Pagabo Refit and Refurbishment: How to Prepare for the Q4 2026 Tender

Pagabo Refit and Refurbishment: How to Prepare for the Q4 2026 Tender

Pagabo's National Framework for Refit and Refurbishment is expected to launch in Q4 2026, with contract commencement planned for Q2 2027. If you run a refurbishment or interiors contracting business and want to secure call-off contracts in schools, council buildings and housing stock, you need to start evidence gathering now, not when the invitation to tender lands.

This framework will sit alongside the Major Works 2026, Civils and Developer-Led frameworks that Pagabo has already published this year. The procurement will be run under the Procurement Act, which replaced the previous Public Contracts Regulations in October of the prior year. That means new scoring conventions, new carbon requirements and no standstill period after award.

Who should bid

The framework will attract main contractors, fit-out specialists and M&E-led refurbishment businesses working in public sector estates. Pagabo frameworks typically segment by contract value bands, so if the Refit and Refurbishment framework follows the pattern, you will need to choose whether to bid for smaller works up to, say, £2 million per contract, or larger projects above that threshold.

You should only bid if you can demonstrate steady delivery of refurbishment contracts in the last three years and can evidence your approach to carbon reduction, modern methods of construction and social value delivery. Pagabo evaluators will ask for named case studies and expect verifiable project data. A contractor with four recent school refurbishments and certified environmental management is far better positioned than one with twenty projects but no structured evidence or reporting.

Do not bid if your turnover cannot support the expected contract values in your chosen lot, or if you lack the quality, safety and environmental accreditations evaluators will score. Pagabo has consistently required ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 or equivalent across its frameworks. Missing one of these typically costs you 10 to 15 marks out of 100.

What we know from the Major Works 2026 evaluation

Pagabo awarded its National Framework for Major Works 2026 earlier this year under reference PA23-YPO-0002. That tender applied a 40 percent price, 60 percent quality weighting, and quality questions covered technical delivery, carbon and net zero strategy, social value, and supply chain management.

Evaluators scored using the Procurement Act's 0 to 3 scale instead of the old 0 to 5 scale that applied under the previous Public Contracts Regulations. A score of 3 means fully acceptable and comprehensive. A score of 2 means acceptable but with gaps. Most borderline answers land at 2, which costs you 33 percent of the available marks for that question. If a question carries 10 percent of the total evaluation weight and you score a 2 instead of a 3, you lose approximately 3.3 marks out of 100 before price is even calculated.

The Refit and Refurbishment framework tender is expected to follow a similar structure. We cannot confirm the exact weighting until the procurement documents publish, but 60 percent quality is now Pagabo's pattern under the current Procurement Act.

Carbon and compliance prerequisites

The Procurement Act requires contracting authorities to have regard to the national procurement policy statement, which sets out expectations on carbon reduction, skills and commercial relationships. Pagabo has embedded carbon reporting and net zero planning into its quality evaluation since the Major Works framework. Expect questions on embodied carbon measurement, operational carbon targets and how you will report emissions data to the client during contract delivery.

You will need to show how you calculate whole-life carbon for refurbishment projects, not just operational energy. Evaluators want to see your use of tools such as the RICS whole-life carbon assessment guidance or equivalent frameworks. A worked example helps. If you refurbished a 1,200 square metre office block and calculated embodied carbon at 520 kgCO2e per square metre, explain the choices that reduced that figure, such as reusing structural elements, specifying low-carbon cement or sourcing reclaimed materials locally.

Environmental management certification remains essential. ISO 14001 is the baseline. If you also hold PAS 2080 or equivalent carbon management standards, reference them. These accreditations signal process maturity and give evaluators confidence you will not treat carbon reporting as a compliance afterthought.

Evidence building between now and Q4 2026

You have approximately twelve weeks from the week starting 2026-09-01 until the expected Q4 tender launch. Use that time to organise project case studies, update method statements and confirm your supply chain can meet the framework's social value and local labour commitments.

Choose three or four refurbishment projects completed in the last three years. For each, document the original brief, programme, final cost, any variations, carbon data and social value outcomes such as apprenticeships or local spend. Evaluators will cross-reference your case studies against the question requirements. If a question asks how you manage design changes during a live refurbishment with occupied spaces, your case study should show a school or office refurb where you dealt with phased handovers and user liaison, not a new-build.

Refresh your quality and safety procedures. Pagabo evaluators expect construction phase plans, risk assessment templates and site waste management protocols that reflect current legislation. If your health and safety documentation still references the earlier CDM regulations from 2015 without updates, that signals stale process.

Confirm your insurance levels. Pagabo frameworks typically require professional indemnity cover of at least £5 million and employer's and public liability of £10 million each. If your PI cover sits at £2 million, start the renewal conversation now. Increasing limits mid-procurement creates delay.

Engagement webinar and tender publication

Pagabo has scheduled an engagement webinar ahead of the Q4 2026 tender launch. Attendance is not mandatory, but evaluators sometimes reference webinar content in their question design, and you will hear directly from the procurement authority about lot structure, contract values and evaluation criteria.

Register as soon as Pagabo publishes the webinar details. These sessions typically run once, with no repeat. You will also receive advance notice of the exact tender launch date, which gives you a planning advantage over competitors who wait for the public notice.

When the invitation to tender publishes, expected in Q4 2026, you will likely have four to six weeks to complete your submission. Pagabo does not publish draft questions in advance, so you cannot pre-write answers verbatim, but you can prepare the evidence library. Organise case study summaries, carbon calculations, organograms, CVs and accreditation certificates in a structured folder. When the questions arrive, you assemble rather than create.

Worked example: what a competitive submission looks like

Imagine a question worth 15 percent of the total evaluation score asks how you will deliver a £1.8 million school refurbishment during term time with minimal disruption. A score of 3 requires a comprehensive answer covering phasing, user liaison, noise and dust control, safety and programme recovery.

A competitive response would describe a recent project of similar value and constraints. You completed a secondary school science block refurb over two academic terms, working in phases to keep half the building operational. You appointed a dedicated liaison officer who met the headteacher weekly, issued look-ahead programmes to staff and coordinated noisy works during non-teaching hours. You installed acoustic hoarding and real-time dust monitors, and you built two weeks of float into the programme to accommodate exam periods. The project finished on time with zero safety incidents and a client satisfaction score of 9 out of 10.

That level of specificity, backed by verifiable data, scores a 3. A generic answer listing good intentions without evidence or metrics scores a 1 or a 2 and costs you 5 to 10 marks out of 100.

Frequently asked questions

When will the Pagabo Refit and Refurbishment framework officially launch?

The framework tender is expected to launch in Q4 2026, with commencement planned for Q2 2027. Pagabo has published these dates as estimated timings on its pipeline page, so treat them as indicative rather than confirmed. The engagement webinar will provide a firmer date.

Does Glaxtons charge for framework award or for call-off contract wins?

We charge a success fee tied to call-off contract wins, not the framework award itself. Getting onto a framework costs you nothing with us. You only pay when you secure an actual project through the framework, and our fee is a percentage of the contract value you win.

Can I bid if I do not yet hold ISO 14001 or ISO 45001?

You can submit a bid, but missing these accreditations will cost you marks and likely make your submission uncompetitive. Pagabo evaluators score environmental and safety management systems heavily. If you need certification, start the process now. Achieving ISO accreditation typically takes three to six months, which leaves you time before the expected Q4 2026 tender launch, but not much margin.

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