Provision of Engineering Capability Services

Tender description

Terms and acronyms API – Application Programming Interface; AWS – Amazon Web Services; BA – Business Analyst; BPSS – Baseline Personnel Security Standard; DevOps – Development and Operations; DfT – Department for Transport; DVLA – Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency; GDS – Government Digital Service; SC – Security Check; SDET – Software Development Engineer in Test; SoW/SoWs – Statement(s) of Work; T&S – Travel and Subsistence; TCoP – Technology Code of Practice; VAT – Value Added Tax. Summary of the work: DVLA requires the Supplier to provide flexible, scalable engineering capability and specialist expertise to augment blended internal teams, supporting DVLA’s change and operational programmes. This includes major transformation programmes, complex digital services, continuous improvement, maintenance and service change across software, cloud, platform, test and related disciplines. Resources will scale to demand and be commissioned through Statements of Work (SoWs). Pricing model: Other Provide further information: Time and Materials will be used predominantly. Where an SoW defines clear outcome-based work, the Buyer may consider a fixed price to ensure value for money. Confirm if you require a contracted out service or supply of resource: Supply of resource: the off-payroll rules may apply Organisation the work is for: Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) Latest start date: 2027-01-18 Expected contract length: 4-00-00 Expected contract structure: Initial term 3 years with an optional extension of 1 year Estimated contract value (excl VAT): 41600000 Budget details: Indicative maximum budget: £41,600,000 (exclusive of VAT) per contract. A single procurement exercise will be conducted that will result in the award of two contracts to two separate suppliers. Each of the two contracts will have a maximum value of up to £41.6m each and will be awarded in compliance with the Digital Outcomes and Specialists 7 (DOS7) framework. Why the work is being done: DVLA delivers high-volume services that are critical to the UK’s transport infrastructure. It is continuing to modernise these services by replacing legacy technology and on-premises solutions with secure, accessible and resilient cloud-first services. Its change portfolio includes transformation, legislative and policy change, service improvement and technology initiatives. DVLA is seeking a Supplier to provide flexible engineering capability and specialist expertise to support the delivery of its current and future transformation priorities. The Supplier will augment DVLA’s internal teams, enabling them to respond to changing demand, address capacity constraints and access specialist skills across relevant engineering disciplines. The contract will provide a stable and scalable route for commissioning engineering capability, supporting continuity, longer-term planning and effective delivery assurance. Supplier personnel will work within blended multidisciplinary teams (directed by DVLA), alongside DVLA employees and other suppliers. Services must be delivered in accordance with the GDS Service Standard, Technology Code of Practice, Secure by Design principles, and DVLA’s architecture, security and engineering standards. There is no guaranteed minimum volume of work. Requirements will be commissioned through individual SoWs, which will define the outcomes, deliverables, resources, timescales and pricing arrangements. Each SoW will be subject to the relevant DVLA business case, investment and governance approvals. The Supplier will also be required to support structured knowledge transfer and upskilling throughout delivery, helping DVLA strengthen its internal capability to maintain and improve services over time. The supplier may also be required to support and maintain services after an initial launch, this could include improving operational stability, maintenance and support, as well as continuous improvement of the product or service. Problem to be solved: DVLA requires flexible access to appropriately skilled engineering resources and specialist expertise to supplement internal capability and support delivery across its change portfolio. The Supplier must be able to provide and scale multidisciplinary engineering capability through individual SoWs, potentially including: • Software engineering and development • Cloud and infrastructure engineering • Platform and DevOps engineering • Test engineering and SDET capability • Technical and solution architecture • Integration and API engineering • Data Engineering • Business Analysis • Product and engineering leadership and related specialist roles The Supplier will be required to provide skilled resources with relevant experience and technical expertise across both legacy and modern cloud technologies, enabling them to support, maintain and integrate existing services while contributing to their controlled modernisation, migration and transition to secure, resilient cloud-based platforms. Supplier personnel will work predominantly within blended DVLA teams alongside civil servants and other suppliers. They will support the design, build, testing, integration, migration, operation and continuous improvement of secure, resilient and maintainable digital services. The requirement must provide sufficient flexibility to respond to changing priorities, delivery phases and specialist needs without guaranteeing any minimum volume of work. Resources and deliverables will be defined through individual SoWs. As an indicative guide, DVLA expects delivery activity may typically require 20–30 Supplier resources at any one time, with the ability to scale up or down depending on demand, delivery phase and the number of active SoWs. This is not a guaranteed level of demand, and any resources required will be confirmed through individual SoWs. Capability provided under SoWs will need to work closely with and take direction from DVLA product teams. Who the users are and what they need to do: The services developed, delivered and supported by this contract will be used by DVLA customers, operational staff, policy and service teams, and internal digital and technology teams. Users include members of the public and third parties accessing digital services, as well as DVLA staff undertaking transactional processing, casework, enquiries, data sharing, reporting and service management. Engineering teams must develop and improve accessible, secure and reliable services that enable users to complete transactions effectively and allow DVLA staff to deliver services efficiently. Solutions may need to integrate with legacy and modern platforms, support high-volume services, protect official information and adapt to future business, policy and technology requirements. Preliminary market engagement: There has been no preliminary market engagement. Work done so far: As part of ongoing transformation programmes, there is a strong focus on transforming and migrating systems and services away from legacy technology to cloud-based architecture. DVLA has used Digital Outcomes contracts to provide external digital resources, specialist expertise and delivery partnerships. These arrangements have supported major transformation activity, including the Identity Utility, Driver and Vehicle Account, transformed Drivers services, Enquiries, migration of legacy mainframe services to AWS, and delivery across legislative, compliance, service improvement and employee experience programmes. The proposed contract will provide a broad and sustainable Engineering Capability model. Existing internal teams, suppliers, platforms, standards, delivery artefacts and in-flight services will form part of the delivery environment. Existing team: DVLA operates blended multidisciplinary product and delivery teams using agile methods. Teams may include technical product managers, product owners, agile delivery managers, business analysts, software engineers, infrastructure engineers, cloud engineers, platform engineers, test engineers, SDETs, architects, service designers, user researchers, interaction designers and subject matter experts. A typical DVLA squad consists of Software Engineers, BA, Architect, an Agile Delivery Manager, Product Owner, SDET, Test Engineers and Technical Product Manager. Supplier personnel will integrate into these teams and work collaboratively with civil servants and other suppliers. Team composition will vary by SoW, delivery phase and required outcomes. Incumbent supplier: Yes Provide further information: Provision of Engineering Services for DVLA Utilities and Drivers Programme - Contracts Finder Provision of Software Engineering - Contracts Finder Provision of Software Engineering Supporting DVLA Services - Contracts Finder Linked projects: N/A Working arrangements: Full Time, 5 days a week Time and Materials. The Supplier must, on request, provide the Buyer with transparent details of supplier charges and any subcontractor or third-party charges within the supply chain. Where a SoW defines clear outcome-based work, the Buyer may consider a fixed price to ensure value for money. Where applicable, expenses must be submitted in line with the Buyer’s standard T&S policy and agreed in advance. SoWs will define the required deliverables. The Supplier’s team must work effectively with existing and future teams, including civil servants and other suppliers. Delivery is expected to require on-site attendance for up to three (3) days per week per resource, subject to service needs, delivery phase and operational requirements. Where on-site attendance is required, this will be at DVLA’s Swansea offices. The primary delivery locations are: Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, Longview Road, Morriston, Swansea, SA6 7JL. The Richard Ley Development Centre (RLDC), Upper Fforest Way, Swansea Vale, Llansamlet, Swansea, SA7 0AN Attendance at any other DVLA location will be agreed in advance and only where required to support delivery. Security clearance: Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) Security clearance: Security Check (SC) Additional information on security clearance: BPSS / SC. All must have BPSS as a minimum. Any team members accessing live data/production environments and Lead Engineers will need to hold SC clearance. Any requirement for SC will be defined within the Statement of Work Preference for contractors to already hold SC clearance, however we would be willing to sponsor the SC clearance process. Evidence of clearance must exist before access to accounts/systems can be provided. Special terms and conditions: The Supplier must comply with all applicable DVLA, DfT and Government security, information assurance, data protection and acceptable use policies notified during the contract term. All Supplier personnel must complete required onboarding, confidentiality, data handling and security processes before accessing DVLA systems, environments or data. Access will only be granted where required checks, clearances and approvals are in place. The Supplier must ensure personnel comply with BPSS and, where applicable, SC clearance requirements. Personnel must protect official information and must not access, copy, store or transfer DVLA data except where authorised. The Supplier must not replace key personnel without DVLA approval, and any replacement must have equivalent skills, experience and clearance status. The Supplier must maintain continuity of delivery and knowledge across all Statements of Work. Where personnel is replaced by the supplier, there will be an overlap period of a minimum of 1 week with no additional charge to DVLA to allow for onboarding and knowledge sharing of the new resource in order to maintain continuity. The Supplier must support structured knowledge transfer, handover and upskilling of DVLA staff throughout delivery. The Supplier may also be required to support out-of-hours working as part of deployments or release activities and the components developed. Any subcontractors must comply with the same security, confidentiality, data protection and delivery obligations as the Supplier. The Supplier remains responsible for all subcontractor acts and omissions. All DVLA-specific deliverables, including code, configuration, documentation, designs, test assets and build artefacts, must be made available to DVLA and stored in DVLA-approved repositories or environments. The Supplier must provide transparency of rates, role profiles, utilisation and third-party charges where requested to support value for money and contract management.