Education and training services

Tender description

The Department for Education (DfE) is seeking multiple providers to design and deliver Subject Knowledge Enhancement (SKE) courses supporting recruitment to Initial Teacher Training (ITT). A framework agreement will replace the grant funding model currently in place for the SKE programme, and will be the only means of drawing down funding from the DfE for SKE courses delivered from October 2021. SKE is a key part of the Department’s teacher supply strategy and supports recruitment to ITT in hard-to-recruit subjects. It is for applicants who have an offer of a place on an ITT programme. SKE programmes are designed to help these applicants gain the depth of subject knowledge needed to train to teach their chosen subject. The Department for Education (DfE) is seeking multiple providers to design and deliver Subject Knowledge Enhancement (SKE) courses supporting recruitment to Initial Teacher Training (ITT). A framework agreement will replace the grant funding model currently in place for the SKE programme and will be the only means of drawing down funding from the DfE for SKE courses delivered from October 2021. Please note that this is a relaunch of the previously published invitation to tender for SKE that was withdrawn in March 2020 as a result of the escalating implications of Covid-19. SKE is a key part of the Department's teacher supply strategy and supports recruitment to ITT in hard-to-recruit subjects. It is for applicants who have an offer of a place on an ITT programme. SKE programmes are designed to help these applicants gain the depth of subject knowledge needed to train to teach their chosen subject. Further details will be published with the tender pack. The intention is to publish the tender opportunity in early 2021. All future information will be issued to potential providers via the DfE eTendering Portal. Providers can access this system at https://education.app.jaggaer.com where the details of how to register and the terms of free registration are presented. Please note: The value is the maximum budget for funding SKE courses over the term of the framework agreement and includes both course costs and participant bursary payments. Acceptance onto the framework will not guarantee any funding and individual call-offs will be made on the instruction of the participant undertaking the SKE course. This notice is for information only and is not a call for competition. The Department reserves the right not to enter a formal procurement process and not award contracts. Accordingly, the authority will not be liable for any bid cost, expenditure, work or effort incurred by a provider in acting on the basis of this Prior Information Notice. All information included in this notice is indicative and subject to change.