Harris Federation has opened the first re-procurement round of its Permanent and Contingent Recruitment, or PerCo, Open Framework. The framework covers recruitment for education roles as well as a range of specialist corporate functions, so it is relevant to more than general teaching agencies.
The notice gives an estimated value of £192 million including VAT. This procurement is the first re-opening within a wider open framework scheme that is expected to run until 1 January 2034, with successive frameworks awarded over the scheme period. If you want support deciding which recruitment lots fit your agency and evidence, contact Thornton & Lowe.
The 12 recruitment lots
The framework covers:
- Education leadership
- Classroom teaching, permanent and fixed-term
- Supply teaching for short-term cover
- Classroom support and pastoral roles
- Administration and operational roles
- Digital, data and technology
- Corporate roles
- Finance and audit
- Human resources
- Estates
- Executive search
- Managed service, including the nominated worker scheme
This gives specialist agencies a clearer route than a single broad recruitment lot. An agency with strong education supply capability may have a very different evidence base from an executive search or DDaT recruiter. Our recruitment tender guidance covers the quality, screening and candidate-management evidence that commonly matters in public-sector staffing bids.
How the open framework operates
The scheme allows an unlimited number of suppliers, subject to meeting the procurement requirements. Call-offs can be made by direct award or mini-competition. The framework is also stated to be available to a range of UK public-sector education bodies, including schools, academies, multi-academy trusts, colleges and universities.
Suppliers should also account for the framework levy. The notice sets a maximum 0.75% levy, calculated against the mark-up price of successful call-off contracts before deductions and excluding VAT. That should be understood when checking commercial viability.
Quality requirements
The published award criteria are heavily quality-led. Service and experience carries 60%, quality management systems 15%, compliance and screening 15%, and equality and diversity 10%. There is no separate price weighting shown in these headline framework award criteria.
Agencies should therefore bring forward specific evidence on fulfilment, hard-to-fill roles, screening accuracy, safeguarding, candidate quality, service management and issue resolution. Generic recruitment claims are unlikely to distinguish a bidder where the framework asks for sector-specific delivery evidence.
Key dates
- Estimated value: £192 million including VAT
- First re-opening framework period: 1 February 2027 to 31 January 2029
- Open framework scheme end date: 1 January 2034
- Enquiry deadline: 1 September 2026 at 11:59pm
- Tender submission deadline: 10 September 2026 at 12:00pm
Read the Harris Federation PerCo Find a Tender notice and the procurement documents for the lot-specific requirements.
Recruitment framework bid support
Thornton & Lowe can help recruitment agencies select lots, plan contract examples, strengthen compliance evidence and manage the full written tender. Talk to our recruitment bid specialists about the PerCo re-opening.
