UKUPC support for members for the new Procurement Act implementation

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This year, the implementation of the new Procurement Act 2023 will dominate the activity of our procurement communities across the public sector. UKUPC will provide you with regular updates on intelligence gathered as part of our role as Superusers as well as information on what we, as consortia, are doing to prepare ourselves. We will share guidance and support to our collective membership to assist you with this transformation.

Legislation Update


The Cabinet Office advised that the next significant phase of implementation is publishing the formal response to the consultation undertaken last year on the proposed secondary legislation which itself will be laid in parliament in mid to late March. Once the Statutory Instrument is available it will be shared through the networks.

The Act, which is primary legislation, is officially titled the Procurement Act 2023. The secondary legislation will be called the Procurement Regulations 2024.

Government Commercial College Training


Following on from the December launch of the Knowledge Drops, the next phase in upskilling procurement is the delivery of eLearning modules which are planned to be available in April and will be open to all who are eligible to access Government Commercial College. There will be nine modules with a tenth certification module.

The Communities of Practice will begin in May this year offering resources and meet ups to provide support to procurement practitioners. These will be available on the Government Commercial College website.

Cabinet Office Guidance Documents


A suite of guidance documents will be made available in phased release to help with interpretation and understanding of the new regime. They will be available on gov.uk on the Transforming Public Procurement section. The first phase will be released in March with all materials available by the end of June.

Central Digital Platform


The Central Digital Platform is in progress. This system will combine Registration, Supplier Information and Find a Tender service in one place.

The Cabinet Office is engaging with eProcurement system providers to support the new notice requirements. Seven of the new notices have been released to the test environment.

For all questions relating to implementation of the Procurement Act 2023 there is a service desk available at procurement.reform@cabinetoffice.gov.uk.

UKUPC Procurement Act Webinar Series


Over the next few months UKUPC will be delivering free of charge to members, a UKUPC Procurement Act Webinar Series providing insight to members, predominantly via the legal providers on the UKUPC Legal Services Framework PFB5069 LU. Further information on the series, including the registration details for the first webinar being delivered in March, will be circulated within the next week.

We will also shortly issue the Procurement Act 2023 Impact Review, produced by SUPC for UKUPC members, which includes: the key changes and their impacts; the objectives and highlights of the new bill; risks; next steps; and cabinet office training.

Please look out for further UKUPC updates and contact me if you have any queries.

This day is particularly significant for the procurement sector, highlighting the importance of supply chain transparency, ethical sourcing and responsible procurement.

Today, UKUPC would like to share our Modern Slavery Series – an informative playlist of presentations to raise awareness of modern slavery in the sector. This series will educate you on the signs of modern slavery and support organisations in writing Modern Slavery Statements.

You can find the full series, and other useful resources, on the UKUPC Responsible Procurement page.

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