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Highways Procurement Advisor | PA23, Capture Planning and Direct Award | 40
That gap, between reliable delivery and solid growth, is where Ariaconsult operates.
sharper development, smarter bids, and honest challenge
Describes what we do at Ariaconsult, and working with us to improve in these crucial competitive areas in local authority highway maintenance is what actually moves the needle.
Better business development
Good business development isn't something that starts when a tender lands; it's the early engagement, account management, and pipeline discipline that shape whether you're even in a strong position before the ITT is published.
Smarter work-winning
Work-winning is a different skill again: understanding how evaluation panels actually score, where the marks really sit, and how to invest effort accordingly is something few advisors have seen from the inside, and it shows in the bids that win.
A critical friend who tells you the truth
A critical friend is someone invested in your success who's willing to say the uncomfortable thing before a client or an evaluator does.
understanding the gap
There is a gap between what highway contractors include in their bids and what evaluation panels score.
Most bid advisors have never sat in an evaluation panel room, so they cannot offer the insight that will help you and your team gain higher evaluation marks.
Don't just take my word for it
"I wish to thank you for your high standard of facilitation and direction throughout this exercise.”
Director of Preconstruction, English Contracting Authority (two-stage PA23 procurement, £100m+ highway works partnership contracts)
Direct Award, Capture Planning and Procurement Act 2023
LGR is paused or withdrawn during the current parliament timetable
The government paused most Local Government Reorganisation decisions on 7 September 2026. That uncertainty doesn't pause day-to-day work: contracts still need renewing, and where a full competitive procedure isn't the right fit, Direct Award and outline business cases help authorities keep things moving. I help contractors and authorit
The government paused most Local Government Reorganisation decisions on 7 September 2026. That uncertainty doesn't pause day-to-day work: contracts still need renewing, and where a full competitive procedure isn't the right fit, Direct Award and outline business cases help authorities keep things moving. I help contractors and authorities navigate the routes available right now, not the ones still under review.
Does your client want more of the same or something completely different?
I recently reviewed a capture plan for an incumbent contractor who lost a price renewal despite strong delivery marks — the evaluation model wasn't pressure-tested early enough. That's the recurring pattern: capture planning begins too late, pricing isn't tested against the market, and the evaluation model gets accepted rather than shaped.
Are you working by the old rules and being left behind?
Are you working by the old rules and being left behind?
The Procurement Act 2023 didn't just tweak the old rules; it replaced them with two evaluation methods that most highway contractors and authorities are still getting to grips with. The Most Advantageous Tender (MAT) approach opens the door to weighing quality and price, while Price Per Quality Point (PPQP) makes that weighting explicit
The Procurement Act 2023 didn't just tweak the old rules; it replaced them with two evaluation methods that most highway contractors and authorities are still getting to grips with. The Most Advantageous Tender (MAT) approach opens the door to weighing quality and price, while Price Per Quality Point (PPQP) makes that weighting explicit and mathematical. Getting either wrong can cost a contract or leave an authority's procurement open to challenge.
Don't just take my word for it
"Pricing was close, and it was the strength in our quality and methodology sections that stood out and gave us the edge to win."
Business Manager, highway maintenance term contractor
I work with Local Authorities, Contractors, and Consultants
Incentive funding is genuinely at stake. The transparency report requires you to update the asset management policy and strategy
PA23 rewards early industry dialogue for authorities designing the process and contractors shaping the relationship before the ITT lands.
PA23 rewards early industry dialogue for authorities designing the process and contractors shaping the relationship before the ITT lands.
The new carriageway spend classification is more granular than many authorities will be used to, splitting planned and reactive maintenance, and within reactive, separating temporary from permanent repairs. If your finance system doesn't already do this, give yourself time to work through it.
One thing worth knowing: DfT has confirmed RA
The new carriageway spend classification is more granular than many authorities will be used to, splitting planned and reactive maintenance, and within reactive, separating temporary from permanent repairs. If your finance system doesn't already do this, give yourself time to work through it.
One thing worth knowing: DfT has confirmed RAG ratings won't be based on raw pothole numbers. The broader asset management picture, and what your transparency report says about it, matters more.
PA23 rewards early industry dialogue for authorities designing the process and contractors shaping the relationship before the ITT lands.
PA23 rewards early industry dialogue for authorities designing the process and contractors shaping the relationship before the ITT lands.
PA23 rewards early industry dialogue for authorities designing the process and contractors shaping the relationship before the ITT lands.
PA23 has challenged Highway authorities to increasingly embed early industry dialogue into procurement design, not bolt it on afterwards. I've helped county councils shape market engagement questions ahead of live procurements, positioning the process, not just the contractor, to attract stronger bids.
For contractors and consultants, t
PA23 has challenged Highway authorities to increasingly embed early industry dialogue into procurement design, not bolt it on afterwards. I've helped county councils shape market engagement questions ahead of live procurements, positioning the process, not just the contractor, to attract stronger bids.
For contractors and consultants, that same principle applies in reverse: the relationship that wins the work starts before the ITT, through early engagement and account management. If you are waiting for the tender to land before you act, you have already lost.
Specialist contractors need a different playbook to frame their offer in line with what clients need.
PA23 rewards early industry dialogue for authorities designing the process and contractors shaping the relationship before the ITT lands.
Specialist contractors need a different playbook to frame their offer in line with what clients need.
For one of the specialist contractors I frequently work with, I developed a suite of PA23-compliant procurement documents, including below-threshold direct award packs, open competition packs, and a five-section outline business case that allows my client and their customer to collaborate in a compliant and transparent manner.
If you're
For one of the specialist contractors I frequently work with, I developed a suite of PA23-compliant procurement documents, including below-threshold direct award packs, open competition packs, and a five-section outline business case that allows my client and their customer to collaborate in a compliant and transparent manner.
If you're a specialist contractor navigating PA23 for the first time, I can help you get your framing right from the outset.
Don't just take my word for it
"Our team is still excited about what they heard and is eager to start preparing their meetings and presentations differently."
General Manager, specialist highway contractor
