Guidance

Department for Transport: commercial activity

Updated 25 October 2023

This information includes details of:

• Department for Transport (DfT) purchasing arrangements
• information on becoming a supplier to DfT, as well as wider commercial principles

Future contractual opportunities

Contracts available to suppliers from the DfT and it’s partners are listed in the DfT and associated bodies listing of future commercial contracts (also known as the commercial pipeline listing).

How we buy goods and services

DfT (central) (or DfTc) procurement policy is to compete using the Crown Commercial Service framework agreements for much of its sourcing activities.

Information on how to register, where to look for opportunities and how bidding works is available on the Crown Commercial Service website.

When no established framework agreement exists, the procurement policy is to advertise all procurement opportunities via:

• Contracts Finder where the value of the procurement opportunity is above £12,000 including VAT
• Find a Tender service (FTS) where the value of the procurement opportunity is above procurement thresholds

Operating an open and fair procurement process

Tendering procedure

When DfTc invites a company to tender for a contract opportunity, it will:

• specify its needs in terms of outputs and deliverables, whenever possible, to encourage innovation
• ensure that tendering procedures and documentation are as clear and concise as possible, and only ask for the information necessary to evaluate tenders
• include the evaluation criteria upon which the decision to award the contract will be based
• provide all bidders with the same information and opportunity, for example if a bidder asks a question or requests further clarification during the process, the response will be shared with all bidders

Full instructions on how the tender should be submitted will be included in the tender documentation.

To view and be considered for tenders for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), DfTc, Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), and Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), you must register on our online system.

Register for our portal by following the instructions on the portal homepage

Conditions of contract

DfT primarily uses the purchase order conditions when placing low-value orders (typically for goods and services valued at less than £12,000 including VAT in the central department).

Different terms and conditions may be used for contracts with a value higher than £12,000 including VAT, depending on the requirement and the value. These conditions will be stated in the tender documentation.

Submitting and receiving tenders

We must receive tenders in a consistent way, as stated in the invitation to tender and before the end date; normally this is electronically via an e-tendering system.

Tenders received after the tender submission deadline will not be evaluated.

Any tender not complying with our included instructions may be reviewed before deciding if it can be admitted. If deemed serious enough, the tender will be considered ‘qualified’ and may not be admitted.

Evaluation criteria

Tenders are assessed against the same set of criteria as individual requirements.

Award criteria is used to assess which tender is the most economically advantageous. This criteria will be set out in the invitation to tender documentation. We are required to ensure that the award criteria:

• is completely transparent and unchangeable
• is relevant to the subject matter of the contract
• has not been used at the selection stage, for example the track record of the organisation cannot be reused at tender evaluation

Wider commercial principles

In addition to ensuring value for money, there are a number of commercial agendas that are important to us and of which, as a potential supplier, you will wish to be aware. These may feature in requirement documents and evaluation criteria, and be monitored through contract management activity for certain applicable contracts.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)

The SME action plan, overseen by our DfT SME champion, outlines the steps to achieving our SME aspiration.

Sustainability in procurement

We follow government policy on sustainable procurement, and work to make practices as economically, socially and environmentally sustainable as possible, with a particular focus on how procurement can aid the DfT’s wider decarbonisation agenda.

View the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs’ guidance on making sustainable development a part of all government policy and operations and Greening Government Commitments, which creates targets for central government departments.

Modern slavery

We are committed to tackling modern slavery and are taking action to comply with the policy and associated procurement guidance to ensure modern slavery risks are identified and managed effectively throughout supply chains.

Social value

We are committed to the government’s wider agenda of increasing the importance of social value when designing its procurement and evaluating bids. This is to ensure that all government spending is providing as much social, environmental and economic benefit as possible.

Procurement professionals must include social value questions in their evaluation criteria and weighted as a minimum of 10% of the overall score available. A social value model has been created which comprises a series of evaluation criteria questions for procurement teams to insert in their invitation to tenders linked to the themes of:

• tackling economic inequality
• equal opportunity
• fighting climate change
• wellbeing
• COVID-19 recovery

It is the responsibility of procurement professionals to decide which of these themes they want to prioritise in their procurement. All procurements, within the threshold, need to include social value questions in their criteria, unless:

• it can be demonstrated that question inclusion will be restrictive for SME or voluntary, community and social enterprises
• the pre-market engagement demonstrates this approach would significantly reduce competition due to a lack of market maturity in making social value whereby the contracting authority may specify the social value weighting as 10% of the quality score

A transparent process

As a government department delivering value for money to the taxpayer, it is important that our commercial processes are:

• robust
• transparent
• fair

Commercial ethics

Public servants follow a strict code of commercial ethics. They and members of their families may not accept gifts or offers of hospitality from individuals or organisations with whom the department has, or could possibly have, a contractual relationship. Any personal or financial interest in suppliers bidding for work must be declared.

The Supplier Code of Conduct outlines the standards and behaviours expected from suppliers and grant recipients, and reiterates our approach to working with suppliers.

Transparency

As part of transparency requirements, information about contracts with an estimated value greater than £12,000 including VAT must be published in the Contracts Finder and suppliers should be aware, if awarded a contract, that this may be published. Suppliers are alerted to the transparency requirements included within the tender documentation.

Freedom of Information Act 2000

If, during the tender process, a supplier identifies information that they believe to be commercially confidential, we will consult the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).

Even if agreed that information is sensitive, in the event of a request under FOIA, we will still need to consider the nature of the information requested and whether an exemption applies.

Prompt payment measures

Where a bidder intends to use a supply chain, the bidder is required to provide evidence they have effective payment systems in place to ensure prompt payment to the supply chain and that they comply with the payment measures.

These requirements include setting out how payment approaches are taken into account in the procurement of major government contracts valued above £5 million per annum.

Payment procedures

We recognise the importance of cash flow to all companies, especially SMEs. In accordance with government prompt payment policy, we have a commitment to pay:

• 90% of suppliers within 5 days of receipt of a valid invoice
• all invoices no later than 30 days from the date upon which the invoice is regarded as valid and undisputed

Our performance is published quarterly.

We are keen to ensure that prime contractors pay their own subcontractors in a similar manner to our own and our general conditions of contract include a condition requiring suppliers employing subcontractors to pay them promptly as well. Any subcontractors who are not being paid within a 30-day period should raise their concern with us at dftcommercial@dft.gov.uk including your name, contract reference number and the nature of the complaint.

Should a complaint not be resolved to the supplier’s satisfaction, it may be sent to the Public Procurement Review Service. This service can also be used to:

• raise any concerns anonymously regarding unfair public sector procurement practice
• conduct spot checks on government buyers

Use the service by completing the public procurement review service case request form

Commercial lifecycle assurance

The Commercial Lifecycle Assurance team provides assurance to the DfT Permanent Secretary, Investment Boards and the Group Commercial Director that DfT Group commercial activity is:

1. compliant with procurement law, and following recognised and established ‘good practice’ commercial procedures and policies
2. supported by evidence that the published process has been followed consistently, using appropriate expertise, to ensure a successful outcome for the commercial activity in a timely manner

High-value, strategically important procurements, conducted through competitions run by the DfT Group, will have independent assurance undertaken by a dedicated commercial assurance team throughout the life of the procurement, contract delivery and disposal or re-procurement (known as the commercial lifecycle); this includes periodic engagement with and review by the Commercial Assurance Board.

DfT’s commercial teams

The DfT Group Commercial function consists of commercial professionals and support staff, its executive agencies and arm’s length bodies. All procurement professionals are members of both the Group Commercial function and the procurement profession. The head of DfT Group Commercial function and head of the procurement profession is the Group Commercial Director.

DfT consists of a central (core) department, and a number of executive agencies and arm’s length bodies. The DfT Group Commercial Board is collectively responsible for the leadership of the commercial function across this group of bodies, known as our group operating model. Membership of the board includes:

• the Group Commercial Director (Chair)
• the heads of procurement/commercial from the agencies and arm’s length bodies
• those with group-wide leadership responsibilities

For instance, the central department (through its Group Commercial directorate) leads on activities including:

• developing procurement policy
• assuring contracts
• managing pipelines of contract activity and supplier relationship management.

Transforming public procurement

Public procurement is changing, information on the way supplies, services and works are procured for the public sector being transformed is available.

Contact us

If you have further questions, please contact us using the following e-mail address: dftcommercial@dft.gov.uk.