Open Regulation Platform Beta

Tender description

Summary of the work We are seeking a partner supplier for the Beta phase of a project to build an enriched, machine readable dataset of regulations linked to primary/secondary legislation, made publicly available via an open API. We require a multidisciplinary team to develop, build and iterate across four workstreams. Expected Contract Length Beta contract length (including break clause): - Private Beta 8-9 months - Public Beta 3-4 months Latest start date Tuesday 10 May 2022 Budget Range The maximum value of this contract for the whole (private and public) beta should not exceed £1.38m (ex. VAT). You should provide a full breakdown of the costs for private beta, including personnel day rates. The personnel costs for private Beta should not exceed £1.1m (inc. VAT) of this total. The breakdown of cost should be by role and by Private and Public Beta stage. If the work continues the commercial benefit for continuation and completion of both stages. Why the Work is Being Done The UK government is committed to delivering an innovative and world-leading regulatory system and the Better Regulation Executive aims to ensure that regulation is smarter, better targeted, and less costly to business. The Open Regulation Platform (ORP) aims to create a central source of enriched machine-readable data on UK regulation that will be made freely and publicly available. By making this valuable data public, ORP will support the development of a new market of regulation technologies, fuelling downstream tools and services that support businesses to comply with regulation. We will explore how Artificial Intelligence, including natural language processing and other enrichment techniques could be used to improve and scale the ORP data to create new and impactful insights. Problem to Be Solved The ORP Beta will focus on the following four workstreams. The design and development of each workstream will be informed by robust, continuous user research. 1 – Curate ORP data set - Development and iteration of the ORP Markup Language - Creation of any relevant authoring or editorial tools for regulators and other data owners, to support publishing and conversion into ORPML - Development of a taxonomy for content classification 2 – Building ORP infrastructure - Building a cloud-hosted data repository - Creating an ingestion pipeline for level 1 (legislation) and level 2 (regulatory guidance) data, ensuring it is kept up to date. - Building a robust API to make the ORP data publicly accessible. 3 – Enrichment - Development of a knowledge graph by extracting citations and other relationships between regulatory documents. - Extracting and making more transparent existing metadata - Use of AI and other ‘interpretive’ methods to generate additional metadata 4 – Engagement, adoption, and long-term plan - Engagement with developers, regulators, businesses. - Management and recruitment of beta testers - Promotion and marketing of the platform to the market - Consider roles and responsibilities that ORP creates, where they should sit and the governance around this Who Are the Users Discovery research highlighted that the primary users of the ORP will be third party software developers. This includes Data Scrapers and RegTech software developers who will use ORP data to create bespoke services that provide insights into legislation and regulation. It is therefore essential that any supplier can engage in user research with RegTech, Fintech and/or LegTech software developers in a nuanced level of detail. The above personas will act as an intermediary in the value chain for the ORP, creating RegTech products that meet compliance needs of business end users. User research with business groups and individual businesses must also be carried out in Beta to ensure the development of the ORP meets the needs of businesses across the UK. Key user needs include: • As a software developer, I need to have access to regulatory data, so that I can create technology products to meet compliance needs. • As a data-scraper, I need to have access to regulatory data, so that I can collect, standardise and enrich libraries of regulatory data for further use. • As a business owner, I need to understand what regulation I must adhere to, to ensure my business is compliant with the law. Early Market Engagement Prior to this tender we took part in an early-market engagement exercise. The documents involved in this early market engagement are available upon request (email: openregulationplatform@beis.gov.uk) and include: - Discovery report - Early-market specification - Early-market specification slide pack - Additional Alpha phase slide pack has been developed to help inform this Beta procurement The results of specification have informed the requirements outlined in this invitation to tender. Key changes in approach include: - The importance of ongoing engagement throughout Beta – this pre-existing workstream was further developed as a result - Developing the demand from ORP’s intended users during Beta development Work Already Done The ORP Discovery showed that there was a clear user need for the ORP and ORP Alpha demonstrated that the concept is technically deliverable. A separate economic analysis was conducted alongside the Discovery and estimated economic benefits of the ORP of around £400m over the next 10 years. This project is also related to BEIS’s Digital Regulation Navigator project aimed at making it easier for businesses to navigate the regulatory landscape. We would expect any supplier to be able to consider future interaction between the ORP and this product. Existing Team The successful bidder will be working with an internal BEIS team of civil servants: • The senior responsible owner for the project • A service owner • A policy project lead /product manager • A senior digital delivery manager • An economist analytical lead • A technical architect • A user researcher / service designer • Supporting officers We have connections with regulators and related specialists. We receive policy support from other government departments and public bodies which we can use for advice where necessary. We also have a network of experts through which we can test ideas and approaches. Current Phase Beta Skills & Experience • Demonstrate how expertise in design of mark-up languages and taxonomies that aim to serve a wide and diverse audience will be applied to support project delivery (2%/4 points) • Demonstrate applicable experience building tools to generate standardised data from diverse source formats (e.g. Doc, PDF, XML) into tagged mark-up language accurately and at scale. (2%/4 points) • Demonstrate applicable experience building, scaling, hosting data platforms and data ingestion will be applied to support the delivery of project goals. (2%/4 points) • Demonstrate applicable experience building APIs to a high design standard that meet different user requirements. (1.5%/3 points) • Demonstrate applicable experience in using natural language processing, machine learning, and other techniques to derive insights and how these techniques will be employed. (1.5%/3 points) • Demonstrate applicable experience using graph technologies (for example citation mapping) or other technical methods that can be used to derive insight from data (2%/4 points) • Demonstrate experience recruiting and managing a community, including testers of the product and creating feedback loops to support project delivery (2%/4 Points) • Demonstrate applicable experience building buy-in from existing well-established organisations to change their processes and supporting and understanding technical design changes with stakeholders with low digital literacy. (2%/4 points) Nice to Haves • Demonstrate relevant, applicable experience of working within business regulation, RegTech, LegalTech, or legislation as data, and its relevance to the ORP beta (2%/4 points) • Demonstrate applicable experience working in public sector or open data projects, and how it will help the undertaking of the ORP beta work (1%/2 points) • Demonstrate an understanding of challenges when providing a data service i.e. legal liability, accuracy, confidence, data governance and long-term management, and relevance to the ORP beta. (2%/4 points) • Demonstrate applicable experience working to the Service Standard overseen by Government’s Central Digital and Data Office and delivering a Beta phase, (1%/2 points) • Demonstrate how adherence to the Service Design Manual and Technology Code of Practice will be applied to the ORP beta project. (1%/2 points) Work Location We expect the supplier to follow BEIS’ hybrid model of working – a balance of remote and office working. This is dependent on the relevant COVID-19 restrictions at the time, though we hope to conduct certain meetings at our central London office, 1 Victoria Street SW1H 0ET. Potentially members of the BEIS team could co-locate with the supplier’s team for the kick-off process, and on an ongoing basis for face-to-face meetings such as show and tells, key decision points, and quality assurance. Working Arrangments The supplier should collaborate with the BEIS team continuously sharing information, agreeing structures and processes at the start of the project with the BEIS Delivery Manager. This could include daily stand-ups, sprint planning, show-and-tell presentations at key milestones, and presenting at internal assurance processes. Suppliers should support BRE in any BEIS and Government Digital Service Governance processes where appropriate. Plans should consider the context of hybrid working. BEIS uses the Microsoft suite. Any additional meeting/collaboration tools should be accessible without requiring custom software. Suppliers may need to occasionally travel to the HQ in London. Travel expenses will not be reimbursed. Security Clearance All government contractors must have a valid Baseline Personnel Security Standard check, and all personnel working on the project have passed by the intended start date. The BPSS comprises verification of: • Identity • Nationality and Immigration Status • Employment history (past 3 years) • Criminal record (unspent convictions only) Additional T&Cs BEIS will own the intellectual property rights and source code for the bespoke development. No. of Suppliers to Evaluate 5 Proposal Criteria • How the approach meets the design and delivery of the ORP infrastructure workstream, as detailed above (5%/10 points) • How the approach meets the design and delivery of the ORP Markup Language design and rollout workstream, as detailed above (5%/10 points) • How the approach meets the design and delivery of the enrichment workstream, as detailed above (5%/10 points) • How the approach meets the design and delivery of the engagement and adoption workstream, as detailed above (5%/10 points) • How the approach demonstrates awareness and planning around business engagement and stakeholder management challenges. (5%/10 points) • How the team’s technical skills and experience will be applied to support the delivery of project goals (5%/10 points) • How the time commitment (working days) and role allocations (seniority) will ensure the delivery of project goals (6%/12 points) • How the project plan and high-level timeline with milestones integrate workstreams together to create feedback loops, and support key deliverables of the project (6%/12 points) • How the key risks have been identified along with the approaches for mitigating against them (6%/12 points) Cultural Fit Criteria • Demonstrate capability and practical experience of transparent collaborative working with other organisations with varying level of digital literacy across both the public and private sector. (2%/4 points) • Evidence ability to deliver effective knowledge transfer with other organisations, allowing them to set direction at key decision points, facilitating effective quality control and risk escalation procedures (2%/4 points) • Evidence practical experience of creating an agile, user-driven approach, challenging underlying assumptions and making design changes based on evolving user and business needs. (1.5%/3 points) • Describe how your organisation will use this contract to create opportunities for entrepreneurship and help new organisations to grow, supporting economic growth and business creation. (1%/2 points) • Describe the actions your organisation will take to identify and tackle inequality in employment, skills and pay in the contract. (1%/2 points) • Describe how your organisation will support in-work progression of people, including those from disadvantaged or minority groups, by developing new skills/apprenticeships relevant to the contract. (1%/2 points) • Describe your organisation’s commitment to ensure that opportunities under the contract will support and action health and wellbeing, including physical and mental health. (1.5%/3 points) Payment Approach Fixed price Assessment Method Presentation Evaluation Weighting Technical competence 70% Cultural fit 10% Price 20% Questions from Suppliers 1. How can we get an invite to the supplier day tomorrow (29th)? We are holding a Q&A session on Tuesday 29 March, at 2:00PM. This will be a chance to ask the team any questions you may have about this exciting project. Please find the MS Teams link to the Q&A session here: https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/ap/t-59584e83/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fteams.microsoft.com%2Fl%2Fmeetup-join%2F19%253ameeting_MmQyNmIyZjAtNWUzNC00YWQ2LWFlMDMtZTE0NmEzZWU2ZWZj%2540thread.v2%2F0%3Fcontext%3D%257b%2522Tid%2522%253a%2522cbac7005-02c1-43eb-b497-e6492d1b2dd8%2522%252c%2522Oid%2522%253a%252221a7c8a0-cf99-44a1-b222-8e13451429ed%2522%257d&data=04%7C01%7CCara.Jenkins%40beis.gov.uk%7Cc49745a1dfbd4034a13108da0d7ddd67%7Ccbac700502c143ebb497e6492d1b2dd8%7C0%7C0%7C637837131945529213%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000&sdata=uTSsCJt0sA2PNG85rHmdXsG0lgmbH8KiueEih2hpshE%3D&reserved=0 2. What deliverables have been produced in the Alpha in terms of UX (UX wireframes, User Research output, Service Design output)? At the end of Alpha, we have a user research summary report capturing main insights and next steps for Beta. This report includes high-level user journeys for regulators and software developers as well as capturing user needs around API Design and the ORP in general. The previous supplier also produced a Government Digital Service Standard adherence document, explaining how each design standard was met during the Alpha user research 3. Is there a preferred technology stack for the build components? We remain open to supplier suggestions on technology stack; however, we would require the build to be fully open source. We would additionally expect that the final build would be deployed and hosted (preferably via infrastructure as code) onto BEIS internal cloud services and to do so using best practice methodology. BEIS have both Azure and AWS services and we’re open to the supplier’s preference.We can also use GovPaaS if that is preferred, but right now we are flexible. 4. Who is the current incumbent working on the Alpha? The Alpha phase finished in January 2022. Details about the Alpha supplier can be found here:https://www.digitalmarketplace.service.gov.uk/digital-outcomes-and-specialists/opportunities/14498 5. Who is the incumbent who did the discovery? Details about the Discovery supplier can be found here:https://www.digitalmarketplace.service.gov.uk/digital-outcomes-and-specialists/opportunities/13595 6. What are the titles of the assessment panel? The assessment panel will include the BRE project Technical Architect, the BRE Policy and Project Lead, the BEIS Digital Senior Delivery Manager. 7. Do you think that the technical outputs of the Alpha phase will be built upon in beta or were they a POC that will not be taken forward? We are not necessarily expecting suppliers to build directly off the Alpha prototypes – if relevant, we are happy for suppliers to build from start again using the Alpha code as inspiration. We have the prototypes hosted, and the code publicly available now, as an open-source repository. The link is here:https://github.com/UKGovernmentBEIS/open-regulation-platform-alpha 8. Has there been a decision on hosting for the beta phase? Would it be govpaas? BEIS have Azure and AWS services and we’re open to the supplier’s preference. We can also use GovPaaS if that is preferred, but right now we are flexible. We’d expect any supplier to help us deploy the service into whatever cloud methodology we would be using and to do so using best practice methodology. 9. Has the underlying architecture been specified? We are open to supplier technical recommendations, and keen to understand and engage how best to achieve the outcomes, rather than hard commit on any specific architecture. 10. Is there appetite for the beta to be part build/part buy? Specifically, licensing content and taxonomy creation and curation tools but building the rest? Part 1- The ORP needs to be in tune with open-source principles. We want to be able to release all our data and services to the public, and so we are nervous about purchasing commercial tools, or be hard committed into commercial obligations, especially as we go into Beta and beyond. 11. Is there appetite for the beta to be part build/part buy? Specifically, licensing content and taxonomy creation and curation tools but building the rest? Part 2- We are aware that there may be some tools that are not necessary for delivering the work, or do not lock us into any commercial agreement, and without which the product can still function and be released open source. For example, a commercial code editor may make it easier to view certain information. These kinds of tools would be considered acceptable. 12. Would it be a joint development team with yourselves and supplier? With regards to the joint development, yes – there are certain areas which only BEIS can really do. BRE hold relationships with regulators and with government. BRE will also have involvement in the user recruitment where we can draw on our broader networks. BEIS would be product managers and service owners of the ORP – the team will have a primary product owner that owns the policy side and a technical architect who would own the technical build.BEIS Digital and Cabinet Office Government Digital Service will also have oversight and input into technical and data aspects of the project. 13. Would Agile development be followed? We will be using agile project management techniques– it is one of the cultural criteria that we will be assessing suppliers on. Previous phases have been undertaken with agile project management techniques, and we expect to do the same with Beta. 14. What does “If the work continues the commercial benefit for continuation and completion of both stages.” mean or refer to in the budget range section? This tender is seeking a supplier for beta stage of the project that will have a break clause between private and public where a review will be undertaken. The supplier shall be asked to have a handover to continue to public beta or pass back to BEIS on completion of private beta. 15. Your pre-market engagement indicative budget was £2.5M; what has changed in your understanding or scope of work that the budget is now £1.38M? The £1.38m (ex. VAT) figure in the tender is the amount apportioned for the work to be carried out by the supplier for the whole (private and public) Beta. The scope of the supplier work and the project has not changed, and we continue to prioritise the workstreams described in the ITT. The £2.5m figure reflects wider costs of the project, independent of supplier work (e.g. hosting and maintenance costs, amongst other things). 16. What date will shortlisted applicants be notified they have been shortlisted? We expect to notify all shortlisted applicants by COP on 12 April 2022. 17. what date will shortlisted applicants then be required to submit their full proposal? Shortlisted applicants will have a deadline of 11:59PM on 19 April to submit their full proposals 18. What relevant output from the Alpha phase can be shared? All information that can be shared is contained in our pre-market engagement documents and additional Alpha summary slide pack. Please contact the project mailbox at OpenRegulationPlatform@beis.gov.uk for these documents.