Technical, digital and data services for Department for Education Capital directorate.

Tender description

Work done so far Some of our services including those with application cycles are in public beta, for example: our internal services for managing construction projects and programmes and the connectivity programme, the condition improvement fund, products to facilitate Land and Transactions, and the Net Capacity Assessment. Others are yet to start including infrastructure improvements and a pipeline of work to support Capital priorities. Discoveries and alphas have been completed for some services. Which phase the project is in Not applicable Existing team There are two existing suppliers in place working alongside an internal team based across DfE sites with a common purpose to deliver user centred and value for money projects and services. Existing civil service roles include: Delivery Managers, Product Managers, Service Owners, Senior Responsible Owners, Dynamics 365 and power application developers, and Programme Management Office roles. You may also be required to work alongside other vendors who may provide additional services, collaborating to deliver whilst owning your outcomes. The successful supplier will provide flexible capability to achieve outcomes. Which may include part-time, short-term or longer-term partial needs. Address where the work will be done Supplier staff will primarily collaborate remotely, with some time expected in DfE offices nationwide. The primary location of work will be specified in each Statement of Work (SoW) and expenses cannot be claimed for travel to that location. Expenses can be claimed for travel to any secondary location of work. The primary location of work is likely to be London, Coventry or Manchester but the contract will cover all DfE offices. Expenses are capped to the value specified in the SoW. Working arrangements A SoW will be completed for each engagement, identifying primary location, working arrangements, and the expected deliverables. Collaboration is important for an inter-organisational team. We use tools including Microsoft Teams, DevOps and GitHub. All work to be delivered to GDS service standard principles and meet DfE technical standards. Delivery will be governed by standard agile delivery techniques. IR35 determinations will be made for each SoW. Most requirements will fall inside of scope of IR35. Determination will be assessed on the working practices required for each SOW. Provide more information about your security requirements: Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) Provide more information about your security requirements (optional): DfE requires everyone to have baseline personnel security standard clearance (BPSS). There may be a requirement to gain higher security clearance / enhanced DBS checks. This will be detailed in the SOW. The supplier will need to be compliant with the DfE's Security Standards and respond to a security questionnaire. Latest start date 2023-05-01 Enter the expected contract length: 2 years Extension period: 1 year Special terms and conditions All Supplier Staff working on services in relation to this Contract will need to undertake, as a minimum, a BPSS security check. Security checks relevant to supplier staff will be indicated clearly through each Statement of Work issued under this Call-Off Contract. Any enhanced security requirements (e.g., SC etc) will be detailed in the Statements of Work' The Supplier shall ensure that no Supplier Staff who discloses that they have a Relevant Conviction, or who is found to have any Relevant Convictions (whether as a result of a police check or through the vetting procedure of HMG Baseline Personnel Security Standard or through the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) or otherwise), is employed or engaged in any part of the provision of the Services without the prior written approval of the Buyer. Subject to the Data Protection Legislation, the Supplier shall disclose the results of their vetting process, immediately to the Buyer. The decision as to whether any of the Supplier’s Staff are allowed to perform activities in relation to the Call Off Contract, is entirely at the Buyer’s sole discretion. The Supplier shall be required to undertake annual periodic checks during the Call Off Contract Period of its Staff, in accordance with HMG Baseline Personnel Security Standard so as to determine the Supplier Staff suitability to continue to Framework Schedule 6 (Order Form Template, Statement of Work Template and Call-Off Schedules) 5 provide Services under the Call Off Contract. The Supplier shall ensure that any Supplier Staff who discloses a Relevant Conviction (either spent or unspent) or is found by the Supplier to have a Relevant Conviction through standard national vetting procedures or otherwise, is immediately disclosed to the Buyer. The Supplier shall ensure that the individual staff member immediately ceases all activity in relation to the Call Off Contract, until the Buyer has reviewed the case, on an individual basis, and has made a final decision. Where the Buyer decides that a Supplier Staff should be removed from performing activities, as a result of obtaining information in relation to the Call Off Contract, or for any other reason, the Supplier shall promptly and diligently replace any individual identified. Special terms and conditions The location will be specified in the Statement of Work (Primary Location). Expenses cannot be claimed for travel to the Primary Location of work when in-office working is required. Some work may be UK wide, and travel may be required to other DfE offices. When travel to other DfE sites is required, all costs incurred must comply with the prevailing DfE Travel and Subsistence policy. Parking is not available on DfE sites. Should base location vary it will be outlined and agreed upon the individual statements of work. Special terms and conditions The latest start date will be outlined in each individual statement of work. Except for in exceptional circumstances, and as agreed with the buyer Special terms and conditions Service provider resources must work within the United Kingdom unless agreed by the Department on an individual basis. Departmental equipment must not be taken abroad or access the departmental network whilst outside the United Kingdom unless agreed by the Department on an individual basis. Special terms and conditions The Department’s standard approach to pricing mechanism will be ‘Capped Time and Materials’ (CTM) however we reserve the right to use any of the other approaches as listed in the call-off charges section. Special terms and conditions General Information Standard Framework and Call Off Terms and Conditions will apply Suppliers must agree to all DFE security clearance policies and processes. Suppliers must comply with the Regulation (GDPR) Regulation May 2018; the (DPA) Act 2018, the Law Enforcement Directive and any subsequent amendments/changes to date including providing sufficient guarantees to meet the requirements of GDPR in line with Procurement Policy Note (PPN) 02/18 May 2018 which updates PPN 03/17 All Project-Specific IPRs (as defined) and the Deliverables shall vest in the Buyer unconditionally and immediately upon their creation. Are you prepared to show your budget details?: Yes Indicative maximum: 5000000 Provide further information: A pipeline of activity is foreseen over the next 24 months, with an indicative budget against the requirements of £5m exclusive of VAT. Budget approval is subject to Cabinet Office spending controls, service assessments and DfE governance. Each SOW will outline the work required, associated budget and payment approach for each SoW will be capped time and materials. Suppliers will need to provide clear costs to enable tracking. DfE does not commit to any minimum spend on this contract. A pricing template will be provided to shortlisted suppliers at proposal stage. Confirm if you require a contracted out service or supply of resource Supply of resource: the off-payroll rules may apply Summary of work We’re looking for a pragmatic technical, digital and data services partner to work alongside DfE Capital. This will be working on joined-up digital and data services for priority needs, including school and college building, internet connectivity, building condition and bid-based funding programmes. The partner will work with us using ‘configure first’ Microsoft technologies. Where the supplied staff will work No specific location (for example they can work remotely) Why the work is being done This opportunity is to collaborate on DfE Capital’s portfolio of digital, data and system priorities. DfE commissions the building and refurbishment of school buildings as well as monitoring condition, improving internet connectivity and administering funding rounds with the objective to improve education settings. We aim to provide strategic, joined-up and interoperable user-centred services alongside trustworthy data for reporting, governance, project management and analysis. By reusing patterns and implementing strategic projects we will deliver consistently and achieve value for money. We need a single source of truth of Capital data linked to wider DfE data sources and systems. For our products in beta, we require a focus on responding to user needs, reducing risk and continuous improvement. For our cyclical external user facing services we need to ensure they are adapted and continuously improved to meet evolving user and business needs. Our primary users are DfE employees, employees of construction partner organisations, surveyors, solicitors, users at schools, colleges and responsible bodies. We want to move towards a model of self-service and automation where tasks and governance become easier. The work is primarily for Capital but may also include needs elsewhere in DfE. The business problem you need to solve We have a pipeline of digital, data and technology projects to deliver as part of our business cycle. We want to enable business change and improved efficiencies, governance, risk management, decision making and solve data and technology problems through improvements, delivering new services and by decommissioning legacy services. We are using Microsoft’s technologies; Dataverse, Azure stack, Dynamics 365, Dynamics 365 PowerApps portal, Power Apps, DevOps, CICD framework, Azure Data Factory 2.0, Project Operations and restful APIs. We are seeking an experienced and flexible Microsoft solution accredited partner to provide capability to work with our team to problem solve, deliver and help us continuously improve our services. We work in an agile way and our work is high volume and fast paced. We pride ourselves on delivering ‘agile’ pragmatically and with high efficiency to achieve great value for money for the public purse. We require a pragmatic mentality when delivering against outcomes which may, for example, require working across two projects or being flexible and multi-disciplined in a team to make the most of limited funding. First user type: Programme Management Office Analyst First user type: Construction Contractor First user type: School First user type: DfE Finance Officer First user type: School Lead Contact First user type: Case Worker Enter more details about this user type: I need to be able to analyse and report on trusted 'one version of the truth' data and information so that I can effectively manage construction projects. Enter more details about this user type: As a construction contractor I need to be able to inform DfE of the progress of a building project against spend, quality and time so that DfE can monitor progress of a project. Enter more details about this user type: As a school, I need to be able to apply for funding via an accessible and easy to use digital service so that my application for school refurbishment can be accessed by the DfE. Enter more details about this user type: As a DfE finance officer, I need to be able to monitor programme spend and inflation factors so that I can forecast programme finances in year, and for future years against Cabinet Office spend controls. Enter more details about this user type: As a school lead contact, I need to be able to respond quickly to DfE requests on school condition. So that I can assist on safety issues. Enter more details about this user type: As a case worker, I need to be able to progress a case so that there is clear audit history, and a school gets a timely decision. Questions and Clarifications There is <strong>1</strong> question and clarification relating to this opportunity. 1. Hi, Can you clarify please, does the 750 character limit include or exclude spaces? Thanks The 750 character limit includes spaces. Last Updated: 19 January 2023, 09:01