Section one: Contracting authority
one.1) Name and addresses
Llywodraeth Cymru / Welsh Government
Gwasanaethau Caffael Corfforaethol / Corporate Procurement Services, Parc Cathays / Cathays Park
Caerdydd / Cardiff
CF10 3NQ
CPSProcurementAdvice@gov.wales
Telephone
+44 3000257095
Country
United Kingdom
NUTS code
UKL - Wales
Internet address(es)
Main address
Buyer's address
https://www.sell2wales.gov.wales/search/Search_AuthProfile.aspx?ID=AA0007
one.2) Information about joint procurement
The contract is awarded by a central purchasing body
one.4) Type of the contracting authority
Ministry or any other national or federal authority
one.5) Main activity
General public services
Section two: Object
two.1) Scope of the procurement
two.1.1) Title
National monitoring programme feasibility study
Reference number
C075/2023/2024
two.1.2) Main CPV code
- 73110000 - Research services
two.1.3) Type of contract
Services
two.1.4) Short description
The Welsh Government is seeking to deliver a national programme of sample-based assessments to monitor learners’ attainment in the Curriculum for Wales (“national monitoring programme”) to provide national information on learning standards. We are seeking to pilot such assessments within the 2025/26 academic year.
two.1.6) Information about lots
This contract is divided into lots: No
two.1.7) Total value of the procurement (excluding VAT)
Value excluding VAT: £391,196
two.2) Description
two.2.2) Additional CPV code(s)
- 73210000 - Research consultancy services
- 79419000 - Evaluation consultancy services
- 80100000 - Primary education services
- 80420000 - E-learning services
- 80200000 - Secondary education services
two.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS codes
- UKL - Wales
two.2.4) Description of the procurement
The Welsh Government is procuring a feasibility study to develop fully costed and detailed options for the creation and delivery of this national monitoring programme. Curriculum for Wales is being taught in schools and settings across Wales up to year 6 and half of year 7 in September 2022. In September 2023 it will roll out to all secondary schools in respect of years 7 and 8, and will then roll out year by year until it includes year 11 in September 2026. Curriculum for Wales does not contain a national standardised assessment framework. Schools must design their curriculum in line with the Curriculum for Wales Guidance including appropriate assessment arrangements that support learner progression. End of Key Stage assessments, which previously provided information on attainment in the core subjects, have been phased out due to their inconsistency with the Curriculum for Wales. In line with the recommendation of Successful Futures, the Welsh Government is pursuing a national monitoring programme as the means of monitoring learner attainment and discerning learning standards at a national level over time. In July 2022, the Government Social Research Service published the final report of the scoping study undertaken by Arad Research and the Open University on the evaluability of the Curriculum and Assessment reforms. Recommendations included the development of a national monitoring programme for learner attainment and considerations for its development. The Welsh Government’s response committed to considering these recommendations in the development of the Curriculum for Wales Evaluation Plan. The Evaluation Plan has been published, setting out our long-term approach to evaluation and monitoring, including our ambition to develop national monitoring. The feasibility study must answer a series of detailed questions regarding the design, development, delivery, and operation of the national monitoring programme which will be set out in the specification. It must develop costed proposals for the programme which meet the requirements set out by the Welsh Government. These requirements include principles that should underpin the development of the programme; and requirements regarding what should be assessed and the outputs that the programme must deliver. National monitoring will form one part of the broader school information ecosystem – the holistic range of information about schools that we will use to inform local, regional, and national improvement. Therefore, this study will need to acknowledge and work within the broader context of developing policy on the creation of a new school information ecosystem (including how the outputs of national monitoring can integrate with other sources of information in this ecosystem and as part of the broader Evaluation Plan) and take a flexible approach that allows iteration of the approach to discerning learning standards in line with policy development. Given the breadth and complexity of the study, suppliers may wish to consider consortium arrangements when responding to the invitation.
two.2.5) Award criteria
Quality criterion - Name: Understanding of the policy context - Demonstration of a clear understanding of the policy context and need for this feasibility study / Weighting: 15
Quality criterion - Name: Proposed approach to project delivery - Proposed approach to delivering project. / Weighting: 30
Quality criterion - Name: Expertise of resource - Describe the staffing resources and expertise of staff that would be brought to this project. / Weighting: 25
Quality criterion - Name: Project management plan - Understanding of, and ability to meet, project timetable and dependencies / risks. / Weighting: 10
Price - Weighting: 20
two.2.11) Information about options
Options: No
two.2.13) Information about European Union Funds
The procurement is related to a project and/or programme financed by European Union funds: No
Section four. Procedure
four.1) Description
four.1.1) Type of procedure
Open procedure
four.1.8) Information about the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement: Yes
four.2) Administrative information
four.2.1) Previous publication concerning this procedure
Notice number: 2023/S 000-027937
Section five. Award of contract
Contract No
C075/2023/2024
A contract/lot is awarded: Yes
five.2) Award of contract
five.2.1) Date of conclusion of the contract
15 December 2023
five.2.2) Information about tenders
Number of tenders received: 2
Number of tenders received from SMEs: 1
Number of tenders received from tenderers from other EU Member States: 0
Number of tenders received from tenderers from non-EU Member States: 2
Number of tenders received by electronic means: 2
The contract has been awarded to a group of economic operators: No
five.2.3) Name and address of the contractor
AlphaPlus Consultancy Ltd
AlphaPlus c/o AQA, Devas Street
Manchester
M156EX
Telephone
+44 127412490
Country
United Kingdom
NUTS code
- UKD33 - Manchester
The contractor is an SME
No
five.2.4) Information on value of contract/lot (excluding VAT)
Initial estimated total value of the contract/lot: £416,666
Total value of the contract/lot: £391,196
Section six. Complementary information
six.3) Additional information
E-Tender Information:
https://etenderwales.bravosolution.co.uk
- The first person from your Organisation to use the Platform will be required to register on behalf of the
Organisation.
- Registration involves accepting a User Agreement, and providing basic information about your
Organisation and about the User performing the Registration.
- On registering on the Platform the Super User will select a Username and will receive a password.
- The Password will be sent by e-mail to the email address that was specified in the User Details section of
the Registration page.
- In order to log-in to the Platform please enter your Username and Password.
- Note: If you forget your Password then visit the homepage and click “Forgot your password?”
- Registration should only be performed once for each Organisation.
- If you think that someone in your Organisation may have already registered on this Platform then you
must not register again.
- Please contact the person who Registered (i.e. the Super User) in order to arrange access to the Platform.
5.1
- Contact the Helpdesk immediately if you are unable to contact the Super User (for example if they have
left your Organisation).
- Note: If your Organisation is already registered on the Platform then you must not make any additional
registration. Please contact the
Helpdesk to gain access to the Platform.
- Tenders must be uploaded to the BravoSolution portal by 14:00. Late bids will not be accepted.
How To Find The ITT:
- Once logged in you must click on ‘ITT’s Open to all Suppliers’
- The e-tender references for this contract are: project_54209 and itt_104887
- Click on the title to access summary details of the contract. If you are still interested in submitting a
tender, click the 'Express an Interest' button. This will move the ITT from the ‘Open to all Suppliers’ area to
the ‘My ITT’s’ on the home page.
- You will then see the full details of the ITT in the qualification and technical envelopes along with any
relevant documents in the‘Attachments’ area.
- Any questions on the ITT, please use the ‘Messages’ area to contact the buyer directly
(WA Ref:133956)
The buyer considers that this contract is suitable for consortia bidding.
(WA Ref:137564)
six.4) Procedures for review
six.4.1) Review body
High Court
Royal Courts of Justice, The Strand
London
WC2A 2LL
Telephone
+44 2079477501
Country
United Kingdom