Network  for  Europe

Skills  Funding  Agency:  ACTOR  Briefing

Session  2  –  Tendering  Process

Angeliki  Stogia  

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ACTOR  –  the  technical  bit

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Loca6on  of  Ques6onnaires

• ACTOR  sits  on  the  Skills  Funding  Agency  e-­‐Tendering  portal:  a  service  managed  by  Bravo  Solu6on  which  supplies  e-­‐tendering  solu6ons  across  government  

• To  start  the  process  you  need  to  either  register  on  the  portal  or  have  already  registered  on  Bravo  Solu6on– PQQs  and  ITTs  can  be  accessed  through  the  BRAVO  portal

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Loca6on  of  Ques6onnaires

• AIer  you  register  at  the  portal:

• Log  on  and  look  for  PQQs  and  ITTs  open  to  all  –  click  to  see  a  list  of  all  procurements  that  are  running– Under  PQQs  choose  ACTOR  DUE  DILIGENCE  QuesHonnaire  1105    -­‐  express  

interest  -­‐  and  work  through  the  secHons

• “Express  interest”  moves  the  selected  PQQ/ITT  to  “My  PQQs”  and  “My  ITTs”  sec6on  and  allows  you  to  access  all  aQachments,  ques6ons  and  to  supply  answers  to  those  you  wish  to  be  considered  for  and  publish  a  response

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Exploring  the  portal

– Click  create  response

– Click  on  seTngs

– Click  on  buyer  aQachments  (right  hand  side)  –  contains  documents  per6nent  to  the  ITT/PQQ

– Click  on  Printable  View  –  converts  sec6on  to  PDF  document  and  can  also  be  saved  offline

– Click  on  messages  –  received  messages  -­‐  create  message  – Click  on  Technical  Response

– Click  on  export/import  response  –  downloads  a  copy  in  excel  format  to  be  completed  offline

– Click  submit  response

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Messaging  service

To  view  messages:– Click  on  the  ITT  you  wish  to  respond  to

– On  the  leI  hand  side  click  on  the  ‘SeTngs,  Buyer  AQachments  &  Messages’  tab.

– Click  on  messages.      

To  send  a  message  (regarding  ITT  content):– On  the  same  screen,  click  in  the  created  message  link,  underneath  the  list  of  

messages.

To  send  a  message  (technical  queries  rela6ng  to  the  e-­‐Tendering  Portal):

– Help@BravoSolu6on.co.uk

– For  queries  on  ACTOR  contact:  procurementhelp@skillsfundingagency.bis.gov.uk  

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Actor  –  PQQ  and  ITTs

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ACTOR

Pre-Qualification Process

PQQ Actor Due Diligence Questionnaire

ITT Adult and Community Learning

Questionnaire 1105

Single Adult Skills Budget Questionnaire 1105

Specialist Provision for LLDD Questionnaire 1105

Approved Provider

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Ques6onnaires  (PQQ  -­‐  General)

• All  organisatons  need  to  respond  to  the  due  diligence  PQQ.  The  majority  of  the  ques6ons  are  mandatory.  If  you  have  already  been  through  the  process  you  might  only  need  to  respond  to  the  relevant  ques6onnaire.  Check  the  following  links  to  see  if  you  are  already  on  the  system:  – Organisatons  that  have  passed  ACTOR

• Some  fields  only  take  numbers,  other  characters  and  there  is  a  maximum  character  limit  for  each  ques6on.  Failure  to  comply  results  in  half  of  the  response  being  uploaded  and/or  may  affect  the  way  in  which  your  ques6onnaire  is  marked.  

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Ques6onnaires  (Scoring  &  Feedback)

• Organisa6ons  comple6ng  the  Due  Diligence  sec6on  will  have  their  answers  evaluated  and  will  be  awarded  either  a  “Pass”  or  “Fail”.  Any  organisa6on  which    is  deemed  to  have  failed  will  be  advised  via  a  message  on  the  Due  Diligence  Message  Board  with  an  indica6on  of  the  sec6on(s)  in  which  they  failed.  Any  organisa6on  who  has  failed  will  not  have  any  further  submissions  of  ITT  responses  evaluated

• During  the  evalua6on  and  modera6on  process  the  Skills  Funding  Agency  will  seek  corrobora6ve  evidence  to  support  some  or  all  of  the  responses  given  in  the  ques6onnaires  (ITTs)  at  its  sole  discre6on

• Failure  to  provide    corrobora6ve  evidence  or  evidence  which  does  not  corroborate  the  statements  you  make  in  response  to  an  ITT  means    you  will  not  be  considered  for  funding

• Feedback  will  be  provided  through  the  messaging  service

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Ques6onnaires  (PQQ  &  ITT  -­‐  Scoring)

• The  Due  Dilligence  PQQ  is  autoscored  with  a  0  for  a  correct  and  -­‐1  for  unacceptable  answer.  Any  organsa6on  receiving  minus  for  autoscored  ques6ons  will  be  deemed  to  have  failed  and  will  not  be  included  on  ACTOR

• Any  organisa6on  which  is  deemed  to  have  passed  the  PQQ  will  have  this  award  moderated  by  the  Agency  assessing  their  Financial  Health  and  checking  any  “score”  awarded  by  Ofsted  (or  equivalent  bodies”)  and  depending  on  the  outcome  of  this  modera6on  the  Pass,  may  be  changed  to  a  Fail  

• Any  organisa6on  whose  financial  health  is  deemed  insufficient  to  view  them  as  eligible  for  considera6on  for  funding  will  also  have  their  Pass  amended  to  Fail

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Ques6onnaires  (PQQ  &  ITT  -­‐  Scoring)

• Following  the  autoscores  implementa6on  to  the  ITTs  modera6on  process  will  look  at  the  ITT  scores,  any  organisa6on  awarded  “4”  at  last  OFSTED  which  has  failed  to  respond  to  the  Agency’s  no6ce  to  improve  will  have  their  score  amended  to  zero

• Modera6on  will  take  into  account– Minimum  performance  level  achieved  by  organisaHon  for  each  programme  within  an  ITT

– Quality  Success  Rates  achieved  by  organisaHon  for  each  programme  within  an  ITT

• Organisa6ons  will  be  selected  from  the  moderated  lists  and  the  decision  to  award  contracts  rests  with  the  CEO,  Skills  Funding  Agency  in  line  with  Agency  Protocols

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Ques6onnaires  (PQQ  -­‐  UKPRN)

• The  registra6on  process  includes  entering  your  United  Kingdom  Provider  Registra6on  Number  (UKPRN)  number  which  you  will  obtain  from  the  United  Kingdom  Register  of  Learning  Providers  (UKRLP)

• This  will  be  required  for  the  registra6on  process  ,the  first  ques6on  on  ACTOR’s  Due  Diligence  PQQ  that  you  will  be  expected  to  answer  and  it  is  a  pre-­‐requisite  for  any  organisa6on  with  whom  the  Skills  Funding  Agency  will  contract.  

• The  UKPRN  has  been  incorporated  into  each  of  the  ITTs  but  once  you  have  entered  it  into  one  document  it  is  automa6cally  pre-­‐populated  into  subsequent  documents  

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Ques6onnaires  (PQQ  –  financial  statements)

• All  organisa6ons  who  do  not  currently  have  a  contract  should  send  their  latest  full  statutory  financial  statements  to:  actorfinancialstatements@skillsfundingagency.bis.gov.uk  

• Organisa6ons  who  are  not  required  to  submit  statutory  financial  statements  should  supply  a  profit  and  loss  account,  balance  sheet  and  related  notes  to  assist  the  Agency’s  understanding

• Organisa6ons  who  have  not  traded  for  a  long  period  should  submit  a  business  plan  consis6ng  of  a  budgeted  profit  and  loss  account,  balance  sheet  and  cash-­‐flow  statement  &  management  accounts

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Ques6onnaires  (PQQ  –  financial  statements)

• Organisa6ons  seeking  to  respond  to  the  Specialist  Provision  for  Learners  under  25  with  Learning  Difficul6es  and/or  Disabili6es  (LLDD)  ITT  should  send  their  latest  full  statutory  financial  statements  to:  lldd@ypla.gov.uk  

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Ques6onnaires  (Renewing  submissions  &  future  freeze  dates)

• Organisa6ons  which  were  successful  on  the  Qualified  Provider  Framework  in  September  2010  will  automa6cally  be  granted  a  pass  through  the  Due  Diligence  PQQ  

• All  organisa6ons  must  refresh  their  en6re  ACTOR  submission  on  a  date  in  2011  to  be  advised

• The  Agency  is  an6cipa6ng  the  possibility  of  several  ‘freeze  dates’  for  ACTOR  each  year

• The  Agency  will  give  a  minimum  of  30  days  no6ce  of  each  freeze  date  on  website  and  via  a  message  through  the  Due  Diligence  message  board

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Due  Diligence  PQQ

• Sec6on  1.2  –  Organisa6on  Details

• Sec6on  1.3  –  Business  Standing

• Sec6on  1.4  –  Compliance

• Sec6on  1.5  –  Insurance  Details

• Sec6on  1.6  –  Reliance  and  Public  Funding

• Sec6on  1.7  –  Business  Con6nuity

• Sec6on  1.8  –  Capacity,  Capability  and  Resource

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Due  Diligence  PQQ

• Sec6on  1.9  –  Health  and  Safety

• Sec6on  1.10  –  Awarding  Organisa6on  Details

• Sec6on  1.11  –  Inspec6on  Outcome

• Sec6on  1.12  –  Quality  Assurance

• Sec6on  1.13  –  Equality  and  Diversity

• Sec6on  1.14  –  Declara6ons

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Ques6onnaires  (ITTs  -­‐  general)

• None  of  the  ques6ons  in  this  sec6on  is  mandatory,  to  have  made  them  so  would  have  meant  each  organisa6on  having  to  answer  every  ques6on  (regardless  of  relevance)  in  order  to  submit  a  response

• Every  ques6on  relates  to  funding  for  a  specific  programme  so  in  order  for  your  submission  to  be  considered,  the  relevant  ques6on  must  be  answered

• Organisa6ons  are  able  to  bid  for  considera6on  for  funding  for  one  or  more  of  the  programmes  but  in  order  to  do  so  you  must  answer  all  ques6ons  in  the  ques6onnaires  that  apply  to  your  provision  in  order  to  be  considered  for  evalua6on  

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Ques6onnaires  (ITTs  -­‐  general)

• Inclusion  on  ACTOR  only  grants  eligibility  for  considera6on  for  funding  not  a  guarantee  that  a  contract  will  be  awarded

• Some  of  the  answers  given  in  this  ITT  may  form  part  of  any  subsequent  contract  organisa6ons  receive

• During  the  evalua6on  and  modera6on  process  the  Skills  Funding  Agency  will  seek  corrobora6ve  evidence  to  support  some  or  all  of  the  responses  given  in  the  ques6onnaires  at  its  sole  discre6on

• Once  your  submissions  have  been  evaluated  and  moderated  and  you  are  considered  as  being  eligible  for  considera6on  to  receive  funding,  the  process  of  commissioning  provision  will  commence

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Single  Adult  Skills  Budget  ITT

Programmes  covered  by  this  ITT  currently  include:

• Adult  Learner  responsive

• Appren6ceships

• Train  to  Gain• Programmes  for  the  Unemployed

• Skills  for  Life

• This  is  the  ITT  SFA  would  expect  to  use  to  procure  ESF-­‐funded  provision  (apart  from  any  which  clearly  came  within  one  of  the  other  ITTs)

* Please visit the Skills Funding Agency to gain a better understanding of the types of provision above

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Single  Adult  Skills  Budget  ITT

• Sec6on  1.1  –  Important  Notes

• Sec6on  1.2  –  UKPRN  number  –  Informa6on  on  your  Tender

• Sec6on  1.3  –  All  Programmes  –  Informa6on  on  your  Organisa6on

• Sec6on  1.4  –  All  Programmes  –  Informa6on  on  your  Current  Delivery  Model(s)

• Sec6on  1.5  –  All  Programmes  –  Skills  for  Life  Track  Record

• Sec6on  1.6  –  Adult  Learner  Responsive  –  Track  Record

• Sec6on  1.7  –  Appren6ceships  and  Train  to  Gain  –  Track  Record

• Sec6on  1.8  –  Programmes  for  the  Unemployed  –  Track  Record

• Sec6on  1.9  –  Declara6on

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Adult  and  Community  Learning  ITT

Programmes  covered  by  this  ITT  currently  include:

• Personal  and  Community  Development  Learning

• Family  Literacy,  language  and  numeracy

• Wider  Family  Learning• Neighbourhood  Learning  in  Deprived  Communi6es

• Formal  First  Step

* Please visit the Skills Funding Agency to gain a better understanding of the types of provision above

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Adult  and  Community  Learning  ITT

• Sec6on  1.1  –  Important  Notes

• Sec6on  1.2  –  UKPRN  Number

• Sec6on  1.3  –  Informa6on  on  your  Tender

• Sec6on  1.4  –  Organisa6on  Informa6on

• Sec6on  1.5  –  Track  Record

• Sec6on  1.6  –  Geographic  Loca6ons

• Sec6on  1.7  –  Delivery  Method

• Sec6on  1.8  –  Learner  Journey

• Sec6on  1.9  –  Declara6ons  

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Specialist  Provision  for  LLDD  ITT

Specialist  Provision  for  Learners  under  25  with  Learning  Difficul6es  and/or  Disabili6es  (LLDD)  ITT  Programmes• This  ITT  is  only  aimed  at  those  organisa6ons  seeking  to  be  an  Independent  Specialist  Provider  and  is  being  included  at  the  request  of  the  Young  People’s  Learning  Agency  (YPLA)  as  a  means  of  tes6ng  organisa6on’s  ability  to  deliver  the  programme  to  all  of  their  intended  eligible  customers.  Programmes  covered  by  this  ITT  include:

• Specialist  Provision  for  Learners  under  25  with  Learning  Difficul6es  and/or  Disabili6es  *

* Please visit the YPLA website to gain a better understanding of the activities YPLA funds

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Specialist  Provision  for  LLDD  ITT

• Sec6on  1.1  –  Important  Notes• Sec6on  1.2  –  Organisa6on  Details• Sec6on  1.3  –  Track  Record• Sec6on  1.4  –  Capacity• Sec6on  1.5  –  Capability• Sec6on  1.6  –  Resource• Sec6on  1.7  –  Bid  Details• Sec6on  1.8  –  Bid  Sta6s6cs• Sec6on  1.9  –  Inspec6on/Registra6on  • Sec6on  1.10  –  Declara6on

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Subcontrac6ng

• A declaration of Subcontractors form needs to be completed and returned to the Agency by an appropriate deadline

• The declaration form needs to be re-submitted whenever new subcontracting arrangements are significantly reduced or increased

• Declaration of Subcontractors form and the associated guidance can be found on the Skills Funding Agency website: Subcontractors form and guidance

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Subcontractors  form

• Part  1:  Lead  provider  details– Legal  enHty  name

– UKPRN

– Date  of  return

– Do  you  subcontract  any  of  your  funded  provision

• Part  2:  Subcontractor  details– Legal  enHty  name  of  the  subcontractor(s)

– Registered  company  number

– Name/s  of  the  director/s  of  the  subcontractor/s  detailed

– UKPRN

– Value  of  subcontracHng  arrangements

– Maximum  number  of  learners  sHpulated  in  the  subcontract

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Subcontractors  form

• Part  2:  Subcontractor  details  (cont)  – Start  and  end  dates  of  subcontracts

– %  of  funds  going  to  subcontracted  provision

– If  less  than  85%  subcontracted  list  services  provided  in  behalf  of  subcontractor  e.g.,  data  and  MI  services

• Part  3:  Second  level  subcontrac6ng

• Part  4:  Declara6on

• Part  5:  Permission

• The  Skills  Funding  Agency  will  review  details  submiQed,  and  can  might  contact  you  seeking  further  clarifica6on.  The  Skills  Funding  Agency  Chief  Execu6ve  reserves  the  right  to  withhold  or  withdraw  his  consent  at  any  6me

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Contact  details

• Guidance can be found at the Skills Funding Agency website and there are some useful documents on the New Providers section of the website

• For questions regarding content of PQQs and ITTs: use BRAVO messaging system

• If you require any assistance on using and navigating on BRAVO, the BravoSolution help desk is available Mon – Fri (8am – 6pm) on: email: help@bravosolution.co.uk Phone: 0800 011 2470 / Fax: 020 7080 0480

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Hints and tips

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Some  Prac6cal  Hints  and  Tips

• To  navigate  on  BRAVO  use  the  portals  naviga6on  bars  and  NOT  your  browser’s

• Read  the  guidance,  visit  both  Skills  Funding  Agency  website  and  available  documenta6on  from  BRAVO:

– Guidance  notes– Buyer  A]achments– Messages    

• Save  your  work  regularly  -­‐  the  portal  automa6cally  6mes  users  • Start  early  &  submit  early  –  you  can  always  amend  and  re-­‐submit!

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Questions ?

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