Published date: 14 December 2023

This notice was replaced on 14 December 2023

This notice does not contain the most up-to-date information about this procurement. The most recent notice is:

Opportunity (published 14 December 2023, last edited 19 March 2024)

Closed opportunity - This means that the contract is currently closed. The buying department may be considering suppliers that have already applied, or no suitable offers were made.


Contract summary

Industry

  • E-learning services - 80420000

Location of contract

SW1A 2DY

Value of contract

£80,000

Procurement reference

tender_404250/1293894

Published date

14 December 2023

Closing date

22 January 2024

Closing time

5pm

Contract start date

11 March 2024

Contract end date

10 March 2026

Contract type

Service contract

Procedure type

Open procedure (below threshold)

Any interested supplier may submit a tender in response to an opportunity notice.

This procedure can be used for procurements below the relevant contract value threshold.

Contract is suitable for SMEs?

Yes

Contract is suitable for VCSEs?

No

Description

About the leading programme
The UK Export Academy (UKEA) from the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) is a free training programme for UK businesses of all sizes looking to grow their international sales.

In 2021, the programme was rolled out on a national basis to include London and the Southeast plus the Nations of Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. So far over 16,000 businesses have signed up for the UK Export Academy. The sector specific modules were soft-launched in 2022 with 12 of 13 sector teams delivering 'Sector Overviews'.

About the sector team
The Food and Drink sector team's vision is that as the sector re-shapes, we can strengthen the industry's recovery with an ambitious, forward-thinking programme of export support. This will increase profitability and resilience and re-establish the pre-covid trajectory of a sustained pattern of year-on-year increase in the value of UK exports.

We also aim to increase the proportion of businesses that export, from the current 20.5% (of food manufacturers). Our key objective is to harness the collective capability of Government and industry to achieve export success.

About the sector

Food and drink is the UK's largest manufacturing sector. UK food and drink recognised for their level of quality, their innovation and in some cases provenance.

In recent years, the sector has been operating in a highly challenging business environment. EU Exit, Covid-19 pandemic, Ukraine war and global weather events have led to supply chain disruption, high energy prices, disrupted stock management and volatile costs. The sector is also highly regulated and trading can be complex, particularly for smaller businesses. Understanding these complexities is the key to successful exporting. We want to demystify the challenge.

There are not just barriers but also opportunities. Post Brexit, we want SMEs to utilise newly signed free trade agreements. Only one in five SMEs export, there is massive untapped potential for the UK's s largest manufacturing sector to export more. We want to encourage and inspire more businesses who only trade domestically to starting or re-start exporting, with our modules.

To respond to an increasing demand from our audience, AFD is looking for a successful provider to design, develop and deliver high quality content for virtual modules.

About the modules
We would be looking for bidders to develop and deliver various modules, via Live webinars, to businesses seeking to export across different markets. These would enable companies to confidently export and demystify complex requirements and pitfalls involved. The modules can be delivered on a quarterly basis, with a minimum of 3 modules delivered per quarter, and a maximum of 16 per year. We would like the winning bidder to commence the development of the offer in Spring 2024. Supplier will need to be contracted by 29 of March 2024. Module delivery will need to commence from April 2024.

More information

Additional text

About supplier engagement session
Interested suppliers are invited to attend a supplier engagement session scheduled to take place on 23 of Jan 2024 1.00pm - 3.00pm via Microsoft Teams. Should you wish to attend, please register your interest using the contact details below. The event will provide more information about the opportunity and what we expect from suppliers. It will also give suppliers an opportunity to better understand what OPSS aims to achieve from the contract.
The event will last approximately 2 hours, comprising of:

- Overview of our requirements (including essential and desirable elements)
- Explanation of the tendering process
- Open floor question and answer session

Note that the route to market will be via Contracts Finder.

4. Contact details

Contact name: Sharleene Bibbings
Email: Sharleene.Bibbings@businessandtrade.gov.uk
Address: Department for Business and Trade | Old Admiralty Building)
London
SW1A 2DY

About the buyer

Contact name

Department for International Trade

Address

Old Admiralty Building
London
SW1A 2DY
England

Email

Sharleene.Bibbings@businessandtrade.gov.uk

Website

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-business-and-trade