Tendering Made Simple

How to Find, Decide & Win Public Sector Contracts (A free practical session for Bolton businesses)

Public sector contracts can be a huge opportunity for an SMEs - a long contract, good value and often a chance to support public service delivery in your local area. But only if you know where to look, what to bid for, and how to write a winning submission.

This free, in-person session is designed for businesses across our shared office space and the wider Bolton area who want a practical, honest introduction to public sector tendering, based on how bids actually succeed in the real world.

We’ll walk through the three stages that make the biggest difference to bid success — using live demos, local examples, and open discussion.

What we’ll cover:

1) Finding the right opportunities

We’ll start with how to spot the right opportunities, not just any opportunity.

• Live, practical demo of a to show how opportunities are really found
• How to see what your competitors are bidding for (and what that tells you)
• How Frameworks and Dynamic Markets/Dynamic Purchasing Systems (DPS) should be used
• Real Bolton and Greater Manchester examples to bring this to life

2) Making better bid / no-bid decisions

Winning more often usually starts with bidding less — but smarter.

• Questions to ask yourself: 3–4 key bid / no-bid criteria and how to apply them quickly
• Why research matters: understanding historic spend, incumbents, buyer behaviour, and competition

3) Improving how you score for bids that you do submit

• Evidence, evidence, evidence: what good evidence really looks like to evaluator
• Common mistakes that lose marks (even with great services)
• Using AI properly in bid writing, including how to use tools like ChatGPT effectively and safely (and what not to rely on it for)
• Live Q&A using real “agony aunt” bid questions (we'll take questions submitted in advance and if we have time, address any that need to be raised on the day)

Who should attend

This session is ideal for:

• SMEs and growing businesses in and around Bolton or Greater Manchester
• Directors, sales teams, and anyone involved in bidding
• Businesses new to public sector work
• Companies that bid regularly but want to increase their win rate
• Anyone considering working with the public sector

No prior bidding experience is required.

What to expect

• Practical demonstrations and examples, not theory
• Honest insight from bid specialists
• Interactive discussion and audience participation
• Networking with other local businesses
• Refreshments provided

Why attend?

Public sector buyers are actively encouraged to work with local and SME suppliers — but only bids that are well-targeted and well-written win contracts.

This session will leave you with:

• Clear ways to find better opportunities
• A simple framework to decide what not to bid
• Practical tips to strengthen your next submission

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

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Host or Publisher The Wellsprings