UKRI-4825 The Funding Service (TFS) Optimisation & Early Life Support (ELS)

Tender description

Pre-market engagement Pre-tender market engagement was carried out as per the terms of the framework. A select group of suppliers were notified of the requirement via email in late March 2025. A copy of this notice can be found within the attachments (UKRI-4825 Appendix G Pre-market engagement information). Work done so far TFS is operating at expected Production volumes and all Research Councils (bar InnovateUk and Research England) are running their Opportunities & Awards through TFS. TFS has passed a CDDO Beta Assessment in February 2025. For further information, please see UKRI - 4825 Appendix A – Specification Document. Which phase the project is in Live Existing team Please see UKRI - 4825 Appendix A – Specification Document. Address where the work will be done UKRI Polaris House Swindon Wiltshire SN2 1FL The office is 2 mins walk from Swindon train station. We offer a hybrid working environment, so home working or supplier office working is also expected. Working arrangements We expect to forge a strong, open and collaborative partnership with the successful supplier founded upon transparency, visibility of progress, swift discussion of barriers, mutual respect and trust. We expect to work in lockstep to achieve success. We aim to forge a ‘one team’ mindset and we expect the supplier to work with us in this way too. While we make extensive use of video conferencing to collaborate, we do have access to a large open-plan Agile space at Swindon and we expect the supplier to make regular and proactive use of this collaborative workspace. Provide more information about your security requirements: Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) Provide more information about your security requirements (optional): On-site attendance at Polaris House requires basic security disclosure (BPSS). It is government policy that individuals should not be expected to hold an existing security clearance in order to apply for posts that require vetting, except where such posts are short term and need to be filled urgently. UKRI is willing to organise security clearance and sponsor the successful supplier through this process if they are successfully awarded a contract and need the BPSS. Latest start date 2025-07-01 Enter the expected contract length: 1 year, 2 months Extension period: 7 months Write the term or acronym: 1. UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) – the name of our organisation. 2. Simpler & Better Funding (SBF) – the name of the Programme. 3. Digital, Data & Technology (DDAT) – the UKRI digital & technology directorate. 4. Funding Service Delivery Authority (FSDA) – the UKRI Grant funding business operations function, representing Service Ownership and strategic Direction of TFS. 5. The Funding Service (TFS) – the name of the end-to-end Grant funding service that we are delivering (currently a series of online & offline interactions). 6. TFS Platform – the name of the digital product. 7. Critical Success Factor (CSF) – a key measure of delivery success. 8. Delivery Partner (DP) – we assume that the winning Supplier will act as a principal Delivery Partner, ensuring the delivery of SBF Outcomes on time. 9. Full Business Case (FBC) – a written document that drives the purpose of the programme, described the approach and budget and forecasts the benefits. 10. Business As Usual (BAU) – the expected standard operating capacity & capability. 11. Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO) – the Government Body accountable for Digital practices & standards across Gov. 12. Enterprise Relationship Management (ERM) – a separate project within the Data Programme, which itself is a separate Major Programme within UKRI. ERM will provide Customer Relationship Management (Salesforce CRM) capability, a key dependency for TFS. 13. DataBank (DB) – a separate project within the Data Programme, which itself is a separate Major Programme within UKRI. DB will enable an enterprise information repository service with analytics capability, a key dependency for TFS. 14. Services for HR, Accounting, Reporting and Procurement (SHARP) – a separate Major Programme within UKRI that will provision a new Cloud-based Oracle suite to enable Grants payment capability (along with other UKRI enterprise pay and HR functionality not relevant to SBF), a key dependency for TFS. Are you prepared to show your budget details?: Yes Indicative maximum: Indicative maximum budget for the initial 8 months (Jul 2025 – Mar 2026) is up to £6.17m (inc. VAT). We reserve the right to review the budget for the remainder of the contract and for any optional extension period based on UKRI Finance approval of our overall Programme budget and reduce the overall budget accordingly. Please see UKRI-4825 Invitation to Tender for the full details of the contract duration and budget. Confirm if you require a contracted out service or supply of resource Contracted out service: the off-payroll rules do not apply Summary of work Please see UKRI - 4825 Appendix A – Specification Document. Where the supplied staff will work South West England Who the organisation using the products or services is UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) UKRI Polaris House Swindon Wiltshire SN2 1FL The office is 2 mins walk from Swindon train station. We have well established remote working practices. However, we would like our DP to commit to bring their people to our Swindon HQ at least one day per week (often Tuesdays) for co-located working. Ad-hoc travel to our Swindon HQ for the purposes of workshops, planning and team events is also expected. Why the work is being done Please see UKRI - 4825 Appendix A– Specification Document The business problem you need to solve Please see UKRI - 4825 Appendix A – Specification Document. First user type: Please see UKRI - 4825 Appendix A – Specification Document.