Clarifications

53. Where a Public Sector Organisation is in the process of obtaining Cyber Essentials Re-certification, Can we still apply to be included on the DPS and be appointed meaning we can participate in further competitions or can we not be appointed to the DPS and participate without Cyber Essentials Re-Certification.

52. Our application was created in July and has had the status "assessing - responding" for a long time. It says it was last edited by a gov employee on the 6th of November. When would we expect to received further news?

50. Some references to the Security Management Plan indicate that there may be a template with some detail already in existence, but Part B - Annex 2 - Security Management Plan (within DPS Order Schedule 9 - Security) is blank. Is there an existing template or are we generating our own template/plan according to requirements as stated within DPS Order Schedule 9 - Security?

49. There are a number of reference to the Security Policy throughout the documentation supplied. Is the Security Policy the DPS Order Schedule 9 - Security or is this referring to another document that we will need a copy of?

48. We are completing the FVRA and cell J23 on tab 3.1 is showing as R and red, however, the corresponding value in cell G23 is within the green ratio (less than 4, lower the better), so we think this RAG rating in cell J23 should be G and green. Is there an error with the formula that needs to be corrected?

47. Our organisation is a 100% asset locked Community Interest Company. So are its subsidiaries and holding company. The Financial Viability Risk Assessment tool allows for two types of company either for profit or non profit . However, CICs report using the standard business accounting methodology with the lock ( non profit element) demonstrated within the accounts. The not for profit spreadsheet is set out using the standard ( restricted/ non restricted) charity reporting methodology. Neither format allows us to input our figures in a clear manner. The problem we have is that as a non profit we can't use the business format because of how it is drafted (it doesn't allow us to state we are a non-profit) and neither can we use the charity format as that would mean reformatting all of our accounts. Either format as they are currently set out means we are unable to submit a true and valid response to the questions. Please can you clarify how we are to report of financials. Many thanks.

45. Hi For the qualification levels questions, we run non-accredited training that aligns with levels 3-5. What should we put for this question, should it be non-qualification or levels 3-5? Thanks

44. We are an FE College and are currently applying to get onto the Adult Skills and Learning DPS. We would like to apply for contracts over £5m but are currently reviewing and working on our Carbon Reduction Plan which will not be ready for at least three months. We would like to apply now for contracts under £5m and wanted to know whether we would be able to update our application at a later date and include contracts over £5m and then add our Carbon Reduction Plan / link?

43. I just tried to log into CCS' Bravo Solutions portal, but for some reason my anti-virus software identified it as a phishing website and wouldn't allow me access. Is my antivirus at fault, or has the portal been taken over and corrupted?

42. I have completed all SQ and DPS questions, and now ready to submit. I have, however, in error uploaded the wrong document for the FVRA attachment in the SQ. I cannot see how I can delete this wrong document and upload the correct one prior to submission. Can you please indicate if this is possible, or do I need to complete a new SQ? Can you please advise how I would go about either option.

41. Q3.2.5 asks "if you are bidding as a consortium ...etc..., are you able to provide the FVRA Tool". Q3.2.6 and Q3.2.7 then also ask if a provider can upload if bidding as a consortium. There is not an N/A option, only Yes or No. Which option should be selected if we are not bidding as a consortium?

39. Hello. We are a start up company and have been trading for less than a year, so cannot provide 3 years worth of accounts. Are we eligible to apply?

38. We completed a DPS application this morning, and unexpectedly found ourselves being asked all sorts of irrelevant questions about steel and CRPs and payment terms, etc. When we got to the end we submitted the application, but now we cannot find any way to access the DPSQ itself. Have we completed the wrong form?

37. So further to Q&A 36, does that mean that pp 105 - 123 of "RM6348 - Adult Skills DPS Questionnaire.pdf" are actually irrelevant to this opportunity? If so, could the guidance pdf please be reissued without the irrelevant sections, to save bidders wasting time preparing answers to questions that don't appear online?

36. I've just been completing the SSQ/DPSQ for one of my clients, and as soon I had finished completing the Grounds for Discretionary Exclusion (Q2.7.1) it took me to SSQ Submission page: the whole of SSQ Part 3 shown in the pdf question template - from §3.1 Economic & Financial Standing through to §3.13 Tackling Modern Slavery in Supply Chains - did not appear. Is * a glitch in the system and they should have appeared? Or * do they only appear for certain applicants? If so, which questions determine whether they should appear? Or, * Should they not appear in the pdf? If it's the latter it's quite annoying, as based on the pdf I have spent some little time preparing answers to all the question in SSQ Part 3.

35. Further to q&a 31. Thank you for the advice regarding Net Cash flow. Am I correct in assuming this figure should be the sum of the figures in Rows 50 and 111 of the relevant column? Regarding the Month End Net Debt, I'm aware of the advice in the spreadsheet. Unfortunately I don't really understand it. Where on the spreadsheet - or in a typical set of SME accounts - do I find a month by month breakdown of the net debt position? And why is it 13 months, not 12? Does it matter if I leave this cell blank?

34. We are a Scottish based company with the SC prefix before our company number and we keep getting an error message to use only numeric values on the company registration number

33. Further to our clarification, we noted the mention of a different agreement number. Can you please confirm that it is still correct for us to be completing [RM6348 - Adult Skills and Learning DPS Dynamic Purchasing System Agreement] via the supplier registration portal?

32. 207. Q3.2.3 Regarding the upload of our parent company accounts: we have tried to minimise the size of these files but are unable to reduce to under 5 MB - the file size limit. I note also that zip files can't be uploaded. We can provide our parent accounts during the course of the tender evaluation. Would it be possible to upload a note explaining this as our response to this questions, or can you suggest another solution to this issue? Thanks very much.

31. As a non-accountant, pls can you give me some advice on completing the FVRAT for a small private company with accounts that give a typical SME-level of detail. In particular, how should I go about calculating * the Net cash flow from operating activities? * the average month end net debt? Thank you in advance for your assistance