The Government has published Procurement Policy Note (PPN) 03/23 in response to calls from Build UK and its members which enables central Government departments and wider public sector bodies to use the Common Assessment Standard to pre‐qualify their supply chains. As suppliers that hold the Common Assessment Standard from a Recognised Assessment Body have already been assessed for stage 1 pre‐qualification, contracting authorities can now focus on project specific requirements, streamlining public sector procurement and significantly reducing duplication for the supply chain.

SCAPE has become the first public sector body following publication of the PPN to confirm it will now adopt the Common Assessment Standard, with Group Procurement Director John Simons highlighting it as “a significant step forward in the simplification of the selection process for the public sector” which will “not only de‐risk elements of the process, but also enable public sector organisations to focus on project specific requirements for those firms who have already met the standard”. Further information can be found in the Build UK press release.

Common Assessment Standard Review

The Common Assessment Standard is reviewed every year to ensure that it continues to meet the needs of the industry, and the dedicated Common Assessment Standard Review Group has identified some minor updates which we are planning to publish as Version 3.2 on 1 July. We are anticipating that changes may also be required following the introduction of the Building Safety Act and these will be confirmed once the secondary legislation has been published later this year.

We will be setting up a dedicated sub‐group to consider the questions on building safety, and if you or a colleague with detailed knowledge of the building safety regime would like to be involved, please email Build UK

Communications Support

To help promote the Common Assessment Standard throughout the supply chain, we have produced a range of resources, including a Communications Toolkit, infographic, and print and digital adverts.