Consultancy
Tendering for public sector consultancy work
Consultancy tenders are mostly won on quality: the people you would put on the work, how you would approach the buyer's problem, and evidence that you've solved similar ones. Price matters, but it rarely decides a well-scored consultancy bid on its own.
Because consultants often advise the bodies they then bid to, the Procurement Act 2023 pays particular attention to conflicts of interest. It's worth knowing the rules before they come up, so a past piece of work for the buyer helps your bid rather than holding it up.
What do public buyers ask for in consultancy tenders?
The Consultancy Playbook
Central government buyers follow the Cabinet Office's Consultancy Playbook when they buy consultancy. Read it before a central government bid: it shows how they are told to define the work and judge the bids.
“The new Consultancy Playbook provides specific guidance on sourcing consultancy services.”
GOV.UK, The Sourcing and Consultancy Playbooks, 5 September 2022 Conflicts of interest
A buyer must identify conflicts of interest and keep checking for them, and prepare a conflicts assessment before the tender starts. If you've advised them before, they may ask you to take reasonable steps, and a supplier that refuses can be excluded.
“a conflicts assessment must be prepared before publishing a tender or transparency notice”
GOV.UK, Guidance: Conflicts of Interest, 13 July 2026 Scoring weighted towards quality
When a tender scores on more than one criterion, the buyer must say how much each counts. In consultancy the quality questions usually carry most of the marks, so match the length and depth of each answer to its weighting.
“If there is more than one criterion, the contracting authority must set out the relative importance of all the criteria.”
GOV.UK, Guidance: Assessing Competitive Tenders, 17 August 2026 Social value, worth at least 10% with central government
Central government departments, their agencies and non-departmental public bodies must give social value at least 10% of the total score in procurements started from 1 October 2025. Other public buyers often score it too. A specific, measurable offer scores better than a general promise.
“In-scope organisations must apply a minimum 10% weighting (or an equivalent measurement) of the total score, for social value”
GOV.UK, PPN 002: Taking account of social value in the award of central government contracts, 5 March 2025 Your team, as evidence
Conditions of participation test technical ability. In consultancy that usually means CVs of the people you would field and case studies with results, so keep both current and specific to the kind of work you bid for.
“…ensure a supplier’s legal and financial capacity and technical ability to perform the contract…”
GOV.UK, Guidance: Conditions of Participation, 17 August 2026
Quotes are word for word from their sources, checked on 1 November 2026. A tender’s own documents are what count; terms are explained in the glossary.
What should you have ready?
- CVs for the people you would field, focused on the work you bid for
- Three case studies with measurable results, each with a client who will vouch for you
- Your day rates, and how you would price fixed-scope or outcome-based work
- A note of any previous work for the buyer, ready for a conflicts question
- Your insurances, including professional indemnity, and the policies buyers commonly ask for
How does TenderSeal help with consultancy tenders?
Upload your CVs, case studies and past bids once, and TenderSeal drafts each quality answer from them, written to its weighting and word limit. Go/No-Go shows which requirements your documents already meet before you commit the time.
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