Temporary and Permanent Staffing 2 Framework

Crescent Purchasing Consortium (CPC) has launched its Temporary & Permanent Staffing 2 Framework, a likely DfE-aligned route to market for education recruitment. With limited supplier places and potential £150m spend, this is a high-value but highly competitive opportunity for staffing providers.

Crescent Purchasing Consortium has now published a live re-tendered staffing framework that should be firmly on the radar of recruitment agencies, MSP providers and specialist staffing suppliers targeting the education sector.

The Temporary & Permanent Staffing 2 Framework covers both temporary and permanent recruitment and is positioned as a compliant route to market for CPC members, with access also available to wider public sector organisations via Crescent Services.

The previous iteration of this framework achieved Department for Education approved status, and it is likely this new framework will again become DfE approved route to market for schools, academies and education institutions. For suppliers in this space, that makes this a strategically important opportunity over the next four years.

There is also a clear competitive dynamic. CPC will appoint a limited number of suppliers per lot. For those awarded a place, this creates strong potential for pipeline and growth. However, it also means the bar for entry is high and bid quality will be critical.

The structure is particularly interesting because the framework is split by service area rather than geography. This allows specialist providers to target specific lots without needing to demonstrate full-service capability across all staffing categories.

Scope

Lot 1: Academic Roles
Lot 2: Non-Academic Roles
Lot 3: Executive & Leadership Roles
Lot 4: Master Vendor
Lot 5: Neutral Vendor
Lot 6: Vendor Management System (VMS)

Procurement timeline

Tender published: Monday 13 April 2026
Last date for clarifications: Friday 1 May 2026
Tender return deadline: 17:00 Friday 15 May 2026

Commercial overview
CPC indicates that spend on the current framework iteration is expected to exceed £100m, with the new iteration potentially reaching up to £150m over a four-year period across CPC and wider public sector usage. There is no guaranteed spend, but the scale and route-to-market positioning are significant.

Bidder requirements
Suppliers must hold at least one of the following recognised sector accreditations:

REC Audited Education (Recruitment & Employment Confederation)
Standards in Recruitment (SiR)
APSCo (Association of Professional Staffing Companies)
International Education Accreditation Council (IEAC)

In addition, Lot 6 requires a proprietary Vendor Management System with appropriate security compliance.

At TLC Bid Works, we support clients with Bid / No Bid decisions, lot strategy, PSQ and quality response support, bid writing, review, commercial checks and submission assurance for complex public sector opportunities like this.

💬 Bid Support
We have availability to support suppliers considering a bid for this framework. If you are planning to bid and want expert support, please get in touch.