FTS047 Pathways to Start - Lot 2 Moray

Concepts

• education and training
• inverness
• fts047 pathways
• pathways
• moray
• starting
• adult education
• training services
• personal development training
• training programme

Location

Inverness

Description

THIS IS THE CONTRACT NOTICE FOR LOT 2 MORAY. HIE is looking to procure a supplier to deliver a programme to support underrepresented groups in entrepreneurship. The programme will inspire participants to increase their ambition, confidence and capability to develop an entrepreneurial mindset and enter pathways for starting a business through a programme of entrepreneurial training and mentoring tailored towards underrepresented groups/individuals specific learning needs. HIE’s current requirements are divided into two geographical Lots: - Lot 1: Argyll and Bute, covering HIE areas only - Lot 2: Moray Note, Lot 1 covers Argyll and Bute geographical area i.e. excluding Arran, Cumbrae, and Helensburgh and Lomond. There are two separate contract notices: bidders who are interested in bidding for the other contract can do so by locating the respective PCS notices, which were all published on the same date with ‘Pathways to Start’ in the contract description. The services will be required from 20 October 2025 until 31 March 2026, unless terminated in accordance with the provisions of the Contract.

Total Quantity or Scope

Key tasks are: 1. Programme design 2. Outreach, stakeholder engagement and participant recruitment 3. Training delivery 4. Programme administration and monitoring. Please refer to the Scope of Requirement and Guidance document for full details.

Renewal Options

HIE reserves the right, on giving reasonable written notice from time to time, to require changes to the Services (whether by way of the removal of Services, the addition of new Services, or increasing or decreasing the Services or specifying the order in which the Services are to be performed or the locations where the Services are to be provided). HIE shall not require any such change other than where it is permitted by Regulation 72 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015. Examples of contract modifications are but not limited to: -Additional funding is obtained (beyond the GBP20,000 contingency included in the total contract value of each lot) and used e.g. to increase the number of participants. Tendered rates will apply to any increases. -Envisaged number of participants could not be recruited, resulting in reduced service requirements/volumes. -Less than 16 participants could be recruited for the programme – HIE reserves the right not to proceed with the programme and terminate the contract. -Recruited participant numbers exceed 45 for the lot. In this case (some of) the allowance of GBP20,000 will be utilised to provide services to further participants, as per tendered rates per participant. -Where HIE determines (at our sole discretion) that demand for the programme under a lot is lower than expected, HIE reserves the right to re-allocate the budget for that Lot to the other Lot subject to the maximum total budget of GBP480,000 (i.e. the maximum total of the two lots). -If Special Category Personal Data and/or other sensitive personal information requires further/different procedures, the supplier will be required to comply with these.

Award Criteria

CPV Codes

• 80000000 - Education and training services
• 80400000 - Adult and other education services
• 80500000 - Training services
• 80570000 - Personal development training services
• 80521000 - Training programme services
• 80522000 - Training seminars
• 80532000 - Management training services
• 72224000 - Project management consultancy services
• 79400000 - Business and management consultancy and related services
• 79410000 - Business and management consultancy services
• 79411100 - Business development consultancy services
• 79411000 - General management consultancy services
• 80210000 - Technical and vocational secondary education services

Indicators

• Bids should cover the whole contract.
• Options are available.
• Renewals are not available.
• Financial restrictions apply.
• Performance considerations apply.
• Professional qualifications are sought.
• Staff qualifications are relevant.
• Award on basis of price.

Other Information

The delivery of the services, submission of all invoices and completion of all reports must be complete by 20 March 2026. The budget available to deliver this service is between GBP187,500 and GBP220,000 (excluding VAT) PER LOT. The budget includes all costs related to delivering the services are not limited to, venue hire, catering, training materials/tools, fees, day rates and include provision for recovery of any other expenses, including but not limited to, travel and subsistence – all costs to be included in the Pricing Schedule. The contract value stated in the Contract Notice is GBP240,000 (ex VAT) per lot. This includes GBP20,000 contingency per lot which may be used e.g. if more than 45 participants could be recruited for the lot. Economic operators may be excluded from this competition if they are in any of the situations referred to in Regulation 58 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015. Tenders must be submitted via the PCS postbox and must be received by the published deadline. Late tenders will not be accepted and HIE will reject any submissions received after the deadline. Email or hard copy responses will not be accepted. It is estimated that the total value of the contract for this lot will be GBP 240,000 (excluding VAT). This is the figure which has been used in II.1.5 & II.2.6. Where bidders rely on the capacity of other entities in order to meet selection criteria they are required to provide information relating to these entities with the relevant supporting SPD documentation being submitted. SPD 3D.12 Bidders should refer to the "Conflict of Interest" Section within the Scope of Requirements when completing this question. The Award criteria Questions 5-8 will be marked according to the following criteria - refer to the tender documents for the evaluation criteria for Questions 1-4 including the minimum threshold for Qs 5-7. 0 - Unacceptable - Nil or inadequate response which fails to demonstrate an ability to meet the requirement. 1 - Poor - Response is partially relevant but generally poor. It addresses some elements of the requirement but contains insufficient/limited detail or explanation to demonstrate how the requirement will be fulfilled. 2 - Acceptable - Response is relevant and acceptable. It addresses a broad understanding of the requirement but may lack details on how the requirement will be fulfilled in certain areas. 3 - Good - Response is relevant and good. It is sufficiently detailed to demonstrate a good understanding and provides details on how the requirements will be fulfilled. 4 - Excellent - Response is completely relevant and excellent overall. It is comprehensive, unambiguous and demonstrate a thorough understanding of the requirement and provides details of how the requirement will be met in full. NOTE: To register your interest in this notice and obtain any additional information please visit the Public Contracts Scotland Web Site at https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/Search/Search_Switch.aspx?ID=806268. The buyer has indicated that it will accept electronic responses to this notice via the Postbox facility. A user guide is available at https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/sitehelp/help_guides.aspx. Suppliers are advised to allow adequate time for uploading documents and to dispatch the electronic response well in advance of the closing time to avoid any last minute problems. (SC Ref:806268) Download the ESPD document here: https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/ESPD/ESPD_Download.aspx?id=806268