The competitive flexible procedure explained for suppliers

The competitive flexible procedure is the Procurement Act 2023’s second way to run a competition: any competitive tendering procedure the buyer considers appropriate, as long as it’s proportionate (section 20). There is no fixed process. The buyer designs the stages, and the tender notice tells you the design, so read it first.

This guide covers what a buyer can build in, how shortlists and negotiation work from the bidder’s side, the time limits, and how to bid well. It follows gov.uk’s competitive tendering procedures guidance (updated 13 July 2026). For the wider picture, see competitive tendering and our guide on how to win public sector contracts.

How it differs from the open procedure

The open procedure is a single stage with no restriction on who can submit a tender (s.20(2)(a)). A competitive flexible procedure is any other competitive process the buyer considers appropriate (s.20(2)(b)).

It must be a proportionate way to award the contract, given its nature, complexity and cost (s.20(3)). The guidance adds that it should not be overly burdensome, because complex or slow procedures can deter small suppliers (para 12).

A buyer must use it to limit supplier numbers before inviting tenders, to award a contract under a dynamic market, or to reserve a contract for supported employment providers or public service mutuals (para 10). Frameworks can be set up under either procedure (para 11).

It replaces many of the previous, more prescriptive procedures (para 6). The old names are on the competitive tendering page.

What a buyer can build in

Section 20(4) and (5) allow a competitive flexible procedure to:

• limit the number of suppliers, overall or at particular stages (s.20(4)(a));
• refine the award criteria under section 24 (s.20(4)(b));
• exclude suppliers that fail the conditions of participation, or after an intermediate assessment of tenders (s.20(5)(a)–(b)).

It can’t admit suppliers that did not tender in the first round (s.20(4)(c)).

The guidance gives examples of what that can look like. It says they are not exhaustive (para 45).

• A simple two-stage procedure, like the former restricted procedure: shortlist against the conditions, invite tenders, assess (para 65).
• Limited negotiation after a participation stage, on elements such as price or delivery timings (para 68).
• Dialogue to develop a complex or innovative requirement (para 73).
• Site visits, demonstrations or presentations, assessed objectively against the award criteria (paras 42–44).
• A “preferred supplier” stage, which should be set out in the notice and must not change the award outcome (paras 78–79).
• No participation stage: all interested suppliers submit initial tenders, then final ones (para 81).

See also two-stage tendering.

Reading a competitive flexible tender notice

The buyer must set out in the tender notice how the procedure will be run (para 46). Look for:

• whether it invites requests to participate or first tenders (para 47);
• the criteria for choosing a limited number of suppliers, and any intended minimum (para 86);
• whether it will negotiate, and on what (paras 46, 68);
• whether award criteria will be refined (para 86);
• any dynamic market involved (para 86).

These come alongside the usual contents: conditions of participation, award criteria or a summary, and how and when to submit (para 85).

Tender documents can be updated as stages progress, for example after negotiation (para 50), and the guidance advises the buyer to update the published notice too (para 52). So check the documents again between stages.

Before you start, write down the stages, the dates and the shortlist size. Our guide to reading a tender notice in five minutes shows how.

Shortlists: how numbers are limited

To limit numbers before inviting tenders, a buyer invites requests to participate (para 56). If it sets a maximum, the notice must state the objective criteria for choosing (para 59).

How many get through? The Act sets no minimum (para 61). The guidance suggests inviting at least five suppliers for a straightforward procedure, and at least three for a complex one with extensive dialogue or negotiation (para 62). That is a suggestion, not law. If fewer than an intended minimum remain, the buyer may continue with those left (para 60).

Two points for small firms:

• The guidance warns that limiting numbers can exclude start-ups and new entrants without a track record (para 57).
• A buyer may let a supplier progress if it can meet a condition of participation before award, but the notice should say so (para 58).

The first stage may include a Procurement Specific Questionnaire. If it asks about turnover, see turnover tests.

Negotiation, dialogue and refined criteria

Negotiation happens only if the notice says so, and the notice must list what can be negotiated (para 68). It takes place with the remaining suppliers, who then submit final tenders (para 71). Dialogue is wider: it can cover any aspect of the procurement, while negotiation aims to improve the tender (para 41).

Suppliers can be removed at intermediate stages only as the notice explains, for example by taking forward only the highest-scoring tenders (para 70).

Award criteria can be refined only if the notice or documents provide for it, and before suppliers are invited to submit the tenders to be assessed (section 24). The guidance gives adding detail or sub-criteria, or changing weightings within a published range. New criteria can’t be added (para 74). The buyer then has to republish the notice and documents affected. See how refined criteria are scored.

Time limits in a competitive flexible procedure

Requests to participate get at least 25 days, or 10 in a state of urgency. Light touch contracts have no minimum (section 54; time periods guidance para 16).

Each tendering round then gets the minimum tendering period (para 21):

• 25 days for electronic submission with all documents provided with the notice, 30 if only one of those is true, 35 if neither (para 20(g)–(j));
• 10 days after a qualifying planned procurement notice, or under a dynamic market (para 20(d), (f));
• 10 days, or a period agreed with the shortlisted suppliers, where the buyer isn’t a central government authority (a council, for example) and only shortlisted suppliers are invited to tender (para 20(b)–(c)); 10 days in a state of urgency (para 20(e)); no minimum for light touch contracts (para 20(a); section 54).

If a later tender only updates an earlier one, for example after negotiation, the buyer sets a reasonable time limit, the same for all suppliers (para 21). Add the rounds up before you commit.

If you’re not taken forward

The guidance says suppliers should be told promptly as the procedure progresses, particularly when they won’t continue, with reasons for any exclusion or disregarded tender (para 63). Suppliers not progressing from an intermediate stage should be told as soon as reasonably possible, using the assessment summary structure where possible (para 64).

At the end, each supplier with an assessed tender gets an assessment summary before the contract award notice is published (section 50(3)).

How to bid well in a competitive flexible procedure

• Treat stage 1 as seriously as the final tender. If numbers are limited, it decides whether you get to tender at all.
• Map the stages and dates. Budget time for presentations, site visits or negotiation rounds.
• Register early. The guidance says core supplier information should be requested before the tendering period ends (Central Digital Platform guidance para 66). See the Central Digital Platform.
• Short of a condition? A consortium partner can help you meet it, and so can a subcontractor or guarantor if the buyer is satisfied you’ll enter into legally binding arrangements with them (conditions of participation guidance paras 25–26; section 22(8)–(9)).

Then decide whether to bid and write a tender response.

Scotland uses different procedures

Devolved Scottish authorities are excluded authorities under the Act (s.2(5)(a)), except for procurement within section 115A. The Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015 set out open, restricted, competitive procedure with negotiation, competitive dialogue and innovation partnership procedures (regulations 28 to 32), which are current there. See tenders in Scotland.

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