Decide whether a requirement should be direct-awarded or run as a mini-competition under a framework agreement.
Warehousing & Procurement
Framework Agreements, Mini-Competitions and Call-Off Contracts in Public Procurement
Run compliant mini-competitions under multi-supplier framework agreements, draft call-off contracts and manage the standstill period so public sector awards withstand challenge.
🗓️Duration5 training days
📚Content4 modules · 8 sessions
🎓On completionAccredited attendance certificate
About the programme
Course Overview
Framework agreements let public bodies avoid running a full tender for every purchase, but they replace one set of rules with another: award criteria fixed at framework stage, mini-competition procedures that must follow the framework terms exactly, and standstill periods that protect unsuccessful bidders' right to challenge. This course works through the lifecycle of framework-based buying from establishing or joining a framework through to signing a call-off contract. Participants learn to choose between direct award and mini-competition based on framework terms, draft mini-competition documents that refine award criteria within the boundaries set at framework stage, and evaluate responses using a most economically advantageous tender approach. The course covers call-off contract drafting, aggregation rules that prevent artificial contract splitting, and standstill letter content following current public procurement regulations. Practical exercises use realistic framework schedules and bid responses so participants practise running a mini-competition end to end and defending the process against a challenge.
Expected Learning Outcomes
Draft mini-competition documents that refine award criteria within the limits set by the framework terms.
Apply a most economically advantageous tender methodology to score price and quality responses consistently.
Draft a call-off contract that incorporates framework terms and adds requirement-specific schedules.
Apply aggregation rules correctly to avoid unlawfully splitting a requirement to stay under a threshold.
Manage the standstill period and issue award and unsuccessful-bidder letters that meet content requirements.
Respond to a challenge or feedback request from an unsuccessful bidder with a defensible audit trail.
Who Should Attend
Public sector procurement officers running mini-competitions under existing framework agreements.
Category managers in local authorities, health bodies or central government procurement teams.
Commercial staff at framework-owning organisations managing supplier call-off agreements.
Legal and governance advisers reviewing procurement compliance before contract award.
Bid managers at supplier organisations responding to public sector mini-competitions.
Procurement trainees preparing to work within regulated public sector buying environments.
Course Modules
Select any module to see its sessions and points.
01Understanding Framework Structures and Routes to Award
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1How Framework Agreements Are Structured
- Distinguish single-supplier and multi-supplier framework structures and their permitted routes to call-off.
- Read framework schedules to identify fixed terms, indicative pricing and the scope of goods or services covered.
- Identify the framework's call-off mechanism, whether direct award, mini-competition or a hybrid rule.
- Check framework duration, permitted extensions and remaining capacity before planning a new requirement.
Session 2Choosing Between Direct Award and Mini-Competition
- Apply the framework's own decision rules to determine when direct award is permitted without further competition.
- Assess whether a requirement's complexity or value justifies a mini-competition even where direct award is allowed.
- Document the route-to-market decision with reasoning that would withstand internal audit or external challenge.
- Confirm supplier eligibility on the framework lot relevant to the requirement before proceeding.
02Running a Compliant Mini-Competition
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Drafting Mini-Competition Documents
- Refine award criteria and weightings within the boundaries already set out in the framework agreement.
- Draft a specification and evaluation methodology proportionate to the value and risk of the requirement.
- Set a response timetable that gives suppliers adequate time relative to requirement complexity.
- Issue mini-competition documents simultaneously to all eligible framework suppliers on the relevant lot.
Session 2Evaluating Responses on Cost and Quality
- Apply a most economically advantageous tender methodology combining price and quality scores consistently.
- Convene an evaluation panel with agreed scoring guidance to reduce inconsistency between assessors.
- Moderate individual scores to a consensus position with a documented rationale for each score.
- Identify and manage conflicts of interest among evaluation panel members before scoring begins.
03Drafting the Call-Off Contract
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Incorporating Framework Terms Correctly
- Confirm the order of precedence between framework terms, call-off terms and any bidder proposal documents.
- Add requirement-specific schedules covering service levels, pricing and deliverables to the call-off contract.
- Check that call-off terms do not materially alter the framework's core terms in a way that breaches the rules.
- Set contract management provisions including reporting, key performance indicators and review meetings.
Session 2Managing Aggregation and Value Thresholds
- Apply aggregation rules to combine related requirements when assessing whether a threshold has been reached.
- Recognise indicators of unlawful contract splitting, such as sequential small orders to the same supplier.
- Assess whether a requirement should have been advertised separately rather than run through the framework.
- Document threshold and aggregation assessments to support audit and governance review.
04Managing Award, Standstill and Challenge
2 sessions · 8 points
Session 1Award Decisions and Standstill Notices
- Draft award and unsuccessful-bidder letters that state scores, reasons and the standstill period end date.
- Calculate the correct standstill period length applicable to the procurement route being used.
- Respond to debrief requests from unsuccessful bidders with consistent scoring feedback within required timescales.
- Coordinate with legal advisers before extending or waiving a standstill period where risk is identified.
Session 2Handling Challenges and Learning from Outcomes
- Assemble a defensible audit trail covering the route-to-market decision, evaluation records and correspondence.
- Respond to a formal challenge letter with a structured account of the process followed and decisions made.
- Escalate high-risk challenges to legal counsel and senior stakeholders with a recommended response strategy.
- Review each mini-competition after award to identify improvements to documents and evaluation practice.
What the participant receives
4 course modules
A structured syllabus
8 training sessions
across 5 days
32 detailed points
Applied, detailed content
Accredited attendance certificate
On completing the programme
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