SCAPE Corporate Services Framework England, Wales & Northern Ireland
Framework Description
SCP012 is SCAPE's re-procured Corporate Services Framework for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with an estimated value of £1.65bn to £1.98bn. It is expected to start on 15 March 2027 for four years, with an option to extend by one year to 14 March 2032. Three lots cover advisory, legal and audit services, each with up to three partners, procured under the Procurement Act 2023.
Context & Use Case
Councils, hospitals, universities and government bodies use SCAPE's corporate services framework to engage advisers directly without running their own procurement. There is no cap on commission value, so it can cover anything from a short finance review to a major transformation programme, across management consultancy, technology, digital and data advice, finance and accounting, sustainability, legal advice and audit.
Scope of Services
Lot 1 (Group A): Advisory Services (£1.2bn, up to 3 partners) Lot 2 (Group B): Legal Services (£300m, up to 3 partners) Lot 3 (Group C): Audit Services (£150m, up to 3 partners) Management consultancy; technology, digital and data advisory Finance and accounting, and sustainability services
Lots
Lot 1 (Group A) Advisory Services (£1.2bn, up to 3 partners); Lot 2 (Group B) Legal Services (£300m, up to 3 partners); Lot 3 (Group C) Audit Services (£150m, up to 3 partners)
Who Can Apply
Places suit large consultancies, law firms and audit practices able to deliver across England, Wales and Northern Ireland, since each lot appoints only up to three partners. The procurement has reached PSQ evaluation, so only firms that submitted a PSQ can still win a place; others should look at supply chain roles with likely bidders.
Buyer Benefits
Public bodies get direct access to large advisory, legal and audit firms with no cap on commission value, so a major programme can start quickly. Procurement Act 2023 compliance gives buyers confidence in the route, and a small number of partners per lot means each firm is invested in the relationship and accountable for delivery.
Next Steps
SCAPE's framework page shows the PSQ stage in evaluation, with the ITT stage running from August to December 2026 ahead of the planned 15 March 2027 start. Shortlisted firms should prepare ITT responses: public sector case studies, team CVs, social value commitments and a pricing approach for their lot. Specialists outside the competition should talk to likely bidders about joining their supply chains.
How Athena Can Help
With three partner places per lot, SCP012 bids are decided by small margins in quality scoring. Athena's bid writing specialists build win themes for advisory, legal or audit bids, model your score against likely competitors and run a Bid Health Check before submission.
Our bid/no-bid support tests whether a lead bid or a supply chain role is the better play, and if this framework isn't right for you, we can find other consultancy frameworks to target across the year ahead.
