Cardiff-based edtech venture GroupEd has urged the Welsh Government to stop public bodies in Wales from procuring through closed frameworks based in England, arguing that the practice locks indigenous firms out of public sector contracts and contradicts Welsh procurement law.
Closed Frameworks Exclude Welsh Businesses
GroupEd said its growth has been hampered by Welsh councils increasingly using Kent County Council's arm's-length procurement vehicle, KCS Procurement Services, to buy management information system (MIS) software. Under these arrangements, Welsh councils can award contracts directly to suppliers already listed on a closed framework without running an open competition or inviting Welsh businesses to bid.
The company noted that frameworks are opened to new applicants only intermittently—in some cases not for years. The earliest opportunity to join the KCS education software framework is 2030, meaning companies offering better technology and value are structurally barred from consideration.
Conflict with Welsh Procurement Law
GroupEd said the practice contradicts the Procurement (Wales) Act 2023 and the Procurement (Wales) Regulations 2024, which place duties on Welsh public bodies to maximise spending with Welsh businesses and consider wider economic impact. However, when councils use closed English frameworks—classified as "reserved procurement arrangements" under Welsh law—those duties do not apply to the original supplier selection, which was conducted under UK Government rules. This leaves "Welsh SMEs without any meaningful seat at the table," according to GroupEd.
According to GroupEd, of the 455 approved suppliers across all 50 KCS frameworks, only two are headquartered in Wales—just 0.4% of the total supplier base. Of the 12 framework categories, 10 contain no Welsh suppliers. The two Welsh businesses are listed on the highways (signage) and people and professional services (training) frameworks, with no Welsh firms on categories including technology, education, legal services, ICT, and facilities management.
GroupEd CEO Calls for Enforcement
Cerys Furlong, chief executive of GroupEd, said: "Our founders have invested millions of pounds into building world-class software for Welsh schools and created highly skilled jobs here in Wales. The irony is that several Welsh councils conducted their own open procurement processes, showing it is possible. But too many others are defaulting to a closed English framework because it requires the least effort from their procurement teams. That may be convenient for councils, but it means Welsh public money is flowing to places like Kent invisibly, year after year, while better and cheaper Welsh alternatives are locked out entirely."
GroupEd's Demands
GroupEd is calling on the new Welsh Government to issue a formal direction stating that closed English frameworks should not be used where open Welsh procurement would satisfy the requirement. It also wants the administration to: engage directly with Section 151 officers and local authority procurement teams on the true cost of closed frameworks, including management fees, compared with open Welsh tenders; establish an accountability mechanism to monitor compliance; and provide a public register showing which Welsh public bodies are using reserved procurement arrangements, and why.
Ms Furlong said: "We are not asking the new Welsh Government to do something difficult. We are asking it to enforce a law it already has, act on a manifesto it has just won, and send a signal that Welsh public money belongs in Wales. A closed framework has no mechanism for merit - it simply reflects who was in a room somewhere in England years ago. The new government has the power to end that. We are watching to see if it will."
GroupEd's Ambitions
Despite the framework challenge, GroupEd, founded by Andrew Cooksley (who also established leading training provider ACT), aims to have its software platform in 10,000 schools by 2030 and is pursuing international expansion.
Political Context
In its Senedd manifesto, Plaid Cymru committed to increasing Welsh public procurement spending with Welsh SME suppliers from 55% to at least 70% over the next four years, with a stated aim of creating more than 35,000 new jobs. However, Plaid has not clarified what jobs could be lost among non-Welsh SMEs and Welsh corporates that currently provide publicly procured contracts, nor has it estimated how many staff could transfer from existing suppliers to new providers under TUPE rules.
Government Response
A Welsh Government spokesman said: "We want to increase the local economic impact of public procurement in Wales — currently worth more than £11bn a year — to embed that economic activity in Wales, supporting our home-grown small and medium-sized businesses. Schools, colleges and local authorities have the discretion to enter into contracts of their own choice with third-party suppliers in order to meet and support their own data needs and ensure they can meet their statutory obligations. We do not advocate any single supplier so that there is competition in the market and schools and local authorities are able to attain the best contractual terms and conditions for their needs." The spokesman added that the Welsh Government liaises with school and local authority software suppliers through the Software Development Forum (SDF), which meets three or four times a year, and that GroupEd is a member of the forum.
A spokesman for the Welsh Local Government Association said: "Councils use a range of procurement routes, including frameworks, to secure value for money and meet local needs. Councils are committed to supporting Welsh businesses and supply chains, and recent procurement reforms, including open frameworks and dynamic markets, are intended to improve SME access. Frameworks can offer important efficiencies, but they must be designed and used in ways that reflect Welsh priorities, support fair competition and deliver the best outcomes for communities."
