Commercial Services Kent Limited operates the Connect2Framework for professional and operational interim and temporary agency staff across the public sector. The framework covers a broad range of role families and has an estimated value of £110 million over a period running to February 2034.
This is an open framework rather than a conventional one-off tender. Existing suppliers can be carried forward and new suppliers may be able to apply during later opening periods. Agencies should therefore check the status of the current notice before assuming that a standard submission window is open. For help assessing the position, contact Thornton & Lowe.
What services are covered?
The role categories include administrative and clerical, catering, driving, engineering and surveying, facilities, finance, housing, HR, ICT, interim management, leisure, manual labour, marketing, planning, procurement, revenues and benefits, technical roles, trades and operatives.
That breadth does not mean every agency should present itself as a supplier for every category. The strongest application will focus on role families where the agency can prove candidate reach, public-sector understanding, compliance and fulfilment performance.
How the open framework changes the approach
An open framework can be reopened to competition on substantially the same terms. Suppliers need to distinguish between the original tender, later award notices, contract detail notices and a genuine new application window. The July notice may record an update within the existing framework lifecycle rather than launch a completely new procurement.
Review the framework rules for supplier fees, call-off methods and onboarding. Published information for the procurement indicates an unlimited supplier model and a supplier fee linked to invoiced value, but applicants should confirm the exact terms in the current documents.
What staffing agencies should evidence
- Role coverage: current candidate pools, sourcing channels and regional reach.
- Compliance: right-to-work checks, vetting, qualifications, references and worker status controls.
- Speed and fulfilment: time-to-submit, fill rates, no-show management and out-of-hours response.
- Quality: candidate matching, performance feedback and removal or replacement processes.
- Public-sector knowledge: pay, safeguarding, procurement and workforce requirements relevant to the selected categories.
- Management information: accurate reporting on bookings, spend, performance and diversity.
Agencies newer to formal procurement may find our bidding for beginners guide useful when setting up compliance checks and portal responsibilities.
Get more information
Use the official Find a Tender notice to confirm whether the publication is an application opportunity, award update or contract detail notice. Then follow the linked e-sourcing instructions rather than relying on dates from the original competition.
If a new opening is available, select only the categories you can support credibly and prepare live evidence. Historic candidate numbers without recent fill-rate and compliance data will be less persuasive.
Thornton & Lowe can help staffing agencies interpret the notice, qualify categories and prepare a clear, compliant application. Talk to our bid writing team.
