Official UK procurement notice
UK Power Networks Customer Vulnerability Enduring Partnerships
Authority: UK POWER NETWORKS (OPERATIONS) LIMITED
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionAs part of its RIIO-ED2 commitments, UK Power Networks (UKPN) has developed an ambitious strategy to support vulnerable customers beyond its core responsibilities as a Distribution Network Operator (DNO). This includes tackling fuel poverty and ensuring that no one is left behind in the transition to a net zero future. UKPN has set a target to assist 100,000 vulnerable customers per regulatory year, with an overall ED2 Net Present Value (NPV) target of £10.94 million. Alongside these commitments, we uphold the importance of delivering outstanding customer service, expecting partners to maintain high customer satisfaction levels (CSAT) exceeding 94%.
UK Power Networks are looking for trusted partners with a focus on Consumer Vulnerability support services. We require partners who can work with the UK Power Networks' Customer Vulnerability team to target specific activities or groups of customers, as identified through data analysis. Projects will be expected to comprise of services that provide targeted support to fuel poor customers, and which deliver against our targets. These services should include:
- Non-in-depth advice
- In-depth advice to customers who may be in or at risk of being in fuel poverty
- Wider and more enduring support
Total Value (estimated) excluding VAT: £4,963,785
- The authority expects to re-tender this requirement around 1 Sept 2027, 23:59 BST.
- How the procedure runs: The document for this tender notice, including the Instructions to Tenderers, can be accessed via the following link: https://ukpowernetworks.sharepoint.com/:f:/s/ProcurementDocumentManagement/IgCHXNy9UtGHQKnoU7Xl5eojAT4AhusyWSbGzpw_p8SW8jA High Level Information: The event will comprise of 2 stages as detailed below: Stage 1 - Condition of Participation Assessment - There are 34 questions within Appendix 1 - Procurement Specific Questionnaire, with a pass / fail evaluation method. Tenderers are required to provide their responses to these questions as set out in Appendix 1. Following the assessment of Stage 1, the shortlisted tenderers will be invited to take part in the RFP Event which will be conducted in UK Power Networks' Procurement Sourcing Platform. Stage 2 - Balanced Scorecard Assessment - This stage is split into 3 substages. Substage 2.1 - Assessment of written response to 35 Technical Questions. The questions will be scored on a scale of 0-10 (as further detailed within the ITT document). The Criteria Weighting for this substage is 60%. Substage 2.2 - Commercial Assessment of Pricing Schedule. Tenderers are required to complete Appendix 5 as part of their tender response. All pricing will be evaluated with the overall lowest priced bid receiving the maximum score, with all remaining bids recorded as a descending percentage based on the delta to the lowest score. The weighting for this stage is 40%. Substage 2.3 - Negotiation, BAFO, and Final Submissions. A technical carryover from substage 2.1 (60%), a commercial assessment of the BAFO - best and final offer (40%), and acceptance of the final version of the UK Power Networks T&Cs. Draft Agreement and Final Contract - UK Power Networks has provided a Draft Agreement as part of the RfP pack. UK Power Networks does not envisage any changes to the Draft Agreement. All tenderers MUST confirm their acceptance of this Draft Agreement as part of their tender submission and provide a price which reflects the unamended Draft Agreement. This will be considered by UK Power Networks as the tenderer's Main Submission. If a tenderer cannot confirm acceptance of the unamended Draft Agreement because it believes that amendments to the Draft Agreement would contribute to an improvement in any of the following areas: • safety; • availability of resources; • flexibility or reliability of the service; • cost efficiency; or • improved methods of working, then a tenderer may propose suitable amendments by providing a marked-up copy of the Draft Agreement in Microsoft Word along with a price which reflects these amended terms. This will be named the "Alternative Submission". All proposed amendments in an Alternative Submission must clearly be shown in 'tracked changes' with a related explanation made as a 'comment' and is to be submitted as part of the Stage 2 response to this RfP via Procurement Sourcing Platform. UK Power Networks will decide, at its sole discretion, whether any proposed amendment to the Draft Agreement will be accepted. Where UK Power Networks accepts amendments to the Draft Agreement (which it is not obliged to do) it shall re-issue a single form of final Agreement to all tenderers taking into account those proposed amendments from tenderers which have been accepted by UK Power Networks. Tenderers must accept this re-issued final Agreement to be awarded a contract. Tenderers must confirm their pricing based on this re-issued final agreement.
CPV: Community action programme · Customer services · Customer-care services · Other community, social and personal services · Provision of services to the community
How this framework works
From the published notice- Type
- Open framework
- Call-offs
- every call-off is a further competition among the appointed suppliers
- Framework period
- 2 yrs · up to 4 yrs from 1 Apr 2026
Who may buy through it
London Power Networks plc
Eastern Power Networks plc
South Eastern Power Networks plc
UK Power Networks (Distribution System Operator) Limited
UK Power Networks (Operations) Limited
UK Power Networks Services (Contracting) Limited
UK Power Networks Services (Commercial) Limited
Published description of the framework
UK Power Networks is seeking to award a framework contract to one or more supplier as per the requirements and details included within this Request for Proposal (RfP) package.
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1AwardedRenewalPublished value£3,397,000
- Technical & professional ability
Please refer to Appendix 2 - Scope of Work for further details.
What it takes to wini
How this buyer will score bids.
The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).
Evaluation split and conditions of participation as published; the tender pack may add morei
How this buyer will score bids.
The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).
Published sub-criteria (2)
- Stage 2 - Substage 2.1 - Assessment of Written Technical Submission: 60%
- Stage 2 - Substage 2.2 - Commercial Assessment of Pricing Schedule: 40%
Published award criteria (2)
- Stage 2 - Substage 2.1 - Assessment of Written Technical Submission: Full assessment details can be found in PE1-0049-2025 - CV Enduring Partnerships - RFP Instructions.
- Stage 2 - Substage 2.2 - Commercial Assessment of Pricing Schedule: Full assessment details can be found in PE1-0049-2025 - CV Enduring Partnerships - RFP Instructions.
- Technical & professional ability
Please refer to Appendix 2 - Scope of Work for further details.
- Price carries 40 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 4 points. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.
- “UK Power Networks Customer Vulnerability Enduring Partnerships” is a framework: the contest is a place on its panel, not a single contract: each call-off is a further competition, so the pricing contest starts after appointment.
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Competitive flexible procedure
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Awarded
- Procurement threshold
- Above threshold (FTS publication)
- Regulatory regime
- Utilities
- Commercial structure
- Framework agreement
- Who may use this agreement
- London Power Networks plc Eastern Power Networks plc South Eastern Power Networks plc UK Power Networks (Distribution System Operator) Limited UK Power Networks (Operations) Limited UK Power Networks Services (Contracting) Limited UK Power Networks Services (Commercial) Limited
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Yes · next expected 1 Sept 2027
- First published
- 12 Nov 2025, 11:54 GMT
- Last source update
- 9 Mar 2026, 13:42 GMT
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 13 Feb 2026
- Authority reference
PE1-0049-2025- FTS notice number
2025/S 000-073117- Latest notice
- Contract award notice (UK6)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-05df6bFind a Tender- Contract terms summary
30 Days
- How it runs
The document for this tender notice, including the Instructions to Tenderers, can be accessed via the following link:
ukpowernetworks.sharepoint.com/:f:/s/ProcurementDoc… ↗
High Level Information:
The event will comprise of 2 stages as detailed below:
Stage 1 - Condition of Participation Assessment - There are 34 questions within Appendix 1 - Procurement Specific Questionnaire, with a pass / fail evaluation method. Tenderers are required to provide their responses to these questions as set out in Appendix 1.
Following the assessment of Stage 1, the shortlisted tenderers will be invited to take part in the RFP Event which will be conducted in UK Power Networks' Procurement Sourcing Platform.
Stage 2 - Balanced Scorecard Assessment - This stage is split into 3 substages.
Substage 2.1 - Assessment of written response to 35 Technical Questions. The questions will be scored on a scale of 0-10 (as further detailed within the ITT document). The Criteria Weighting for this substage is 60%.
Substage 2.2 - Commercial Assessment of Pricing Schedule. Tenderers are required to complete Appendix 5 as part of their tender response. All pricing will be evaluated with the overall lowest priced bid receiving the maximum score, with all remaining bids recorded as a descending percentage based on the delta to the lowest score. The weighting for this stage is 40%.
Substage 2.3 - Negotiation, BAFO, and Final Submissions. A technical carryover from substage 2.1 (60%), a commercial assessment of the BAFO - best and final offer (40%), and acceptance of the final version of the UK Power Networks T&Cs.
Draft Agreement and Final Contract - UK Power Networks has provided a Draft Agreement
as part of the RfP pack. UK Power Networks does not envisage any changes to the Draft
Agreement.
All tenderers MUST confirm their acceptance of this Draft Agreement as part of their tender submission and provide a price which reflects the unamended Draft Agreement. This will be considered by UK Power Networks as the tenderer's Main Submission.
If a tenderer cannot confirm acceptance of the unamended Draft Agreement because it believes that amendments to the Draft Agreement would contribute to an improvement in any of the following areas:
- safety;
- availability of resources;
- flexibility or reliability of the service;
- cost efficiency; or
- improved methods of working,
then a tenderer may propose suitable amendments by providing a marked-up copy of the Draft Agreement in Microsoft Word along with a price which reflects these amended terms. This will be named the "Alternative Submission".
All proposed amendments in an Alternative Submission must clearly be shown in 'tracked changes' with a related explanation made as a 'comment' and is to be submitted as part of the Stage 2 response to this RfP via Procurement Sourcing Platform.
UK Power Networks will decide, at its sole discretion, whether any proposed amendment to the Draft Agreement will be accepted.
Where UK Power Networks accepts amendments to the Draft Agreement (which it is not obliged to do) it shall re-issue a single form of final Agreement to all tenderers taking into account those proposed amendments from tenderers which have been accepted by UK Power Networks.
Tenderers must accept this re-issued final Agreement to be awarded a contract. Tenderers must confirm their pricing based on this re-issued final agreement.
How it was run
Official notice- Appointment period ends
- 12 Dec 2025, 11:00 GMT
- Electronic submission
- Not allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
PLEASE NOTE - The first thing that tenderers should complete is Appendix 1 - PSQ - Conditions of Participation document. Should you be shortlisted for Stage 2, then and only then should you complete and submit your Technical & Commercial response (Appendix 4 & 5).
As part of the Stage 1 the tenderers are required to complete the Conditions of Participation document (Appendix 1) and submit it to the following email address:
Tenderers shall note that the invitation to Stage 2, the RFP, and the registration to UKPN's Procurement portal will be done following the Stage 1 down selection process.
Timeline
12 Nov 2025 → 1 Apr 2026 · 7 dates- Tender notice published343 days ago12 Nov 2025, 11:54 GMT
- Admission / appointment period ends313 days ago · period end, not a bid countdown12 Dec 2025, 11:00 GMT
- Award decision expected by249 days ago13 Feb 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Assessment summaries sent226 days ago9 Mar 2026
- Latest notice published226 days ago9 Mar 2026, 13:42 GMT
- Standstill ends215 days ago19 Mar 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Contract starts204 days ago1 Apr 2026, 00:00 BST
Notice history
4 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 12 Nov 2025- Tender notice published12 Nov 2025, 11:54 GMTUK4
- Contract award notice published9 Mar 2026, 13:42 GMTUK6
- Status changed to complete9 Mar 2026, 13:42 GMT
- Contract signature expected20 Mar 2026, 23:59 GMTscheduled
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| COMMUNITY ENERGY PATHWAYS LTD, Hope 4 U LimitedAGREEMENT FOR CONSUMER VULNERABILTY PARTNER SERVICES1 Apr 2026 – 31 Mar 2028 · up to 31 Mar 2030Extensions: Possible extension to 31 March 2030 which can be taken in one go or one year at a time or none at all. | £5,956,542 inc. VAT | 3 Mar 2026standstill to 19 Mar 2026 | Standstill |
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Framework contractors & participating bidders
2 commercial parties on the notice- COMMUNITY ENERGY PATHWAYS LTDFramework contractor
- HOPE 4 U LIMITEDFramework contractor
Official documents & specifications (2)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender