United Kingdom · Procurement Act 2023 · notice literacy
Procurement Act 2023 notice fields SME bidders should check on Contracts Finder / Find a Tender
The Procurement Act 2023 changed how UK public buyers publish notices on the enhanced Find a Tender service — structured UK notice types, clearer value fields, SME markers. Law firms own the legal explainers. This page is notice literacy for facilities, cleaning and trades SMEs: which fields to scan on a live URL before you download the pack. Not legal advice. Not bid writing.
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What changed for suppliers — in one paragraph
From 24 February 2025, regulated procurements run under the Procurement Act 2023 publish on the Central Digital Platform and enhanced Find a Tender with standardised notice types (UK1–UK7). Contracts Finder still lists many opportunities — including sub-threshold and transitional notices — but FaT is where you will see explicit UK4: Tender notice labels, structured estimated values, and Act-era procedure names. For triage, you do not need to read the Act — you need to read the fields on the notice page. GOV.UK’s supplier short guide covers portal mechanics: How to use the Central Digital Platform / enhanced Find a Tender.
Notice fields to scan first — SME triage order
On any Act-era URL, read in this order. Same habit as ten-minute notice triage — you are deciding whether the pack is worth opening.
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Notice type and legal basis. UK4 tender, UK5 transparency, UK6 award? “Procurement Act 2023” in the legal-basis field confirms you are on an Act-regime notice — see the Hull gutter sample for a UK4 example. Awards (UK6) are for incumbent lookup, not new bids.
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Procedure type. Open procedure, competitive flexible, framework call-off, DPS mini-competition? Framework-only wording is a notice-visible Fail if you are not on the panel — see framework call-offs vs open tenders.
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Deadline and enquiry dates. Submission deadline in BST. Count working days in your capacity. Short clock → Fail before pack download.
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Estimated value and lot structure. Total value, annual estimate, lot split. Feeds turnover maths when a multiple is stated — see turnover requirements guide. Value band tells you if the lot sits in your normal £10k–£250k chase.
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SME suitability. When the notice marks the opportunity unsuitable for SMEs, micro and small firms should treat it as a strong negative signal — a notice-visible gate, not legal classification of your company.
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CPV codes and title. Do codes and title match what you deliver? Mismatch → Fail without opening the pack.
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Description and mandatory requirements. Scan for stated insurance minimums, accreditations, turnover wording, TUPE mentions, site geography. These are notice-visible when printed — see notice-visible vs pack-only gates.
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Documents on the notice page. Scope summary, selection criteria PDF, insurance schedule attached to the notice itself — read before assuming everything is pack-only Unknown.
Field-by-field — what SMEs can use for go/no-go
| Field | What to look for | Notice triage action |
|---|---|---|
| Notice type (UK1–UK7) | UK4 = live tender; UK6 = award | Bid on UK4 only. Use UK6 for incumbent research. |
| Procedure | Open, competitive flexible, framework call-off | Framework call-off → check panel membership. Fail if not on framework. |
| Estimated value | Total, annual, lot value | Band fit. Enables 2× turnover check when multiple is stated on notice. |
| SME suitable | Yes / No / Not specified | “No” → strong Fail signal for small firms. |
| CPV codes | Service category numbers | Trade fit — cleaning 90911300, building trades 45xxxx, etc. |
| Submission deadline | Date and time BST | Clock gate — Fail if insufficient working days. |
| Contract location | Region, NUTS, site list | Geography gate — Fail if travel-to-work impossible. |
| Description text | Scope, buyer asks, “see ITT” | Read for insurance, TUPE, accreditation, method asks stated inline. |
| Selection criteria (on notice) | Sometimes linked or embedded | Notice-visible financial standing or insurance when numbers appear here. |
| Framework reference | Named framework, DPS ID | Fail if call-off and you are not appointed. |
Contracts Finder vs Find a Tender — same triage, different layout
Many SMEs still find work on Contracts Finder — especially sub-threshold cleaning, grounds and trades lots. FaT hosts the structured Act notices above threshold. Field labels differ but the triage questions are identical:
- Is the clock still open?
- Is trade and geography plausible?
- Is it framework-only?
- Does the SME flag or value band fit?
- Are any stated gates (insurance, turnover, accreditation) already a Fail?
Portal alert setup for both: Contracts Finder + Find a Tender alerts. BidFit’s digest sits on top — it does not replace official saved searches.
What stays Unknown even on Act-era notices
Structured FaT fields improve value and procedure clarity, but they do not put the full SQ on the notice page. These typically stay Unknown until the pack:
- Full insurance stack when only “adequate insurance required” appears on the notice.
- Turnover multiple when the notice says “financial standing in SQ Part 2” with no numbers.
- TUPE headcount and ETO costs — mention may be notice-visible; numbers are pack-only. See TUPE wording cues.
- Scoring weights and social value percentage.
Unknown stays Unknown on the £9.99 memo. Pack forward for £29.99 when those gates decide the bid — see when a notice match needs a memo.
£9.99 vs £29.99 on Act-era notices
- £9.99 public-notice memo — scores notice-visible fields above against your profile. Structured FaT data helps sourcing; pack-only rows stay Unknown.
- £29.99 pack memo — fills selection criteria, insurance schedules and financial standing from the ITT/SQ you forward. Still not SQ answers or a written bid.
Example notice-only memo: Bedford College windows sample. Product detail: prices.
What BidFit will not do
- Not legal advice on the Procurement Act 2023. Read GOV.UK guidance and talk to your advisers for compliance questions.
- Not bid writing or SQ completion. Memos are Go / No-go decision support only.
- Not guess pack-only fields from Act-era headers. A UK4 label does not imply your turnover passes.
Questions
Which Procurement Act 2023 notice fields should an SME scan first?
Start with notice type (UK4 tender, UK6 award, etc.), procedure type, deadline, estimated value, SME suitability, CPV codes, and whether the lot is a framework call-off. Then read description text for stated insurance, turnover, accreditation and TUPE wording. You are triaging from the published notice — not interpreting the Act.
Is Contracts Finder different from Find a Tender under the Procurement Act 2023?
Find a Tender is the enhanced central platform for above-threshold and Act-regime notices with structured UK notice types. Contracts Finder still publishes many sub-threshold and legacy-format notices. Both can carry Act-era fields, but layout differs. Scan the same triage fields on whichever portal hosts the URL.
Does the SME suitability field mean my firm can bid?
It is a buyer signal, not a guarantee. When the notice marks a lot unsuitable for SMEs and you are a micro or small firm, treat it as a notice-visible Fail unless you have a specific reason to proceed. When suitable for SMEs, continue other gates on the same notice read.
Does BidFit interpret the Procurement Act 2023 for my firm?
No. BidFit memos flag what the published notice or forwarded pack states against the profile you provide — Pass, Fail or Unknown. We do not give legal advice, draft SQ responses, or write bids.
More guides
All BidFit guides: /guides/. Notice-visible vs pack-only: notice-visible gates vs pack-only gates. Ten-minute triage: how to read a tender notice in ten minutes. Bid/no-bid checklist: bid/no-bid decision for UK SMEs. Turnover fields: turnover requirements on notices. Portal alerts: Contracts Finder + Find a Tender alerts.
Read the fields, then decide
Take the free weekly list. When an Act-era notice survives field triage and you want a sourced Go / No-go, order a £9.99 memo — or run the scan yourself and move on.