How to Win Public Contracts in 2025: Sustainability Essentials for Mid-Sized Suppliers

The Procurement Act 2023: New Rules, Same Direction

The Procurement Act 2023 came into force on 24 February 2025, marking the biggest reform of UK public procurement in a generation.

For suppliers already familiar with social value and ESG requirements in tenders, this isn’t a reinvention - but it is a recalibration.

Key provisions have immediate implications, while others - notably around the revised Social Value Model - become mandatory from 1 October 2025. If your team is actively bidding on public sector contracts, now is the time to get your internal practices, delivery plans, and bid strategies aligned with the updated framework.

What’s changed (and what’s next)?

• Most Advantageous Tender (MAT) replaces MEAT
  Evaluation is no longer primarily economic. MAT allows authorities to formally consider social, environmental, and community value, codifying what many buyers have already been doing in practice.

• Public benefit becomes mandatory
  Authorities must now “have regard to the importance of maximising public benefit” in all procurement decisions. This raises the threshold for how suppliers frame impact in their bids.

• New Social Value Model (mandatory from 1 October 2025)
  The existing model is being replaced to reflect the UK Government’s five strategic missions (National Procurement Policy Statement, June 2023). Expect updated outcomes, evaluation criteria, and standardised metrics - to be used in all relevant procurements.

• Annual sustainability KPIs for contracts >£5m
  At least three KPIs must be agreed, tracked, and reported. These often include emissions data, supply chain standards, or workforce metrics.

• Increased supplier accountability
  Poor past performance, environmental breaches, or unethical practices can now lead to exclusion.

• SME and VCSE support measures
  Includes 30-day maximum payment terms to first-tier subcontractors, and lower barriers to entry - designed to broaden access to public sector contracts.

What you should review now

• PPN 002 - Guidance on the New Social Value Model  

• PPN 006 - Updated Carbon Reduction Plan requirements

• Internal ESG and procurement policies - particularly around delivery, data, and governance

• Your capacity to measure and report performance during contract execution

Want to stay on top of changing procurement requirements?

We’ve put together a practical summary:
Thrive’s Guide to the Procurement Act 2023 and Social Value in Public Tenders

It distils what’s already changed, what’s coming next, and what your business needs to have in place - without the policy jargon.

You’ll also receive occasional updates from Thrive as guidance evolves, so you don’t miss what matters.

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