s secure Postbox. Sell2Wales says the best way to be invited is a complete Supplier Finder profile, and PCS has a Supplier Finder profile too (Sell2Wales; PCS user guides). See our guide to UK tender portals.

The older Crown Commercial Service dynamic purchasing system for social, economic and market research (RM6018). It ran from 16 February 2018 to 15 February 2022 and has expired. Its replacement is the Research & Insights DPS (RM6126), now run by the Government Commercial Agency. Suppliers can apply to join it at any time until 23 February 2029 (GCA RM6018; GCA RM6126).

A request asking suppliers to propose how they would meet a need, as well as the price. It is not a term defined in the Procurement Act 2023, and buyers use it in different ways. Below the thresholds, a buyer may invite “quotes, proposals or tenders” from chosen suppliers without advertising (gov.uk below-threshold guidance). Treat an RFP like an invitation to tender: read the criteria and answer them in order.

A request for a price, usually for smaller or well-defined work. It is common below the thresholds, where buyers can ask chosen suppliers for quotes without publishing a tender notice. Councils often set value bands in their own rules. One district council, for example, asks for three written quotes for work from £2,001 to £25,000 (Three Rivers District Council). In Scotland and Wales, the portal version is the Quick Quote.

Another name for an invitation to tender: the buyer’s request for full, priced bids against a specification. The Procurement Act 2023 does not define the term. Find a Tender talks about tender notices and associated tender documents instead (Find a Tender notice types). Whatever the label, check the deadline, the award criteria and how to submit.

An informal name, common in market research, for a buyer’s list of approved agencies that it calls on for projects. The Procurement Act 2023 does not use the term. In the public sector, such a list is usually set up as a framework, a dynamic purchasing system or a dynamic market. The GCA’s Research & Insights DPS (RM6126) is one example (GCA RM6126). Ask how a list was procured, because that decides whether and when new agencies can join.

The Welsh Government’s tender portal. It says contracts worth over £6.3 billion a year on average are advertised there, and about 80% of them are smaller opportunities. Registration is free, but you need a Central Digital Platform unique identifier first. It offers an Alerts Profile by product category, a Supplier Finder profile and Quick Quotes (Sell2Wales). Since 24 February 2025, advertised Welsh tenders from £30,000 also go on Find a Tender. Tenders under £30,000 need no Find a Tender notice; when advertised, they are usually on Sell2Wales (section 87; Wales regulations).

Under the Procurement Act 2023, an enterprise with fewer than 250 staff and either an annual turnover of £44 million or less, or a balance sheet total of £38 million or less. Ownership by a larger group can affect this. Suppliers can declare their status when they register on the Central Digital Platform (gov.uk SME definition). Contracts Finder’s filter uses a simpler test: fewer than 250 employees (Contracts Finder).

The wider benefits a supplier offers through a contract, such as jobs, skills and opportunities in communities. Central government buyers must give it at least 10% of the total score under Procurement Policy Note (PPN) 002. A new model, PPN 026, applies to in-scope procurements starting on or after 1 January 2027, and only for procurements of £1 million or more, including VAT. Its minimum weighting is 10% for contracts from £1 million, rising to 20% from £5 million (PPN 002; PPN 026). Other public bodies may adopt the same approach.

A pause between the contract award notice and signing the contract, so that bidders can raise concerns or challenge the decision. Under the Procurement Act 2023 it is at least eight working days, starting on the day the contract award notice is published. Under the older rules it was ten calendar days. Some contracts are exempt (gov.uk standstill guidance).

The contract value, including VAT, at which most of the Procurement Act 2023 applies. From 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2027, it is £135,018 for goods and services bought by central government, £207,720 for other public bodies and £5,193,000 for works. These follow international agreements and are updated every two years. Most light-touch contracts have a separate threshold of £663,540, which is not tied to that cycle (gov.uk thresholds guidance). Lower amounts (£12,000 and £30,000) apply to below-threshold notices in England and Wales.

The UK5 notice under the Procurement Act 2023. A buyer publishes it before it awards a contract directly. It shows you a contract going ahead without a competition (Find a Tender notice types). See our guide to Procurement Act notices.

All checked on 2 November 2026.

• Find a Tender: notice types and sequences and home page
• Gov.uk Procurement Act 2023 guidance documents, including the pages linked in each entry
• Gov.uk short guides: Central Digital Platform factsheet, SME definition
• Procurement Pathway: Procurement Specific Questionnaire template
• PPN 002, PPN 026