HMRC launches £140m comms tender

17 April 2023

Business

The provision of printed post, SMS, outbound email, and scanned mail is part of the tender

HMRC has gone live with a mega combined input and output communications tender worth up to £140m that is likely to result in a reduction of its print output but still encompasses print requirements.

The contract went live last week and is due to close at 1pm on 1 June 2023. It will then start on 22 January 2024 and end on 21 January 2031.

The maximum contract value of £140m would be over the contract period of five years plus a possible extension of two years.

Outlining the nature of the contract, HMRC stated: “HMRC is looking to appoint a supplier(s) to deliver, under a single contract, a trusted service for continuity of current communication services as well as to support our vision for innovative solutions to assist with our digital transformation.

“Through this opportunity, HMRC is looking for a supplier(s) who have capabilities to enable the effective and efficient management, and deliver of both inbound and outbound communications, designed to support HMRC and its customers with the collection of tax and administering of benefits and support of customs operations.”

HMRC added it has “a bold ambition” to increase and encourage the use of digital channels to communicate with customers “in similar ways to leading private sector companies”.

It said this is likely to lead to a forecasted reduction in print/outbound mail volumes and an increase in the use of other digital channels.

It wants to incorporate its current input and output communications contracts into a single contract “in order to improve efficiency and realise substantial savings”.

The initial service lines to be delivered under the contract will encompass the provision of current inbound and outbound communication services – including the provision of printed post, SMS, outbound email, and scanned mail.

Also; the provision of support, advice, and innovation “to create and jointly deliver efficiencies in the current service and in how to move towards digital channels in the space of input and output communication”.

This contract will be enabled for Government Banking – a shared government function which provides critical banking services across central government and for wider public sector customers – to use.

More information about how to access the procurement documentation, and contact details for the buyer, are available via the government’s Contracts Finder service.