RM1043.8-1-Department for Business and Trade - Project 4865 Business Growth Support Bench

Tender description

Work done so far The contract is to support our team to deliver new projects. Our previous work exports includes the provision of internal and external facing services, such as those hosted on business.gov.uk. The nature of upcoming projects will vary as our priorities evolve throughout the length of the contract and spending review period. Which phase the project is in Beta Existing team The team in the portfolio as a whole is a mixture of Civil Servants and contractors across the whole range of Government Digital and Data roles. On occasion the successful supplier may be required to work alongside other suppliers given that DBT maintains several contracts and suppliers work in other portfolios, however at this moment in time no supplier other than the incumbent is involved in the work of the portfolio. Address where the work will be done London – Old Admiralty Building, Admiralty Place, London SW1A 2BL London - Caxton House Darlington – Feethams House, Darlington DL1 5AD Edinburgh – Queen Elizabeth House, EH8 8FT Belfast – Erskine House, BT1 4GF Cardiff – Ty William Morgan House, CF10 1XS Birmingham – 23 Stephenson Street, B2 4BJ / Victoria Square House, B2 4AJ Salford – Trinity Bridge House, M3 5EG Working arrangements The supplier staff must work on Department for Business and Trade (DBT) equipment on a 7.5-hour working day and 40-60% in-office attendance at a designated DBT Office. Expenses must be included in day rates. DBT expects the Digital Partner to attend DBT offices for team meetings, workshops, user research (including observation), and other in-person activities as required. The location of the services will typically be one of DBT’s London headquarters or regional hub locations. Please note that this arrangement is subject to change, and at any point, individuals working on this contract may be required to work full-time from the designated office location or in line with the requirements of individual teams. Expenses in line with DBT’s policies will be payable for travel to a non-home office for attendance at team meetings or events. DBT office locations include: • Darlington – Feethams House • Edinburgh – Queen Elizabeth House • Cardiff – Tŷ William Morgan • Belfast – Erskine House • Birmingham – Stephenson Street • Salford – Trinity Bridge House • London – Old Admiralty Building • London – Caxton House Provide more information about your security requirements: Security Check (SC) Provide more information about your security requirements: All resources deployed must hold SC level security clearance, which must be shared with DBT for the duration of their work. Latest start date 2025-11-28 Enter the expected contract length: 2 years Extension period: 1 year Special terms and conditions Supplier must be working on DBT devices including laptops and phones. Special terms and conditions The intention is to take forward the top 3 scoring suppliers to the next stage (ITFC). Note stage 1 is a selection stage under Digital outcomes framework. Suppliers who score 2 or below on any weighted quality or social value criterion will be informed that they did not meet the minimum standard and were therefore excluded from further participation in the procurement. For suppliers who met the minimum criteria but were not shortlisted, DBT will provide a high-level summary of their total score and explain that they were not among the top three scoring suppliers. For example, we may state that the supplier scored X overall, while the top three suppliers scored in the range of Y to Z In the event of tied scores, the evaluation panel reserves the right to take forward more than 3 suppliers. Are you prepared to show your budget details?: Yes Provide further information: Up to £5,000,000.00 Ex VAT for the initial term, with an optional extension of up 12 months valued at up to £2,5000,000.00 Ex VAT 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 The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) seeks a supplier to deliver digital support services under the "Business Growth Support Bench" contract. This procurement supports DBT's strategic objectives for business growth through enhanced digital, data, and technology services, ensuring compliance with Government Digital Service (GDS) standards and DBT security policies. DBT lacks the volume of specialist capability in-house to deliver digital services effectively. This includes skill sets in various roles such as product manager, delivery manager, user researcher, service designer, interaction designer, software developer, and technical architect. The objective of this procurement is to tackle the challenge of lack of capacity and capability in DDaT to deliver Digital Services. The supplier will focus on supporting new digital projects, transforming existing services, and building internal capabilities within DBT teams. Ensuring compliance with Government Digital Service (GDS) standards, the government technology code of practice, and government cyber-security standards is mandatory. The supplier must enable knowledge transfer between teams, including providing comprehensive documentation and focusing on upskilling DBT teams to develop internal capability. All work must be confirmed in writing before outcomes are signed off, and the supplier will be subject to regular performance management meetings to review progress and completion of outcomes against KPIs. All staff must have Security Clearance (SC) and comply with DBT's cyber-security standards, including obtaining Cyber Essentials Plus certification. The supplier must demonstrate expertise in cloud infrastructure (AWS, Azure), user-centred design, software development, and delivery. They should be capable of delivering agile scrum teams and have expertise in multiple programming languages (e.g., Python, Django, HTML, JavaScript, React). Where the supplied staff will work North East England Where the supplied staff will work North West England Where the supplied staff will work Yorkshire and the Humber Where the supplied staff will work East Midlands Where the supplied staff will work West Midlands Where the supplied staff will work East of England Where the supplied staff will work London Where the supplied staff will work South East England Where the supplied staff will work South West England Where the supplied staff will work Scotland Where the supplied staff will work Wales Where the supplied staff will work Northern Ireland Who is the organisation using the products or services Department for Business and Trade Why the work is being done The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) is committed to supporting business growth through enhanced digital, data, and technology services. This procurement aligns with DBT's strategic objectives to deliver high-quality digital services that meet the evolving needs of businesses and stakeholders. The work addresses key issues and supports important policy goals: Supporting Business Growth: The primary goal is to enhance DBT's capability to support business growth. By providing digital support services, DBT aims to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of its services, enabling businesses to thrive in a competitive environment. Addressing Capacity and Capability Gaps: DBT currently lacks the in-house capacity and specialist capability to deliver digital services effectively. This includes roles such as product managers, delivery managers, user researchers, service designers, interaction designers, software developers, and technical architects. The procurement aims to fill these gaps by securing a supplier with the necessary expertise and resources. Compliance with Standards: Ensuring compliance with Government Digital Service (GDS) standards, the technology code of practice, and cyber security standards is mandatory. This procurement will help DBT maintain high standards of service delivery and security. Transforming Existing Services: There is a need to transform existing digital services to better meet user needs. Some current services are no longer fit for purpose and require significant updates to align with modern standards and expectations. Knowledge Transfer and Upskilling: The supplier will play a crucial role in enabling knowledge transfer and upskilling DBT teams. This will help build internal capabilities and ensure DBT can sustain and improve its digital services long term. By addressing these issues, DBT aims to enhance digital service delivery, support business growth, and ensure services remain effective, secure, and user-centred. The business problem you need to solve The Department for Business and Trade’s Digital, Data and Technology team needs extra capacity to deliver new projects and transform existing services, identify gaps and build departmental capability to help the Department to deliver against its priorities. The supplier is required to deliver work using agile practices, including providing full agile scrum teams and proven experience working within an agile software development life-cycle. The supplier must ensure that multiple Statements of Work (SOW's) may be active simultaneously and meet DBT's internal governance, including code quality, security, and architecture standards. Transitioning from an outcome-based model to a resourcing bench model is essential to meet the flexible digital resource needs of DBT. The proposed contract length is 24 months for the initial term plus a 12-month optional extension, with a contract value of up to £5,000,000 ex VAT for the initial term, and £2,500,000 for the optional 12 month extension. The pricing mechanism includes Call-Off Contract with Capped T&M, Fixed Price, or T&M available for each Statement of Work. DBT works in an Agile and lean manner according to HMG’s Digital Service Standard and expects suppliers to be familiar with these criteria and have the experience to participate and provide appropriate evidence to any Service Assessments conducted. First user type: DBT staff in the UK and overseas, including DBT staff who do not have English as their first language. For internal staff professions groups, the Digital Data and Technology (DDaT) directorate provides services for all staff, including complex applications for highly technical staff such as: site reliability engineers, technical architects, cyber security specialists, software developers. For all of the below user groups: including users who do not have English as their first language, or who do not speak English at all, but speak (an)other language(s). Likewise users with accessiiblity and assisted digital needs. - other goverment departments, including non UK government departments e.g the government departments of other countries - exporters, - importers, - domestic businesses, - individuals acting on behalf of a business, - business entities, - intermediaries.