Regulatory blog

Procurement rules, in plain English.

Practical guides on the rules that decide whether you find, win and deliver public and private work, written for teams who bid themselves.

  1. Featured guide: PPN 026 & social value

    PPN 026 tracker: what has published, and what has not

    Velstrian Regulatory Desk

    PPN 026 sets two outcomes and six model award criteria, and five of the documents you need to bid against it have not been published yet. A standing record of what exists today, what is still expected, and the dates that bind.

    8 min read

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  2. Procurement Act 2023

    Life after the award: the KPIs you will be measured on, in public

    9 min read

    Aparajita Parihar Founder, Velstrian

    Winning is not the end of the bid. Under the Procurement Act 2023 the indicators are published before the contract is signed, and the assessment against them is published at least every 12 months. Here is what that means for the promises you made.

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  3. Tender strategy & AI

    How AI is changing UK public sector tender evaluation

    6 min read

    How UK contracting authorities use AI and automated compliance tools to screen tenders under the Procurement Act 2023, and how SME bidders can structure responses.

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  4. Sustainability & compliance

    PPN 06/21 & Carbon Reduction Plans: a guide for SME bidders

    7 min read

    A plain-English guide to PPN 06/21 and Carbon Reduction Plans for UK SME bidders: Scope 1, 2, and mandatory Scope 3 emissions reporting and net zero targets.

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  5. Frameworks

    Frameworks and DPS explained: G-Cloud, lots and call-offs

    11 min read

    G-Cloud, these frameworks and DPS explained simply: how to get onto one, how call-off competitions work, and what changed under the Procurement Act 2023.

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  6. Method statements

    How to write a method statement that actually scores

    12 min read

    How to write a UK tender method statement that scores: answer the exact question, structure approach and risk clearly, and evidence every claim you make.

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  7. Private sector bidding

    Responding to corporate RFPs and PQQs in the private sector

    11 min read

    How private sector RFPs and PQQs differ from public procurement, what corporate buyers actually score, and how to respond well with no statutory rulebook.

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  8. Getting started

    How to find and win your first UK public sector contract

    11 min read

    Where to look for UK public sector tenders, how to read one, SQ versus ITT, the bid or no-bid call, and the first-timer mistakes that lose winnable work.

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  9. Procurement Act 2023

    The Procurement Act 2023: what SME bidders actually need to know

    10 min read

    A plain-English guide to the Procurement Act 2023 for SME bidders: the February 2025 go-live, MAT replacing MEAT, and the Central Digital Platform.

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  10. PPN 026 & social value

    Social Value Portal vs Velstrian Bid: which is right for your business?

    8 min read

    A straight comparison of Social Value Portal and Velstrian Bid on social value work: who each one is built for, what each does well, and where neither will suit you.

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  11. Social value

    PPN 026 in 2026: what changed (and what didn't)

    3 min read

    PPN 026 was published on 5 August 2026 and applies to central government procurements commenced on or after 1 January 2027. What UK public sector bidders should check.

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  12. Social value

    Social value scoring for UK bids: the complete guide to PPN 026

    11 min read

    Social value scoring for UK bids under PPN 026, the edition of the Social Value Model that applies to central government procurements commencing from 1 January 2027, with the weightings, the evidence requirements and the pitfalls.

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