Procure Partnerships has launched the procurement process for a £12bn national framework covering public sector development, construction and regeneration projects across England.
The four-year National Developer Framework will provide councils, NHS organisations, universities and housing associations with access to development partners for projects ranging from smaller community schemes to large-scale, multi-site regeneration programmes.
Wirral Council is acting as the contracting authority for the framework, which has an estimated value of £12bn excluding VAT. The procurement is divided into 63 lots across nine English regions, with up to eight developers expected to be appointed to each lot.
Procure Partnerships framework director Faye Dolan said: “We want to see a strong, diverse field of bidders, from regional SMEs who know their patch inside out to major national operators that can deliver at scale.”
The framework comprises 36 development agreement lots and 27 joint venture and special purpose vehicle (SPV) lots, providing public sector organisations with different routes to securing development expertise and delivering projects.
Development agreement lots are divided into four value bands: projects worth up to £30m, between £30m and £50m, between £50m and £100m, and those exceeding £100m.
Under these arrangements, appointed developers will assume responsibility for managing the development process and associated risks. This includes securing planning permission, undertaking design work, procuring the construction supply chain and delivering the completed development.
The joint venture and SPV lots will provide an alternative structure, allowing public bodies to establish partnerships with developers through separate legal entities. These arrangements are intended to support individual developments as well as longer-term regeneration programmes involving multiple sites.
The 27 lots in this category are divided into three value bands: schemes worth up to £50m, between £50m and £100m, and those exceeding £100m.
Developers can submit bids for up to 54 lots across the framework, although restrictions apply to the number of neighbouring value bands they can pursue within each region and lot type. Bidders are limited to three neighbouring value bands for each category in any one region.
The procurement also establishes commercial requirements for successful applicants. According to the tender documentation, commercial proposals will account for 30% of the overall tender evaluation score. These proposals will cover pre-construction fees, delivery fees and developer profit.
Rates submitted by successful bidders will remain fixed throughout the four-year framework term, providing public sector clients with greater certainty when assessing the commercial terms of potential development partnerships.
Procure Partnerships will also apply a framework management levy of up to 1.8% to appointed developers. For development agreement projects, the levy will become payable when the agreement is signed. Under joint venture and SPV arrangements, it will be applied as the gross development value of individual schemes or development phases is established.
Social value is another key requirement, with successful developers expected to deliver a minimum contribution equivalent to 15% of each project’s gross development value.
Public sector organisations using the framework will have several procurement routes available, including direct awards, express competitions and further competitions. The approach will depend on the scale, requirements and complexity of individual projects.
In addition to development and delivery, the framework will cover pre-development and feasibility services. These will include planning support, viability assessments and assistance with securing funding, enabling public bodies to access specialist expertise during the early stages of project development.
The National Developer Framework is intended to provide a structured route for public sector organisations seeking private sector development expertise, while accommodating different project sizes, commercial arrangements and regional requirements.
Bids must be submitted through The Chest procurement portal by noon on 8 January 2027, quoting reference DN833035. Successful developers are expected to be announced in March 2027, ahead of the framework’s planned commencement in the spring.
