Winston IntelligenceTender documents guide
Know the pack before you commit to the bid.
Under the Procurement Act 2023, the selection process starts with your registration and information on the central digital platform, followed by documents that define the requirement, response and contract. Other UK regimes use different selection documents, so check which rules the notice names.
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Video guide
Watch: Common tender documents explained
Understand the central digital platform, core supplier information and Procurement Specific Questionnaire in a Procurement Act tender pack, with the separate Scottish route made clear.
6 min 14 sec · English (UK) captions included
Check the procurement regime first.
The Procurement Act 2023 governs most new public procurements in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, plus reserved procurement in Scotland. Devolved Scottish authorities generally follow Scottish procurement legislation and use the Single Procurement Document (SPD). Procurements started before 24 February 2025 may also continue under the previous rules. Follow the notice and official tender documents for the procurement in front of you.
Start on the platform
The central digital platform and the PSQ.
Keep it current and the selection stage of each Procurement Act procurement becomes lighter.
- 1
Register on the central digital platform
For a procurement governed by the Procurement Act 2023, suppliers register once on the central digital platform and keep their organisation's details there.
- 2
Maintain your core supplier information
Core supplier information covers four areas: basic details (name, identifier, address, VAT, legal form, registration date), financial standing from your most recent accounts, connected persons, and information about mandatory or discretionary exclusion grounds.
- 3
Choose who you share it with
Core supplier information is not public. It is available only to the contracting authorities you choose to share it with for a specific procurement.
- 4
Complete the Procurement Specific Questionnaire
Where a buyer uses the optional Cabinet Office template, the PSQ draws on your shared core supplier information and adds questions on additional exclusions and debarment and on the conditions of participation for that contract. It fulfils a similar role to the former Standard Selection Questionnaire (SQ), but it is not a straight rename.
The documents themselves
Seven documents you will usually find.
Names vary between buyers and portals; the function of each document is stable.
| Document | What it defines |
|---|---|
| Tender or contract notice | The published advertisement. It carries the identifiers, buyer, scope, lots, estimated value, key dates and the route to everything else. |
| Specification or statement of requirements | What the buyer needs delivered, to what standard and over what period. Read this before deciding the opportunity is relevant. |
| Instructions to tenderers | How to respond: format, word limits, submission mechanics, the clarification process and deadlines. Missing an instruction can make an otherwise strong response non-compliant. |
| Award criteria and assessment methodology | How the response will be scored, whether any criterion is pass/fail, and the relative importance of quality, price and other factors. |
| Pricing schedule | The structure you must price against. Prices are usually compared on a defined basis; check whether figures include or exclude VAT. |
| Terms and conditions and the draft contract | The contract you would sign, including liabilities, KPIs, payment terms and change control. Commercial risk lives here as much as in the price. |
| Response templates and declarations | Method-statement templates, the PSQ or selection questions, and declarations such as conflicts of interest that must be returned exactly as asked. |
Old and current language
PSQ, SQ, PQQ and ITT.
Suppliers still search for the older terms. Map them to the current process rather than assuming they are interchangeable.
- PSQ (Procurement Specific Questionnaire)
- An optional standard template for the Procurement Act 2023 regime, drawing on central digital platform data.
- SQ / SSQ (Standard Selection Questionnaire)
- The predecessor document under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. It remains a useful search term, but the process, not just the name, has changed.
- PQQ (pre-qualification questionnaire)
- An older label for a selection-stage questionnaire. It still appears in some portal and document labels, including Scottish procurements, but it is not a synonym for the PSQ.
- ITT (invitation to tender)
- The award-stage pack: specification, instructions, pricing and criteria. Sometimes issued in a single stage with the notice under the open procedure.
What Winston does here.
Scout helps you find the notice and reach the official documents, and keeps the source identifiers with the record. Completing your PSQ, writing method statements, building a compliance matrix and drafting responses are not Scout features; organisation-specific evidence and drafting are planned paid Winston bid-assistance work and are not available yet.
Primary sources
Check the current process at source.
Winston checked this official guidance on 12 October 2026. The central digital platform and PSQ process applies to Procurement Act procurements; devolved Scottish procurements follow separate rules. This page is reviewed on a short cycle.
- Cabinet Office: central digital platform and publication of information guidance
- Civil Service: PA 2023 Procurement Specific Questionnaire template
- Cabinet Office: conditions of participation guidance
- Cabinet Office: Procurement Act 2023 short guide for suppliers
- legislation.gov.uk: Procurement Act 2023 territorial application
- Scottish Government: Single Procurement Document guidance
Continue through the response.
See how the response is evaluated, or use the clarification window when a document is unclear.