CON 1540 - Appian delivery partner to develop a case management system for Ofsted's regulation of social care and early years services

Description

Pre-market engagement Between 2023 and 2025, Ofsted carried out extensive pre-market engagement to inform its plans for a new regulatory case management system. This included a procurement exercise, a cross-government strategic review, and targeted engagement with suppliers. We hosted a number of showcases from suppliers with experience of developing services using our two short-listed technologies. The showcases were attended by a wide range of Ofsted stakeholders across Digital Change, Technology, and Data & Insight. Business users, including inspectors, regulators, and operational staff, were engaged through a curated 45-minute ‘highlights’ reel and feedback sessions. This collaborative approach enabled colleagues to see the products in action and provided space for open discussion around usability, accessibility, and the platform’s ability to meet Ofsted’s future regulatory needs. Feedback from business users indicated a clear preference for Appian. In April 2025, Ofsted formally selected Appian as the preferred platform. The decision was based on its stronger alignment with user needs. Choosing Appian reflects our commitment to co-designing services with our users and maintaining strong business engagement throughout delivery. Undertaking these activities confirmed our needs for: A strong collaborative delivery model between partner and client; Ongoing knowledge transfer and skills development to build internal capability; Flexible delivery methods that can accommodate evolving requirements; Change management and engagement with end users. This pre-tender engagement has given us a strong foundation to now move forward with a focused procurement of a partner to implement a new Appian-based case management system. Work done so far Ofsted has carried out extensive preparatory work over the last 4 years through a series of discovery & alpha phases. This included deep dives into our existing regulatory processes, mapping the ‘as-is’ state & identifying pain points experienced by our staff across different roles & responsibilities. We know where our inefficiencies are, where we have inflexible workflows, manual workarounds, where we repeat processes & where we use a multitude of systems to access information. This work has involved significant user engagement with regulatory inspectors, operational colleagues & policy colleagues to identify where our current systems are adding work & where we need to improve. Whilst we recognise that materials may need refreshing, we want to look forward with greater emphasis on developing a clear & achievable 'to-be' future state. Outputs include: 1) Mapped end-to-end ‘as-is’ process journeys. 2) User needs & pain points. We do not intend to spend time redoing discovery or exploring the existing problem space with our future partner. We want to move directly into Alpha, designing & building a future-focused, digital case management service that improves how Ofsted regulates early years & social care providers. In some areas, we already have a well-developed understanding of system requirements & these can be shared from the outset. However, we expect our partner to challenge, validate & iterate on these, bringing expertise in Appian & case management design. Our partner will bring creative, solution-oriented thinking & proposals for where automation, AI & other innovative tools could support our work, reduce administrative burden & surface risk more effectively. Our internal teams are currently progressing the development of a new, more structured & future-fit regulatory data model. This work is underway & will play a crucial role in supporting the new system by improving the quality, consistency & availability of core regulatory data. Which phase the project is in Alpha Existing team Ofsted will be recruiting a delivery team to support and manage the development. The partner will have access to subject matter experts and end users within the business. Address where the work will be done Much of the work can be done remotely, only needing to attend an Office location where collaboration with others makes the work more effective. Ofsted has offices in the following locations and Ofsted staff are likely to be spread across many of them. Birmingham Office 23 Stephenson Street Birmingham B2 4BH Bristol Office 2 Rivergate Temple Quay Bristol BS1 6EH London Office 10 South Colonnade London E14 4QT Manchester Office Piccadilly Gate Store Street Manchester M1 2WD From 2026: Manchester Office Manchester's First Street Hub, M15 4FN Working arrangements Ofsted’s core working hours are Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. We expect the supplier’s team to align with these hours to enable effective collaboration and communication with the internal delivery team and stakeholders. We anticipate our partner will conduct their work remotely, using Ofsted-approved digital tools such as Microsoft Teams for day-to-day collaboration, stand-ups, sprint ceremonies, and stakeholder engagement. On occasion, the supplier may be required to attend face-to-face workshops or planning sessions at one of Ofsted’s locations (typically in London, Manchester, or Birmingham). These in-person sessions will be scheduled in advance and kept to a minimum, with a focus on critical collaboration points. Overnight stays are not expected on a regular basis. Where travel is necessary, the supplier must follow Ofsted’s travel and subsistence policy (which can be provided later). As a general principle, costs should be kept to a minimum; standard class rail travel should be used; and use of hotels should be minimised. Provide more information about your security requirements: Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) Latest start date 2025-09-01 Enter the expected contract length: 2 years Extension period: 1 year Special terms and conditions The Supplier may substitute any Supplier Staff (including Subcontractor Staff) as long as they have equivalent experience and qualifications to the substituted Supplier Staff. When substitution occurs the Supplier will notify, discuss and agree with the Buyer before any substitution takes place. It is agreed between the Supplier and the Buyer that the Buyer has the final decision on which Supplier Staff (including Subcontractor Staff) are brought into substitute existing Supplier Staff (Including Subcontractor Staff) and the Buyer also reserves the right to veto and to remove any individual who is not suitable. Supplier staff must be UK based, and all work must be carried out in the UK. Write the term or acronym: APT Write the term or acronym: ARC Write the term or acronym: IQCA Write the term or acronym: RST Write the term or acronym: IST Write the term or acronym: QA Write the term or acronym: SC Write the term or acronym: EY Write the term or acronym: FES Write the term or acronym: OI Write the term or acronym: CAO Write the term or acronym: CDP Are you prepared to show your budget details?: Yes Indicative maximum: Indicative maximum budget £5 million (Inc. VAT) for the initial 2-year period. This can be increased to £7.5 million (Inc. VAT) should the optional 1-year extension be activated. Provide further information: Only Agreed WP #1 will be committed Confirm if you require a contracted out service or supply of resource Contracted out service: the off-payroll rules do not apply Summary of work Following an in-depth technology evaluation, Ofsted has selected Appian’s low-code platform as the preferred solution for delivering a new back-end regulatory case management system. We are seeking a specialist Appian implementation partner to design and develop this new service. The partner will work closely with Ofsted to build a scalable, secure, and user-centred case management system to support our regulatory responsibilities. This system will replace multiple legacy processes and systems (including our current core system) and form a core part of Ofsted’s regulatory digital services. We require a system that will provide an end-to-end service to support our regulatory staff to assess, respond, and act where there is risk to children and young people in a consistent, data-informed manner. It must surface and flag (in an accessible and user-friendly way) complex and interdependent provider information and relationships, helping Ofsted maintain oversight across the early years and social care sectors. The service will be developed with a strong focus on user needs, with our regulatory staff and subject matter experts engaged throughout the design and delivery process. The system will need to support the streamlining of our regulatory processes and workflows, using automation, AI and creative new ways of working (where appropriate) to reduce inefficiencies including where there are manual ‘off-system’ workarounds, and administrative and repetitive tasks. It will be a service that is developed with long-term sustainability and scalability in mind, with Ofsted’s internal development teams taking on support and improvement over time. Knowledge transfer and capability building will be a key part of our partner relationship. Where the supplied staff will work No specific location (for example they can work remotely) Who the organisation using the products or services is (Ofsted) Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills Why the work is being done Ofsted’s current case management system no longer meets organisational needs. It fails to support regulatory staff effectively, is costly, is difficult to adapt & it hinders Ofsted’s ability to operate efficiently & respond to risk. This limits timely, decisive action to protect children & prevent harm. Ofsted seeks to replace the current system with a modern, Appian-based solution. It must be user-friendly, capable of managing key regulatory tasks & present complex information in an accessible way to support effective decision-making. Leveraging automation & AI, it should drive significant efficiencies & support a broader transformation of Ofsted’s regulatory operating model. The system must empower staff to manage regulatory work both at desks & in the field, including: Application & registration processes; Inspections; Investigations & enforcement; Identification of patterns & risk indicators. The system must support a radical redesign of workflows & equip staff with advanced AI tools that will streamline operations, encourage innovation & break down silos. It will enable inspectors to focus on their primary responsibilities (improving outcomes for children & young people) & allow back-office staff to undertake higher-value tasks. Current Challenges: Regulatory staff face difficulties due to; Fragmented tools that hinder risk assessment; Dispersed data, leading to delays & missed insights; Manual processes that duplicate effort & block automation. Additionally, Ofsted’s current reliance on a single supplier limits our ability to quickly adapt to changes & drives up costs. We seek a partner who can help build our internal capabilities. This will reduce supplier dependence & improve long-term sustainability. The result will be: A seamless internal system, improving access to & how we act on regulatory data; Streamlined, automated workflows; Greater internal capability to improve & maintain the system independently. The business problem you need to solve Ofsted’s current core system is not a case management system, but a bespoke scheduling tool heavily & repeatedly modified over time to meet our needs. This has created complexity, high maintenance costs & slow delivery of essential changes. Our reliance on a single supplier makes adapting to policy or legislative changes expensive & time-consuming. Our staff rely on fragmented & inefficient tools, processes & workarounds to assess and act on risk. Information about providers is spread across multiple sources, increasing the risk of missing key details & undermining the quality/ speed of decision-making. This fragmented approach introduces unnecessary risk, including the possibility of delayed interventions that could impact the safety & wellbeing of children & young people. Staff are burdened with inefficient processes & administrative overhead. Current workflows require duplicative data entry, manual document handling & bespoke processes that cannot be standardised or automated within the existing system. These inefficiencies reduce time available to spend on higher-value regulatory work. Our reliance on a single supplier to maintain the system increases risk. We lack internal capability to modify the system independently, which reduces responsiveness & increases cost. It restricts continuous improvement & innovation in our digital services. The intended outcomes are: A complete case management system enabling effective access to & use of regulatory data; Streamlined, standardised workflows that reduces manual effort & improve outcomes; A sustainable, cost-effective system that Ofsted can support in-house; A strong foundation for iterative improvements based on feedback & evolving needs. Suppliers must understand the challenges that come with replacing a long-standing legacy system, including managing operational change, integrating with current architecture, ensuring data integrity & migration & supporting staff through the transition to new ways of working. First user type: Regulatory Inspectors First user type: IST (Inspection Support Team) First user type: RST (Regional Support Team) First user type: ARC (Applications, Regulatory, Contact) First user type: QA and IQCA First user type: Technology First user type: Finance First user type: Data and insight