RM6397 Lot 5 of 12
RM6397 Lot 5: Corporate Functions Supply
Administrative, finance, HR, procurement and business support staff across NHS and public sector organisations. Part of the £2 billion excluding VAT (£2.5 billion including VAT) NHS Workforce Alliance framework, which replaces RM6281 (clinical and healthcare staffing) and RM6277 (non-clinical staffing).
Submissions close 3pm on Monday 21 September 2026 (11 days remaining). Clarification questions close 3pm on 2 September 2026.
Lot 5 at a glance
- Framework
- RM6397 Clinical and Non-Clinical Temporary and Permanent Staff
- Buyer
- Government Commercial Agency, for the NHS Workforce Alliance
- Submissions close
- 3pm on Monday 21 September 2026
- Clarifications close
- 3pm on 2 September 2026
- Framework value
- £2 billion excluding VAT (£2.5 billion including VAT)
- Term
- Four years from February 2027
- Portal
- CCS/GCA Bravo Solution (Jaggaer)
- Supplier numbers on this lot
- Indicated as unlimited
- Staff groups in scope
- Administrators and medical secretaries, finance and accountancy staff, HR and payroll, procurement and commercial, project and programme support, and general business support roles.
Who should bid this lot
Generalist commercial recruiters entering public sector supply, business support agencies, finance and accountancy staffing specialists, and HR and procurement recruitment providers.
The general rule across RM6397 is to bid the lots you can evidence rather than the lots you would like to hold. Evaluators score depth of evidence per lot, not breadth of ambition, and providers who bid three lots properly consistently outperform those who spread thin across eight.
The compliance discriminator for Lot 5
This is the lot where commercial agencies most often underestimate the public sector layer. Baseline Personnel Security Standard checks, IR35 status determination for contractor supply, and NHS Employment Check Standards still apply even to non-clinical roles. Evaluators notice quickly when a submission has been adapted from private sector recruitment material.
What actually scores
Public sector contract references specifically. A strong commercial track record with no public sector delivery is the weakest common position in this lot. If your public sector evidence is thin, lead with adjacent regulated-sector work and be explicit about the transition rather than hoping the gap is not noticed.
The mistake that loses marks on this lot
Treating this as the easy lot. It has the lowest clinical barrier and therefore the highest bidder count, which makes evidence quality the only separator. Generic recruitment capability statements score poorly against agencies naming NHS trusts, roles filled and time-to-supply figures.
Lot 5 questions
We are a commercial recruiter with no NHS clients. Is this lot realistic?
It is the most realistic entry point on the framework for a commercial agency, but realistic is not the same as easy. The barrier is evidence rather than accreditation: you will be scored against agencies naming NHS trusts and public sector contracts. Lead with your strongest regulated or public-adjacent delivery, be direct about the absence of NHS references, and evidence the compliance infrastructure you have built to operate to NHS standards.
Does IR35 apply to supply through this lot?
Off-payroll working rules apply to public sector engagements, and status determination sits with the client organisation. What the evaluator scores is whether you understand the process, support the determination properly and administer supply compliantly. A submission that is vague on this signals inexperience in public sector contractor supply more clearly than almost anything else.
Lot names, the framework value and the timetable were last reviewed on 21 August 2026. Published summaries of RM6397 differ on the submission date and on the term commencement, so treat the ITT on the CCS/GCA Bravo Solution (Jaggaer) portal as the only authority. See the full RM6397 guide for the detail on those discrepancies.
The other eleven RM6397 lots
Most providers bid more than one. Each lot has its own regulator, evidence expectations and characteristic failure mode.
See also the RM6397 framework guide, the NHS tender pipeline and the NHS Workforce Alliance overview.
Bidding Lot 5? The evidence is the work
Getting fill rates, compliance audit outcomes and named contract references out of your operational systems and written to the published criteria is what decides the score, and it is the part providers start too late. Call 020 3668 5488 or send us the deadline and we will come back with a Teams time.
RM6397 Lot 5: Corporate Functions Supply
Which lots are you bidding, and what does your corporate functions supply evidence look like today?