Research and analysis

Evaluation of the Contract Readiness Programme

Process and impact evaluation of the Contract Readiness Programme for voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations.

Applies to England

Documents

Details

The Contract Readiness Programme (CRP) ran between 2022 and March 2025, and was designed to support voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector organisations in England to better compete for government contracts. The programme was funded by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), and delivered by the School for Social Entrepreneurs, Social Enterprise UK and Voice4Change England. The programme primarily provided fully-funded training to charities and social enterprises interested in bidding for public contracts.

The evaluation of the CRP was undertaken by Ecorys UK, and ran between June 2023 and March 2025. The overall aim of the evaluation was to assess the extent to which the CRP delivered on its intended aims and help build the evidence base around effective approaches to supporting greater VCSE participation in public sector procurement. The evaluation took a mixed methods approach, including an analysis of management information (MI), a 6-month follow-up participant survey, and qualitative interviews with VCSE participants, commissioners and programme stakeholders. This report sets out key findings and recommendations.

Updates to this page

Published 11 July 2025

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