United Kingdom · tender notices · literacy
Modern slavery and supply-chain statement wording on UK tender notices — reading for SMEs
Public buyers increasingly reference modern slavery transparency, supply-chain due diligence, or ethical procurement in tender packs and sometimes on the published notice. For a ten-person cleaning or trades SME, the question at triage is not how to rewrite corporate policy — it is whether the notice signals a pass/fail attestation, a scored question, or a post-award contract clause you must be able to meet. This guide helps you read that wording on Contracts Finder and Find a Tender for early bid/no-bid. Not legal advice and not bid writing.
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Why SMEs notice this field early
Modern slavery lines rarely replace turnover or insurance gates, but they can be mandatory pass/fail in the selection questionnaire. If your company is below the statutory statement threshold and has no published statement, a notice that requires a live URL to a board-approved statement may be an immediate Fail unless you can commit to publishing one before contract start — that detail is often pack-only.
Pair with social value wording, subcontracting opportunity wording, and notice-visible vs pack-only gates so ethical procurement is not confused with local employment scoring.
Common phrases on published notices
| Wording pattern | What to extract | SME triage note |
|---|---|---|
| Modern Slavery Act 2015 statement | Link or confirmation required | Check turnover threshold vs buyer ask |
| Supply-chain due diligence policy | Policy existence and review date | Often SQ pass/fail — pack |
| Ethical procurement / labour standards | May bundle living wage with slavery | Split questions in your triage sheet |
| Contract performance — modern slavery reporting | Post-award reporting duty | Commercial resourcing gate |
| Subcontractor flow-down requirements | Prime must pass clauses down | Relevant if bidding as tier two |
Notice fields vs ITT pack
Find a Tender and Contracts Finder may list “additional information” or selection criteria without reproducing the full SQ. Procurement Act formatted notices may group social and ethical themes under participation requirements — see Procurement Act notice fields.
If the notice is silent, mark modern slavery requirement Unknown until the pack opens — same discipline as key personnel gates.
Framework and call-off context
Framework terms may already embed ethical procurement for every call-off — framework call-offs vs open tenders, DPS mini-competition wording. A mini-competition notice might not repeat every SQ line; the framework schedule still applies.
Subcontractors and labour supply chains
Cleaning and FM tenders with agency labour may ask how you vet agencies. That is adjacent to, but not identical with, a corporate modern slavery statement. Note whether the buyer asks about your supply chain only or also client-site workers under TUPE — read TUPE cues separately via TUPE wording cues.
What the notice does not tell you
Published notice text is not a template statement. It does not confirm your statement meets buyer formatting, that your board has approved it, or that subcontractors will sign flow-down clauses.
BidFit memos cite notice and pack extracts you supply; we do not audit supply chains or write policies.
Questions
Where does modern slavery wording appear on a tender notice?
Look in selection criteria, social value, contract performance conditions, or supplier questionnaires referenced from the notice. Full templates are often pack-only.
Is a modern slavery statement the same as a social value question?
No. Social value may score local employment; modern slavery lines ask about supply-chain policies and statements. Read each field separately on the notice.
Will BidFit draft a modern slavery statement?
No. BidFit emails tender matches and writes sourced Go / No-go memos. We do not draft policies or SQ responses.
More guides
All BidFit guides: /guides/. Ten-minute triage: how to read a tender notice in ten minutes.
Catch ethical procurement gates early
The free weekly digest surfaces live notices matched to your trade and region — so pass/fail attestation lines reach you before you invest in a full ITT read.