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Tendering Procedures: What to expect & how to prepare

In this webinar, we will look at the UK’s new tendering procedures and what you can do to improve your chances of winning contracts.
Register now: Tuesday,  29 April 2025, 1 – 2pm

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Why You Need Tenders Direct

The Procurement Act has streamlined the bidding process and made tenders more accessible, but it has not addressed the major issues affecting the publication and discovery of opportunities.

How has Find a Tender changed?

The Procurement Act has primarily focused on developing procurement processes, and has done a great job in making tendering more efficient for both buyers and suppliers.

The UK government has also worked on making Find a Tender the main hub, sometimes referred to as the Central Digital Platform (CDP), for bringing buyers and suppliers together.

  • Find a Tender retains its primary purpose of providing suppliers with access to Public Contract (High-value) tender opportunities. No new search, alert or bid management features have been added.
  • Suppliers must now register detailed Supplier Information on the platform before being able to bid for Public Contracts.
  • Below-threshold (Low-value) tender notices can now also be published through Find a Tender*, which could see the eventual phasing out of Contracts Finder.
  • New notice types have been introduced, which will increase the number of search results businesses will have to filter through when searching for tenders.

What has NOT changed with Find a Tender?

While the Procurement Act has changed procurement processes for the better, the classification systems behind the UK’s tendering portals have not changed.

Find a Tender, Contracts Finder and other UK tender portals still rely on CPV (Common Procurement Vocabulary) codes – which is a big problem!

  • There are over 9,000 CPV codes, ranging from overly broad to incredibly niche topics, making it incredibly difficult for buyers to identify the most relevant options.
  • Most buyers opt for generic and familiar codes, meaning your search results will never completely align with your search terms.
  • The codes have not been updated since 2008, meaning they are outdated and do not account for any new industry standards or innovations.

Then there are the challenges with Below-threshold (Low-value) tenders, which make up 70% of all tenders in the UK.

  • Around 40% of Below-Threshold tenders do not get published on Contracts Finder, and there is still NO enforcement for where they should be published.
  • *While Below-threshold tenders CAN now be published on Find a Tender, there is nothing in place to ensure they WILL.
  • The public sector uses 600+ portals to publish Below-Threshold tenders, and and businesses would have to search all of these for full market visibility.

Why choose Tenders Direct?

  • Access all new notice types: Our system has been updated to import all new notice types, meaning no disruptions to our tender alert service. Customers will consistently have access to 100% of the market at all times, with no need for addons or enhanced subscriptions!
  • Focus on relevant opportunities: With more notices coming out, filling up the search results in Find a Tender, our peer-review process becomes even more valuable. Because we review EVERY notice, we identify requirements not captured by CPV codes, and ensure your business is notified of relevant opportunities. As the UK’s most accurate tender alert service, we guarantee you will never miss a tender.
  • Find more opportunities: We capture ALL tenders across the UK – including Below-threshold tenders and unregulated (sub-£30k) notices which don’t need to be advertised. We also provide you with access to every Irish tender and OJEU notice. Tenders Direct gives you access to more business opportunities than the Central Digital Platform (CDP) can.
  • Manage your bids effectively: Our suite of tools helps you to organise your opportunities, plan bids strategically, and analyse the market. With Opportunity Manager, you can manage all your bids, for both public and private sector opportunities, from one place. With Integrate, you can connect Tenders Direct to other applications, allowing solutions to complement your existing workflows.

Request a FREE trial

With your 7-day trial of Tenders Direct, you will receive daily tender alerts and gain access to our suite of tendering tools – including Opportunity Manager and Competitor Tracker.
 

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Procurement Act Guidance

Key Processes & Terms Explained
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Watch our Procurement Act Overview
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What Do You Need To Know About The Procurement Act?
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The new rules and processes
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How The Procurement Act Benefits Suppliers
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Positive changes & new opportunities
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Discover how we can help you find and win more work

See how our alerts work, learn about our range of tools, and discover how you can use Tenders Direct to your potential in the public sector marketplace.

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