CCDE17A05 - Recruitment, Training and Administration Service of Apprentices - HMT

3.4 In May 2017 the system for the funding and procurement of apprenticeship training changed with the introduction of the Apprenticeship Levy, which requires public sector employers with a pay bill over £3 million each year to make an investment in apprenticeships (0.5% of their annual pay bill). 3.5 Employers will access the funds through a Digital Apprenticeship Account (DAA) controlled by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA). The DAA is hosted on a system known as the digital Apprenticeship Service (AS). Each levy-paying employer has a virtual account equivalent in value to its contribution, minus an amount equivalent to the notional contribution for its employees that live in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, plus a government top-up of 10%. 3.6 Funds in the Digital Account can only be used to cover the cost of apprenticeship training and end point assessment for apprenticeships undertaken in England. To access the funds employers will need to show, through the AS, that it has a contract for the delivery of a recognised apprenticeship, by a registered provider. For these purposes a registered provider is a training provider that appears on the ESFA Register of Apprenticeship Training Providers (RoATP). Recognised apprenticeships must be approved by the Institute for Apprenticeships, or SASE Frameworks. Apprenticeship standards and framework are assigned a funding band maximum, above which the ESFA will not contribute to the cost of the training. 3.7 The aim of this procurement is to contract with a Supplier of level 3 and level 4 business administration. 3.8 The successful supplier is to provide ongoing support to the apprentice beyond the contract term until the apprentiship is completed up to a period of 5 years.

Additional information: How to apply Instructions to Potential Providers:

Potential Providers must first be registered on the Crown Commercial Service e-Sourcing Suite in order to respond to the Procurement. If you have not yet registered on the e-Sourcing Suite, this can be done online at https://gpsesourcing.cabinetoffice.gov.uk by following the link 'Register for CCS e-Sourcing'.

Please note that, to register, you must have a valid DUNS number (as provided by Dun and Bradstreet) for the organisation which you are registering, who will be entering into a contract if invited to do so at the Invitation to Tender stage. Potential Providers should note that it could take up to 10 working days to obtain a DUNS number. Full instructions for registration and use of the system can be found at: http://gps.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/i-am-supplier/respond-tender

Once you have registered on the e-Sourcing Suite, you will need to express your interest by emailing [email protected] [The dead line for expressing an interest in the Request for Information event is [insert time, day and date (DD/MM/YYYY)]] [Delete if not applicable (ie Open competitions)]

Your email must clearly state: - name/reference of this procurement - the name of the registered supplier; and - the name and contact details

Crown Commercial Service will then process your registration and assign your organisation to the opportunity. The registered user will receive a notification email to alert them once this has been done.

It is advised however that Potential Providers register as soon as practically possible in order to receive the Invitation to Tender and have a sufficient amount of time to respond. Crown Commercial Service is not able to offer any extensions to the advertised procurement timetable.

For technical assistance on use of the e-Sourcing Suite please contact the Helpdesk: Freephone: 0345 010 3503 Email: [email protected]