On Wednesday 9 March, Crown Commercial Service (CCS) launched the application process for this much-anticipated agreement between government and suppliers of cloud services.
G-Cloud 13, which will replace G-Cloud 12, will continue to enable UK central government departments and all other public sector bodies to purchase cloud-based computing services such as hosting, software and cloud support, including many of-the-shelf, pay-as-you-go cloud solutions. And the following changes are being introduced:
- Improved terms and conditions, with greater inclusion for the provision of day-rate cloud support and services.
- Inclusion of the latest procurement policies, including social value and prompt payment.
Previously divided into three lots, G-Cloud 13 will also have an additional lot 4 for further competition for Cloud Support Services for larger, more complex requirements. Indeed, the product types are as follows:
- Lot 1 Cloud Hosting (PaaS, IaaS) - cloud platform or infrastructure, which allows buyers to deploy, manage and run software, and provision and use processing, storage or networking resources.
- Lot 2 Cloud Software (SaaS) - applications which are accessed over the internet and hosted in the cloud.
- Lot 3 Cloud Support - to help set up and maintain cloud software or hosting services.
- Cloud Migration Planning
- Set Up and Migration
- Security Services
- Quality Assurance and Performance Testing
- Training
- Ongoing Support
- Lot 4 Cloud Support - Further Competition - the scope of this lot is the same as Lot 3 but is designed for larger, more complex requirements procured through further competition.
The scope and application process for Lots 1-3 remain unchanged, and suppliers can apply for any combination of the four lots.
The G-Cloud 13 agreement will run for 12 months, with an option to extend for a further 12 months; and the framework call-off term has changed to 36 months, with an optional 12-month extension.
This intention is for G-Cloud 13 to provide access to multiple suppliers and cloud services, including a high number of SMEs; a quick and easy route to market; access to the latest cloud technologies and innovation; and improve pricing via further competition for Cloud Support Services in Lot 4.
Important dates to know for G-Cloud 13
- Applications open - Wednesday 9 March 2022
- Clarification questions close - Thursday 14 April 2022
- All clarification answers are published - Thursday 28 April 2022
- Applications close - Wednesday 18 May 2022
- Intention to Award - Friday 26 August 2022
- Standstill period ends - Tuesday 6 September 2022
- Award - Wednesday 7 September 2022
- Expected agreement start day - Thursday 8 September 2022
Lot 4 (note some dates are different):
- Invitation to Tender (ITT) opens - Wednesday 9 March 2022
- Clarification questions close - Thursday 14 April 2022
- All clarification answers are published - Thursday 28 April 2022
- Tender submission deadline - Wednesday 18 May 2022
- Intention to Award - Monday 10 October 2022
- Standstill period ends - Thursday 20 October 2022
- Award - Friday 21 October
- Expected agreement start day - Monday 24 October 2022
You can find the tender documents for Lots 1-3 here and the tender documents for Lot 4 here.
How to apply to G-Cloud 13 lots 1,2 or 3
Already sell on G-Cloud 12?
You will still need to apply on G-Cloud 13 - all G-Cloud 13 services will be removed when G-Cloud 13 is live. You can reuse your G-Cloud
New supplier? You'll need to create an account on the Digital Marketplace to apply
How to submit a tender for G-Cloud 13 lot 4
You can submit your tender using the Crown Commercial Service eSourcing tool. Please note that if you are an existing supplier, you will NOT be able to reuse your G-Cloud 12 service and declaration documents for lot 4.
You can find out more about applying to the G-Cloud 13 framework here.