DfE Seeks Careers Advisor CPD Programme Design and Delivery

Contracts Finder - Open Opportunities

Published March 11th, 2026

Detected March 11th, 2026

Summary

The UK Department for Education (DfE) has published an early notice for a procurement opportunity to design and deliver a national Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme for careers advisors. The contract is valued between £0 and £1,220,000 and is expected to commence in September 2026.

View original document View source feed page

What changed

The Department for Education (DfE) has issued an early notice for a procurement to establish a national Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme for qualified careers advisors in England. The programme, valued up to £1,220,000, will run for three academic years with an option for an additional year and will consist of six modular courses delivered through a blended learning approach. The DfE aims to train at least 1,000 careers advisors, prioritizing those with Level 6 and Level 7 qualifications.

Suppliers interested in bidding must be admitted to the Crown Commercial Service (CCS) Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) RM6219 under the 'Bespoke Training' service and relevant categories, and also registered on the DfE's Jaggaer platform by 12:00 midday on April 8, 2026. This early notice is intended to allow sufficient time for suppliers to complete these accreditation steps before the formal procurement launch on the same date, thereby maximizing competition. Failure to meet these eligibility requirements by the deadline will prevent participation in the tender process.

What to do next

Ensure admission to CCS DPS RM6219 under 'Bespoke Training' service and relevant categories.
Register on the DfE's Jaggaer platform.
Complete all accreditation and registration by 12:00 midday on April 8, 2026, to be eligible for the ITT.

Source document (simplified)

Published date: 11 March 2026

Open future opportunity - This means that the buyer is not yet ready to invite bid applications but early notification has been provided and some dialogue may be possible.

Watch this notice Print this notice Approach to market date: 8 April 2026

Contract summary

Industry

Education and training services - 80000000

Location of contract

Any region

Value of contract

£0 to £1,220,000

Procurement reference

tender_513582/1557333

Published date

11 March 2026

Approach to market date

8 April 2026

Contract start date

1 September 2026

Contract end date

31 August 2029

Contract is suitable for SMEs?

Yes

Contract is suitable for VCSEs?

Yes

Description

The Department for Education (DfE) intends to procure a national Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme for qualified careers advisers working with young people in England. The programme will be delivered over three academic years (AY 2026/27-2028/29), with an optional extension to AY2029/30.

The programme will develop and deliver a suite of six modular CPD courses, combining digital learning, webinars, expert-led content, peer interaction, and performance monitoring. It must be scalable to train at least 1,000 qualified careers advisers, prioritising Level 6 and Level 7 professionals.

Route to Market
This procurement will run as a competition under the Crown Commercial Service (CCS) Learning & Training Services Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) RM6219.
The opportunity will be published under:
Service: Bespoke Training
Category: Wellbeing and Specialist/Niche Training
Filters Applied: Specialist Training and Virtual Delivery

Suppliers must be admitted to DPS RM6219 under the Bespoke Training service, with the correct Wellbeing/Specialist/Niche category and filters selected, and be registered on DfE's Jaggaer platform, in order to be invited to the ITT.

Planned Procurement Launch Date
The procurement is anticipated to launch on: 08/04/2026

Supplier Eligibility Cut-Off Time
Suppliers must be fully admitted to DPS RM6219 and registered on Jaggaer by 12:00 (midday) on 08/04/2026 to be included in the invitation to tender. Any supplier not accredited under the correct service, category and filters by this deadline will not be eligible to participate.

Reason for Early Notice
This Future Opportunity notice is being published early to provide suppliers with sufficient time to join DPS RM 6219, select the relevant service categories and filters, and ensure eligibility before the formal launch of the procurement. This approach maximises competition and ensure fair supplier access in line with PCR 2015.