CONTRACT NOTICE – NATIONAL

1 Authority Details

1.1

Authority Name and Address

1.2

Address from which documentation may be obtained

1.3

Completed documents must be returned to:

2 Contract Details

2.1

Title

Accessibility assessment of Careers Wales websites and consultancy support.

2.2

Description of the goods or services required

Careers Wales (CW) is looking to procure the services of an experienced website accessibility assessment provider to

1. Complete a full site accessibility assessment of both the Careers Wales and Working Wales websites

2. Complete a reassessment of both websites at a future date agreed by Careers Wales

3. Provide support to Careers Wales on a range of accessibility queries and requested work tasks

1. Full site assessment

The full site assessment will cover the user journeys provided in Appendix 1, 2 and 3.

Appendix 1 details several content pages produced through our Content Management System (CMS), Drupal covering each unique component used on the Careerswales.gov.wales website. These components form part of our digital style guide. Not every page on the website will need to be assessed, only those detailed in the user journeys along with headers, footers and other items listed on the user journeys.

Appendix 2 details several react applications that are part of the Careerswales.gov.wales website. These are uniquely designed and developed to offer a specific service to our customers using the website. Each of the applications to be assessed is listed in Appendix 2, with supporting information covering the user journey through each application, also detailing specific elements within each application that are within the assessment remit.

Appendix 3 details several content pages produced through our Content Management System (CMS), Drupal covering each unique component used on the Workingwales.gov.wales website. These components form part of our digital style guide. Not every page on the website will need to be assessed, only those detailed in the user journeys along with headers, footers and other items listed on the user journeys.

The accessibility assessment will be completed against the WCAG 2.2 AA accessibility standard in line with the accessibility regulations.

The successful organisation will provide a detailed report covering each part of the site assessed against each relevant criterion from WCAG 2.2. The report will identify each pass / fail and provide details on the reason for the fail with corrective action needed by Careers Wales to fix the issue.

The successful organisation will be available for further consultation on any identified issue within the report for CW staff or their developers to fully understand the issue and put the appropriate corrective action in place.

We would like the full website accessibility assessment completed within 3 months from an agreed start date.

1. Tenders for this work can be submitted in Welsh

2. Tenders submitted in Welsh will not be treated less favourably than those submitted in English.

3. The closing dates for the Tender will be the same for those submitted in Welsh and English

4. The timetable for responding to the bids in Welsh will be the same as those submitted in English

NOTE: To register your interest in this notice and obtain any additional information please visit the Sell2Wales Web Site at https://www.sell2wales.gov.wales/Search/Search_Switch.aspx?ID=143202.

The buyer has indicated that it will accept electronic responses to this notice via the Postbox facility. A user guide is available at https://www.sell2wales.gov.wales/sitehelp/help_guides.aspx.

Suppliers are advised to allow adequate time for uploading documents and to dispatch the electronic response well in advance of the closing time to avoid any last minute problems.

2.3

Notice Coding and Classification

2.4

Total quantity or scope of tender

Full-site reassessment

Following the initial site accessibility assessment Careers Wales will aim to fix all issues identified in the report. It is difficult to estimate how long this will take not knowing the range and type of issues that’ll be picked up in the assessment report. Careers Wales will give three months' notice for when the reassessment can take place, this will be within the contracted period.

Accessibility support for Careers Wales

As part of our commitment to provide a website that is fully accessible, we require support covering a range of services.

The support required will cover tasks including:

• Accessibility assessment of new applications we launch onto our website, not part of the full site assessment

• Remedial work to documents (mainly PDF) hosted on the website so they meet accessibility standards

• Ad hac support eg checking accessibility of new videos produced, 3rd party software we make available through our website and general accessibility queries.

Careers Wales will request the specific work task required when needed and agree on a timeline for completion with the successful organisation. All work requested is to be calculated on a time-based quote.

Your proposal must include a daily charge rate for work requested as outlined above.

Your proposal must outline your expertise and experience in the company to support Careers Wales across the different areas listed in the bullet points above.

3 Conditions for Participation

3.1

Minimum standards and qualification required

Proposal

Interested organisations must submit a proposal to Careers Wales by Friday 9th August 2024.

The proposal can be written in either English or Welsh.

The proposal must include a guarantee that all items listed in Appendix 1,2 and 3 will form part of the accessibility assessment and that the assessment will be carried out against WCAG 2.2

The proposal must provide information for each area listed under the tender marking scheme

Contract period and value

Following the appointment of the successful organisation, a contract will be put in place covering 2 years from the contract start date.

A two-year contract will be awarded to the successful organisation with a total contract value of between £0 to £50,000.

Payments

Careers Wales will raise a PO for each work activity requested. Payment will be made following the completion of the services requested.

Tender marking scheme

Price

50% of the tender marks are awarded on price.

The proposal must provide details of costs for:

• Full website accessibility assessments (both Careers Wales and Working Wales) based on the information provided in Appendix 1,2 and 3 ( 20%)

• Reassessment of both sites (15%)

• Daily rate for requested work tasks (15%)

Quality

Q1. Testing methods and practices (10%)

• Details on how you will carry out a website accessibility assessment (10 marks)

• Details on your testing methods and practices (20 marks)

o Details of the different browsers and devices our website will be tested on. The gov.uk website guides on the different browsers and devices to be used as part of an accessibility assessment

o Outline what automated and manual testing will be carried out as part of the accessibility assessment. The gov.uk website provides guidance on which assistive technologies to test with.

Q2. Reporting and feedback methods (10%)

• Details of what will be included in the assessment report and how this information will be provided to Careers Wales (25 marks)

• A timeline on how long the assessment will take to complete (5 marks)

• The support available to CW following the report, so we fully understand each issue and can put corrective action in place. (10 marks)

Q3. Experience (10%). Please provide evidence of the following:

• Company experience of completing accessibility assessments, including any testimonials (10 marks)

• Details of the team who will carry out the assessment, including relevant experience (10 marks)

Q4. Meeting CW wider accessibility needs (10%)

• Outline your expertise and experience in the company to support Careers Wales across the different areas of accessibility requirements. (10 marks)

• Provide examples of different accessibility support provided to existing/previous clients (10 marks)

Sustainability

Environment (10%)

• Please describe how you will minimise the carbon footprint created in completing the tender specification works.

Scoring methodology

The following scoring methodology will be used to mark the proposals submitted:

Score Scoring Guide Description

4 Very Good or Fully Compliant Submission which meets all requirements and is fully explained in comprehensive detail – between 90 to 100% of the marks available

3 Good or Fully Compliant Submission which meets all the requirements and is explained in reasonable detail between 70% and 89% of the marks available

2 Satisfactory or Compliant Submission which meets the essential requirements and is explained in adequate detail 50% to 69% of the marks available

1 Weak or Partially Compliant (Minor issues) Submission where some areas fall short of requirements and is poorly explained 30% to 49% of the marks available

0 Unacceptable or Non-Compliant (Major issues) Submission which fails to meet requirements and is not explained 10% to 29% of the marks available

Price Methodology

The lowest total price submitted will be awarded a score of 40 for price alone, with tenderers thereafter being allocated a relative score which will be 10 marks less the percentage difference from the lowest price.

Generic example: lowest total price is £10,000, the next lowest is £15,000. The lowest price would score 40 marks (in this example 40 marks are the total awarded for price) the second lowest price would score 40 – (5000 (the difference between the two prices /10000 (lowest price)*40) = 20 = score of 20 (40-20).

4 Administrative Information

4.1

Type of Procedure

Single stage

4.2

Reference number attributed to the notice by the contracting authority

N/a

4.3

Time Limits

4.5

Language or languages in which tenders or requests to participate can be drawn up

4.6

Tender Submission Postbox

5 Other Information

5.1

Additional Information

Process and Timelines

Interested organisations must supply Careers Wales with:

• Fully costed and detailed proposal for all aspects of this work by Friday 9th August, 2024

• A declaration that the requirements applicable to this specification can fully meet

Interested organisations must supply a fully costed proposal to Mark Hoban, Information Manager, Careers Wales by:

• Email: mark.hoban@careerswales.gov.wales

Careers Wales intends to notify all organisations who submit a proposal of the outcome by Friday 23rd August 2024.

(WA Ref:143202)

5.2

Additional Documentation

5.3

Publication date of this notice