NHS SBS Public Sector Construction Works 2 Delayed: Notice Now November 2026, Submissions 8 January 2027
NHS SBS Public Sector Construction Works 2 Delayed: Notice Now November 2026, Submissions 8 January 2027
NHS Shared Business Services confirmed on 3 September 2026 that the Public Sector Construction Works 2 tender notice, originally scheduled for 7 September 2026, will now publish in mid to late November 2026 with submissions closing 8 January 2027. The delay gives contractors two additional months to prepare Ariba accounts, refresh accreditations and finalise regional lot choices before the notice appears.
The framework covers £750 million excluding VAT over a four-year term running from 8 December 2027 to 7 December 2031. It replaces the previous NHS SBS construction framework and operates across three lots: minor works up to £5 million and intermediate works from £5 million to £15 million, both let regionally across twelve areas, plus major works above £15 million on a national basis. Both Construction News and Low Carbon Buildings reported the revised schedule on 3 September, and all dates below remain indicative until the official Find a Tender notice confirms them.
The revised timetable
The current indicative schedule, as of the week starting 2026-09-08, runs as follows. Notice publication is expected mid to late November 2026. Enquiries close 4 December 2026. Submissions close 8 January 2027. Award decision is scheduled for 20 October 2027, with contracts going live on 8 December 2027.
That creates a seven-week submission window that runs through the Christmas period. Expect most contractors to complete their draft response by mid-December 2026, leaving only light clarifications or technical uploads for the first week of January. If you plan to engage consultants, confirm their availability over Christmas now. Many bid teams take the final two weeks of December off, and the January deadline offers no contingency if the scope or evidence requirements turn out to be wider than expected.
The award decision date of 20 October 2027 sits nearly ten months after the submission deadline. That extended evaluation period reflects the regional structure and the volume of submissions NHS SBS typically receives on construction frameworks. Standstill ends in early November 2027, with contracts active by early December 2027.
What the two-month delay achieves
The shift from early September to mid-November 2026 gives contractors additional time to prepare three administrative elements that have historically caused late withdrawals or non-compliant bids.
First, the framework runs on SAP Ariba, and you need a DUNS number to register. DUNS registration through Dun and Bradstreet takes between seven and ten working days under normal conditions, longer if your trading structure is complex or if there are address mismatches on your Companies House record. If you do not already have a DUNS number, start the process this week (week starting 2026-09-08). Ariba portal registration adds another two to three days once the DUNS number is issued.
Second, contractors now have breathing room to renew expiring accreditations. If your ISO 9001, 14001 or 45001 certificates expire in late 2026 or early 2027, book the surveillance audit now. Evaluators will check that the certificate covers the submission date, and a lapsed certificate at the point of submission typically results in a fail on the selection questions. The same applies to PAS 91 refreshes if NHS SBS incorporates the updated construction prequalification standard into the questionnaire.
Third, the delay gives regional contractors time to model which of the twelve regional areas to bid for under the minor and intermediate lots. The regional boundaries follow NHS England structures, and selecting the wrong area can leave you with contract volumes too low to justify the framework fee or operational costs that make cross-boundary mobilisation uneconomic. Review your existing NHS client base, map it to the twelve regions, and assess pipeline density before the notice publishes. You cannot bid for all twelve areas without demonstrating regional presence and relevant project histories in each.
The evaluation model
NHS SBS has published an indicative weighting of 60 percent quality, 30 percent commercial and 10 percent social value. The quality section will cover technical capability, case studies, resource planning and delivery methodology. Expect at least two case studies per lot, scored individually rather than as a collective portfolio.
The 60 percent quality weighting means a contractor scoring 50 out of 60 on quality, 25 out of 30 on price and 8 out of 10 on social value reaches a total of 83 out of 100. A competitor scoring 54 out of 60 on quality, 20 out of 30 on price and 7 out of 10 on social value totals 81. The four-point quality advantage offsets a five-point price disadvantage. That spread is typical of construction frameworks where technical delivery risk outweighs cost variance, and it rewards contractors who allocate writing resource to the quality narratives rather than optimising price alone.
The social value weighting at 10 percent follows the national procurement policy framework but remains low enough that it functions as a tiebreaker rather than a primary differentiator. Evaluators will look for quantified commitments on apprenticeships, local labour and supply chain spend, ideally expressed as percentages of contract value with delivery milestones. A generic statement about supporting communities or reducing carbon scores poorly. A commitment to place two apprentices per £3 million of contract value, reportable quarterly, scores well.
What to finish before the notice
Between now (week starting 2026-09-08) and mid-November 2026, complete three tasks that cannot be rushed once the notice appears.
First, draft outline case studies for every lot you intend to bid. Each case study should cover a project completed within the last five years that matches the lot ceiling and demonstrates NHS or public sector healthcare experience. Write the outline now with project value, duration, client contact, scope and outcome. When the notice publishes, you will only need to tailor the narrative to the specific questions rather than sourcing projects under time pressure.
Second, confirm your commercial model and clarify whether you will bid as a sole supplier or as part of a consortium. If you plan a consortium, formalise the partnering agreement now and agree how the submission workload splits. NHS SBS frameworks typically require a lead bidder to complete the selection questionnaire on behalf of the consortium, with named partners listed and individual financial standing demonstrated. That structure takes longer to document than a sole supplier response.
Third, build your social value tracker. If you do not currently measure apprenticeship starts, SME spend or carbon reporting to a standard that aligns with PPN 06/20, begin logging that data now. Evaluators expect evidence of existing social value delivery, not aspirational commitments. A contractor bidding in September 2026 with no reportable social value activity in the prior twelve months will struggle to score competitively, regardless of future promises.
Worked example
Consider a mid-sized contractor bidding for the intermediate works lot (£5 million to £15 million) across three of the twelve regional areas. You plan to submit case studies covering a £7 million hospital refurbishment completed in the previous year (2025), an £11 million new-build clinic delivered in an earlier period (2024) and a £9 million diagnostics centre finished in a prior year (2023). Your quality narrative will reference ISO 9001, 14001 and 45001, all valid through 2027. Your DUNS number is live and your Ariba account is active.
Under the 60 percent quality weighting, you score 52 out of 60. Your case studies are relevant and recent, but two of the three fall outside the specific regional areas you bid for, so the evaluator applies a minor reduction for geographic match. Under the 30 percent commercial weighting, you score 24 out of 30. Your pricing sits slightly above the median but within the competitive range. Under the 10 percent social value weighting, you score 7 out of 10. You commit to two apprentices per contract and 20 percent SME spend, both measurable, but your carbon reduction plan lacks milestone dates.
Your total is 83 out of 100. That score typically places you within the award range on a framework of this type, though final ranking depends on the full field of submissions. The worked score demonstrates that geographic case study alignment and specific social value milestones carry evaluative weight that generic statements do not.
Managing the Christmas submission window
The 8 January 2027 deadline sits seven weeks after the expected notice date in mid to late November 2026. That period includes Christmas and New Year, when most construction businesses operate on reduced hours and professional bid writers take leave.
Plan to complete your full draft response by 13 December 2026. That gives you four clear weeks from a mid-November notice, assuming the notice publishes on or around 18 November 2026. Use the Christmas period for internal review only, not for primary drafting. Upload your response to Ariba by 6 January 2027, leaving 48 hours before the deadline for technical issues or file size errors.
The Christmas window compresses contingency. If NHS SBS releases clarifications in late December 2026 that require rewriting a method statement or sourcing additional evidence, you will have limited access to subject matter experts or client references. That risk is manageable if your draft is finished before the holiday period. It becomes a withdrawal risk if you plan to write through Christmas.
Why the October 2027 award decision takes ten months
The award decision date of 20 October 2027 sits nearly ten months after the 8 January 2027 submission deadline. That extended evaluation period reflects three factors common to large public sector construction frameworks.
First, NHS SBS evaluates each regional lot separately under the minor and intermediate works categories. With twelve regional areas and potentially 50 to 80 submissions per region, the moderation and consensus scoring process takes months. Evaluators must read and score each submission individually, then convene moderation panels to ensure consistency across regions. That process cannot be rushed without introducing scoring variance.
Second, the framework undergoes internal assurance reviews before the award decision is released. NHS SBS sits within NHS England's commercial governance structure, and frameworks above £500 million typically require sign-off at director level. Those reviews add six to eight weeks to the timeline after evaluation is complete.
Third, the contracts go live on 8 December 2027, seven weeks after the award decision. That gap accommodates standstill, contract signature and the onboarding process. Successful contractors will need to complete additional due diligence, agree call-off terms and integrate into NHS SBS commercial systems before the framework opens for call-offs. The December go-live date aligns with NHS budget cycles, allowing trusts to access the framework at the start of the third quarter of the 2027/28 financial year.
Link to call-off performance, not framework award
Glaxtons charges a success fee tied to call-off contract wins under the framework, not to framework award itself. Framework award gives you access to compete for work, but it does not generate revenue. Your return depends on how many trusts select you at call-off stage, which in turn depends on the quality of your mini-competition responses, your regional presence and your ability to price competitively within the framework rates.
Most contractors awarded a place on NHS SBS frameworks win between two and five call-off contracts over the four-year term, depending on lot and region. A contractor on the intermediate works lot in a high-density region like London or the North West may see eight to twelve mini-competitions in year one. A contractor on the same lot in a lower-density region may see three to five. Framework award is the qualification to compete. Call-off win rate is the revenue driver.
We price accordingly. You pay nothing for framework award. You pay a success fee only when you win a call-off contract, calculated as a percentage of the contract value. That aligns our return with yours and means you carry no risk if the framework delivers lower call-off volumes than expected.
Confirm every date on Find a Tender
All dates in this article reflect the indicative schedule confirmed by NHS SBS on 3 September 2026 and reported by Construction News and Low Carbon Buildings. NHS SBS has not yet published the official Find a Tender notice. Dates may shift, evaluation criteria may be refined and lot structures may be adjusted when the formal notice appears.
Bookmark the Find a Tender service and search for NHS Shared Business Services Public Sector Construction Works 2 from mid-November 2026. Do not rely on third-party summaries or aggregator sites. The official notice will include the DUNS requirement, the Ariba portal link, the evaluation methodology and any updates to the submission deadline. Treat this article as a planning guide, not as a substitute for the formal procurement documents.
Frequently asked questions
Can I bid for all twelve regional areas under the minor and intermediate lots?
You can bid for multiple regions, but you must demonstrate relevant project experience and operational presence in each area you select. Evaluators score case studies and resource plans on a per-region basis, and a generic submission covering all twelve areas without region-specific evidence will score poorly. Most contractors bid for between two and four regions where they already hold NHS client relationships or have completed comparable projects within the last three years.
What happens if my DUNS number does not arrive before the notice publishes?
You can still register on Ariba and begin your response, but you cannot submit without a valid DUNS number linked to your Ariba account. If you apply for a DUNS number in early November 2026 and the notice publishes on 18 November 2026, you should receive the number before the end of November, leaving six weeks to complete the submission. The risk is higher if you delay until after the notice, particularly if Dun and Bradstreet request additional documentation to verify your trading structure or registered address.
Does the 60 percent quality weighting mean price is less important?
No. The 30 percent commercial weighting is large enough that an uncompetitive price will eliminate you regardless of quality score. In the worked example, a contractor scoring 54 out of 60 on quality but only 15 out of 30 on price totals 76 out of 100. A competitor scoring 50 out of 60 on quality and 25 out of 30 on price totals 83. Price remains a material differentiator. The weighting means that quality is the primary factor, not that price is irrelevant.
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