DataToolsUK
If you want to bid for UK public contracts under the Procurement Act 2023, you should register your organisation on Find a Tender, the central digital platform. The Cabinet Office publishes official videos and a short supplier guide in its information and guidance for suppliers. This page summarises those official steps so you can work through them in order.
Registration is free. It stores core details that you can reuse across procurements, instead of retyping them for every bid.
What the platform is for
The central digital platform lets suppliers:
- register and receive a unique identifier
- submit and store core organisational information
- search notices and set official alerts
- share that core information with a contracting authority when you take part in a procurement
Find a Tender remains a noticing system. You still submit the tender itself on the buyer’s e-tendering portal, or by the method in the notice. The platform is how you identify your organisation and share the standard details buyers need.
Step 1: Create a GOV.UK One Login
You sign in to Find a Tender with a GOV.UK One Login. Official supplier guidance is to use a business email, verify the one-time code, set a password and set up two-factor authentication.
If several people in the firm will use the account, plan who will be the first administrator. You can add further administrators and users later.
Step 2: Register your organisation as a supplier
Once you are signed in, add an organisation and choose Supplier (not Buyer).
If the organisation is registered at Companies House, enter the company number. Official guidance says the registered name and address are then filled from Companies House for you to check. If you do not have a company number, the service offers alternative identifiers, such as a Charity Commission number, or can generate a unique identifier if none apply.
Use a shared organisational email where you can, so colleagues can see notices and saved searches. Check the registered address, then save.
You can register more than one organisation on the same login if you need to, for example if you administer more than one company.
Step 3: Complete your supplier information
Open the organisation and complete the supplier information sections. Official guidance lists:
- basic information (addresses, VAT, website and similar)
- connected persons (for example directors and shareholders)
- qualifications
- trade assurances
- exclusions
- financial information
Have those records to hand before you start. Keep the profile updated; buyers will rely on it when you bid.
Step 4: Declare the information and share it when you bid
When the profile is complete, you declare that it is accurate. To give a buyer or a tender portal access to it, you typically generate a share code — a temporary token — and enter that code where the procurement asks for it. Official guidance notes that editors can generate share codes, and that viewers or administrators can view them.
Do not treat registration as a bid. You still have to respond to the specific tender, usually on a separate portal, by the deadline in the notice.
Find opportunities while you are there
Registration is also the point at which official saved-search emails become useful. Search Find a Tender, save the search and turn on notifications. For help choosing the right portal and filters, see Find a Tender vs Contracts Finder and the sector guides for cleaning, NHS, IT and construction and facilities work.
A short official pack for smaller suppliers, including a reminder to register and to watch pipeline notices, is the Cabinet Office SME/VCSE bid pack.
If you also want a daily filtered email
The official Find a Tender alerts are the right first step. If you want one daily email that combines new official notices from Find a Tender and Contracts Finder, and filters them by your keywords, CPV codes, regions and value range, UK Tender Alerts offers a 14-day free trial, then £15 a month, cancel any time.
Every digest item links back to the official notice. Always open that notice, and follow its submission instructions, before you bid.