What you need to do

Where applicable, produce an OJEU (Official Journal of the European Union) Notice. Check whether you need to consult with Trade Unions before issuing the OJEU notice, if TUPE is being considered. The implications of the requirement should be considered in detail, especially the need for flexibility in the future and whether the scope is appropriate.

Points to consider

Before issuing the OJEU notice, check the following points:

• is there an existing contract or framework that can be used?
• when an OJEU notice is necessary and the requirement is common to other government departments and it can be demonstrated there is further potential demand then consideration should be given as to whether the contract or framework should be made available to other government departments or contracting authorities to use
• the department's commitment to the procurement route
• the project scope is defined and agreed and allows for any future expansion or enhancement
• affordable business case
• funding identified and committed by the department
• whether the Contracting Authority will act as a Central Purchasing Body for other public sector bodies
• draft output specification prepared
• commercial principles and the terms and conditions identified, following appropriate model contract structure
• minimum criteria for selection of bidders
• identified means of reducing bid costs (such as common surveys carried out rather than bidder-specific)
• award criteria and their weighting and ranking; in a framework arrangement these should, where feasible, be clear enough to allow call-off from the supplier with the most economically advantageous offer
• if an e-auction is appropriate for the procurement have the rights to hold been reserved?
• for framework arrangements state the length of the agreement will be a maximum of 4 years "except in exceptional circumstances".