There are other actions you can start to take to prepare:

• sign up for regular updates 
• familiarise yourself with the Act - check out the summary documents and videos on the Transforming Public Procurement website
• sign up to the Central Digital Platform 
• we are now thinking about our forward pipelines and which procurement projects might benefit from the new flexible approaches, What does the Council buy? | Worcestershire County Council

A key objective for the Procurement Act 2023 was to make it easier for suppliers to do business with the public sector.  

As such there are some core benefits for suppliers once the new regime goes live in October, including:

• a central place to register and to store your core business details so that they can be used for multiple bids
• improved transparency and access to information, with all public procurement opportunities in one place - making it easier to search for and set up alerts for procurement projects of interest to you
• better visibility of procurement plans, engagement events and tender opportunities - including those below threshold - increasing the number of opportunities available to bid on
• greater visibility about who is bidding for, and winning, larger public sector contracts above £5 million, and the details of those public contracts
• simplified bidding processes to make it easier to bid, negotiate and work in partnership with the public sector - including a new ‘competitive flexible’ procedure.
• frameworks will be more flexible, so prospective suppliers are not shut out for long periods of time.
• a new duty on contracting authorities to have regard to the particular barriers facing SMEs and VCSEs, and to consider what can be done to overcome them throughout the procurement life cycle, helping level the playing field for smaller businesses so they can compete for more contracts
• strengthened provisions for prompt payment throughout the supply chain - enabling SMEs to benefit from 30 day payment terms on a broader range of public sector contracts
• a stronger exclusions framework will take tougher action on underperforming suppliers
   

This is a long-term change, so although these benefits may not be visible on day one, we are confident that the new regime will help break down barriers to entry into procurement.

Our Commercial Team is now working through the necessary training and guidance materials so we are ready to operate under the new regulations and realise the benefits of the new regime when it goes live.

The Cabinet Office will continue working with leading business groups and trade associations to make sure information is available for suppliers.

There is already a range of information and resources about the new regime on the Transforming Public Procurement website. 

If you haven’t already- we strongly recommend you watch the ‘Knowledge Drop’  videos with dedicated versions designed specifically for suppliers, including SME and VCSE suppliers. These will give you a broader understanding of the changes which will be coming.

Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) will be known as Dynamic Markets under new legislation. Existing DPS agreements will continue under the existing procurement regulations with no changes for suppliers. However, all current DPS arrangements must end by their natural termination date or 27 October 2028, whichever comes first. New Dynamic Markets starting on or after 28 October 2024 will follow the new legislation. Further details will be provided during market engagement and in tender notices.