Overview

WFD is the UK public body dedicated to supporting democracy around the world. Operating internationally, WFD works with parliaments, political parties, and civil society groups as well as on elections to help make political systems fairer, more inclusive and more accountable.

We are a problem-solving, practitioner-led organisation that offers: 

• High quality and impactful regional and country programmes that directly support the full spectrum of institutions in political systems to develop inclusive political processes, more accountable political systems, protection of rights and freedoms, and more pluralistic societies;
• Specialist analysis, research, and advice to inform UK policy makers on a range of democratic governance issues through our Centre of Expertise; and
• International elections observation on behalf of the UK. 

Aim of this Invitation to Tender 

WFD is issuing this Invitation to Tender (“ITT”) to a range of potential suppliers of goods and/or services and would welcome a bid from your organisation.

We are seeking a single supplier to provide website hosting, maintenance, technical support and development services to ensure that www.wfd.org is secure, functions well, and continues to serve the organisation’s needs for a period of up to four years. 

The resulting contract with the chosen provider will be a framework agreement between a single supplier and WFD.

Bid submission

All bids should be submitted by 23.59 on Friday 1 August 2025 in writing, must comply with the requirements of this ITT, and must include the information requested in the Bid Requirements below.

The bid should be sent electronically and addressed to: Chinelo Eze at procurement@wfd.org.  

The same email address should be used for any questions related to this ITT. 

By submitting a bid, you agree to comply with WFD’s standard terms and conditions for tendering and key policies.

Read WFD’s standard terms and conditions for tendering and key policies

Read WFD's code of conduct 

Detailed Specification

Objective

We are seeking a provider to deliver ongoing hosting, technical support, security, maintenance and development services of www.wfd.org. 

Our website is a key WFD communication channel. It provides information about WFD’s experience, relevance, activities, and impact to a range of audiences around the world including citizens, governments, members of parliament, parliamentary staff, academics and researchers.   

The website must be compliant with all relevant legislation, including the Data Protection Act and the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018. It must also comply with the UK Government secure website principles: Security overview for websites - The GDS Way.

Deliverables and scope of work

For a period of up to four years, the provider will: 

• Host www.wfd.org
• Provide ongoing technical maintenance and services for www.wfd.org including but not limited to:
  • Ongoing maintenance of the CMS (including bugs and CMS updates)
  • Annual usability/accessibility review
  • Ensuring the website is secure and compliant with the relevant regulations, including accessibility standards
  • Ensuring processes are in place for the monitoring and analysis of website performance, and supporting WFD to evaluate its effectiveness.
• Build new or change existing website functionality for www.wfd.org as requested by WFD on a day rate basis.
• Provide strategic advice and recommendations for improving the website.

Website specification

• Content management system: (CMS) Drupal 10
• File tree size (except public files): 402M
  • Public files: 6.3G
  • Private files: 464K
• Database:
  • MySQL dump size: 52M
  • MySQL size on disk (including indexes, etc): 910M
• Number of modules:
  • Contrib Drupal modules: 77
  • Custom Drupal modules: 6

Contract value

WFD invites competitive tenders from qualified suppliers. For reference, the total expenditure for hosting, maintenance and support services over the period 2022 –2025 was approximately £25,000 (inclusive of VAT). This figure is being provided to indicate an approximate baseline. Costs related to website development are not included in this amount and in the period 2022-2025 were approximately £25,000 (inclusive of VAT). 

The estimated total value of this contract is £50,000 (inclusive of VAT). This estimate is based on previous spend and projected future requirements for the website hosting, maintenance, support, and development services. It is provided for guidance only and does not constitute a guaranteed minimum spend. 

WFD reserves the right to vary the volume and nature of services required under the agreement subject to operational needs and budget availability, in line with the terms of the final agreement.

Timeline

The contract will begin in September 2025. WFD will enter into a framework agreement with the winning bidder for a period of not more than four years.

Reporting

We envisage check ins every 2 weeks to discuss everyday maintenance, developments and updates. In addition, there would be bi-annual meetings to discuss larger projects and recommended development work. We are open to suggestions from providers as to other types or frequencies of reporting. 

Working arrangements

In order to comply with data protection regulations, the hosting provider should be UK based. 

Payments

Regular payments for hosting, technical support and maintenance should be invoiced on a quarterly basis. Ad-hoc development services should be invoiced upon satisfactory delivery. 

Minimum experience and expertise

The provider should have experience of hosting, maintaining, and developing accessible websites. They should be familiar with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines and public sector standards of digital accessibility. The supplier must hold Cyber Essentials Plus and ISO 27001 / 9001 accreditations.

Bid process

Timescale

Below is the proposed timescale for the tendering process. Please note the dates are indicative and subject to change. 

Bid requirements

In general, the bid should include the following:

1. Organisational profile

2. Proposed solution and how it meets the specification, including an answer to the question about proposed developments in the bid submission form at the end of this document 

3. Financial proposal 

4. References 

5. Confirmation of compliance with General Terms and Conditions of Tendering

Organisational profile: 

• Company profile, including brief history and financial overview
• Case studies/credentials demonstrating relevant experience and skills profile
• Names and brief biographies of key staff 

WFD is particularly keen to receive bids from organisations which are – or are working towards becoming – living wage employers and that have a broadly representative and balanced Board from gender and ethnicity perspectives. 

Proposed solution: 

• Clear explanation as to the proposed approach to meeting the specification set out in this ITT.
• Detailed project plan, including timelines, assumptions and dependencies, resourcing and risks. 

Financial proposal: 

• Full breakdown costings for the proposed solution in GBP.
• Separate accounting of VAT and/or any other applicable tax, duty, or charge.
• Detailing of any discount applied in view of WFD’s not-for-profit status. 

References:

The bid should include details of two references relating to similar goods/services provided in the last three years. Please note – referees will only be contacted once Preferred Bidder status is assigned.

Confirmation of acceptance of General Terms and Conditions of Tendering: 

All bidders will be deemed to have accepted the WFD Terms and Conditions of Tendering and confirmed their compliance. 

All bidders should also note the following: 

• all bids should be submitted in English;
• all bids should be submitted in electronic form only;
• all bids should include the bid submission form;
• this ITT and the response may be incorporated in whole or in part into the final contract;
• only information provided in response to questions set out in this documentation will be taken into consideration for the purposes of evaluating the ITT;
• bids which are poorly organised or poorly written, such that evaluation and comparison with other submissions is notably difficult, may exclude the bidder from further consideration; and
• any bids which do not fully comply with the requirements of this ITT may be disregarded at the absolute discretion of WFD. 

Evaluation Process 

The evaluation process will consist of two stages: 

• Stage 1 – Evaluation of written submissions
• Stage 2 – Interviews with shortlisted bidders

The top three bidders from Stage 1 of the bidding process will progress to Stage 2. The supplier with the highest combined total score at the end of both stages will be recommended for contract award.

Evaluation criteria

WFD does not provide a mathematical formula by which bids will be weighted evaluated, but the procurement committee will usually consider the following criteria, among others in the evaluation of all responses: 

• Quality of bid document
• Service offer and solution fit to specification
• Quality, capacity, and track-record of bidders based on references
• Value for money and pricing factors
• Professional profile, track record, and references
• Relevant experience, including case studies

Based on the criteria above, a shortlist will be selected from the bids submitted, with shortlisted bidders invited to an interview with a selection panel.WFD will score each criterion using the following table:

Tender Queries

Any questions related to this tender should be addressed Chinelo Eze at procurement@wfd.org 

Equal Information

Should any supplier raise a question that is of general interest, WFD reserves the right to circulate both question and answer to other respondents, either via WFD’s website or by email. In this event, anonymity will be maintained.

Annual reports

Please provide a link or copy of your company’s latest audited annual accounts with the bid.

Other information

If the potential supplier believes that there is additional information that has not been requested in the ITT but is relevant to your bid, please include that information as a separate attachment and explain its relevance to this ITT.