Why Choose Thornton & Lowe?

✔ Founded in 2009, UK public procurement specialists – We support organisations entering the UK market and selling to the public sector, with a practical focus on what buyers score and what actually wins.

✔ Largest in-house UK bid consultancy team – We have capacity to support quickly, whether you need a fast review, full bid writing support, or a longer-term market entry plan.

✔ End-to-end support to find and win contracts – We help you identify opportunities, decide the best route (direct tenders vs frameworks), build a compliant UK bid pack, and submit stronger, evidence-led responses.

✔ UK-specific tender knowledge that US firms often lack – UK formats, selection questionnaires, compliance documents, portals, social value requirements and buyer expectations can trip up strong US suppliers. We help you avoid the usual mistakes.

How to Find UK Government Tenders and Frameworks

If you are doing business in the UK or planning a UK market entry strategy, the first step is knowing where UK public sector contracts actually appear and how buyers buy.

Most opportunities sit across a mix of tender platforms and routes, including:

• Contracts Finder for lower and mid-value public sector opportunities

• Find a Tender for higher value contracts

• CCS frameworks and other framework agreements that buyers use for repeat purchasing

• Sector routes such as NHS procurement frameworks and portals, and Ministry of Defence contracts routes (where relevant)

To make this easier, Thornton & Lowe has Tender Pipeline – a tool designed to help bidders find government tenders and frameworks, set up alerts, and monitor competitor contract wins. You can view tenders for free.
Tender Pipeline. 

How Our Service Works

• Initial consultation – We confirm what you sell, which parts of the UK public sector are realistic, and the fastest route to your first win.
• Opportunity and route plan – We shortlist tenders and frameworks, confirm where to bid, and what to avoid.
  
• Readiness and compliance – We build the UK bid pack you need and fix gaps that stop you bidding.
  
• Bid writing and submission support – We write, improve and review your bid responses, then complete final checks before submission.
  
• Partner route support (if needed) – We identify supply chain options and support outreach and positioning.

Crown Commercial Service (CCS) and Procurement Frameworks

Many US suppliers assume UK public sector work is mainly open tendering. In reality, a large volume of spend is routed through procurement frameworks, including Crown Commercial Service agreements. That can be a big opportunity, but also a barrier if you are not positioned correctly.

We help you decide:

• whether you should pursue direct tenders first or focus on frameworks

• which frameworks fit what you actually sell

• how to present eligibility, compliance and evidence in a UK format

• how to turn a framework place into contract wins (mini-competitions and call-offs)