DOS7 vs DOS6: what changed for buyers, and how to buy a fixed-price outcome

DOS7 (RM1043.9) replaced DOS6 for new procurements in spring 2026, and it runs under the Procurement Act 2023 rather than the 2015 regulations. For buyers, the main changes are four lots in one agreement, a choice of single-, two- or multi-stage competitions, and suppliers’ framework prices fixed for the whole term. A defined build still belongs in Lot 1, Digital Outcomes. You can buy it at a fixed price, one phase at a time, as long as you write the requirement that way.

The Government Commercial Agency publishes its key-changes summary and buyer guide as .odt downloads. This page sets them out in plain HTML, then walks through a Lot 1 competition for a defined piece of work. It also covers a question that G-Cloud 15’s arrival has sharpened: DOS7 or G-Cloud 15?

What DOS7 is

DOS7 is the Government Commercial Agency’s framework for digital, data and technology services. The GCA replaced Crown Commercial Service on 1 April 2026, so older documents still say CCS. According to the GCA’s launch announcement, DOS7 brings DOS6 and Digital Specialists and Programmes (RM6263) together in one agreement. It has over 1,700 suppliers, and about 89% of them are SMEs.

It has four lots:

• Lot 1, Digital Outcomes: research, design and build new online services, or rebuild existing ones, using an agile approach.
• Lot 2, Digital Capability and Delivery Partners: long-term programmes, capability building and strategic resource augmentation.
• Lot 3, Digital Specialists: individual specialists who join your team to deliver a specific outcome.
• Lot 4, User Research Studios and Participants: studio hire and recruiting people to test a service.

The key dates, from the RM1043.9 agreement page and its successor pages:

• DOS6 cut-off: no new DOS6 procurements could start on the Contract Award Service after 26 March 2026. DOS6 itself expired on 27 June 2026.
• DOS7 live: the GCA announced it live on 31 March 2026.
• First framework ends: 29 July 2027. That isn’t the end of DOS7, because it’s an open framework planned to run for six years.
• Reopening: the second DOS7 framework, RM1043.9.2, is due to reopen in summer 2027. The GCA says exact timelines will be confirmed in late 2026.

DOS6 vs DOS7: what changed

These rows come from the GCA’s key changes from DOS6 to DOS7 and the DOS7 buyer guide v1.3. Both are .odt files, listed on the agreement page.

Lot 1 call-offs can run for up to 48 months, including extensions. Lot 2 can run for 72, Lot 3 for 24 and Lot 4 for 36.

What the changes mean in practice

The table is tidy. The consequences for a buyer are less obvious, so here are the ones that change how you run a competition.

You choose the shape of the competition

DOS6 gave you one route, further competition. DOS7 gives you three:

• Single stage: invite every eligible supplier, check exclusions and any conditions of participation, then assess tenders once.
• Two stage: shortlist on conditions of participation first, then ask only the shortlist for full tenders.
• Multi stage: combine tendering, presentations, site visits, dialogue and negotiation in any order you choose.

Two stage suits most Lot 1 builds. Lot 1 is a large pool, and a shortlist stops you scoring dozens of full proposals. Multi stage earns its extra effort when you need to see a team work, or to negotiate scope.

The weightings are yours

The buyer guide reduces assessment to two criteria, quality and price, each weighted between 0% and 100%. Social value sits inside quality. That freedom cuts both ways.

A heavy price weighting on a build you haven’t yet defined will reward the bid that assumed the least. If the scope is still moving, weight quality and the plan for discovery. Once the scope is pinned down, price can carry more weight.

Read the new schedules before you publish

Three deserve your time before the requirement goes live:

• Call-Off Schedule 1, intellectual property: the GCA “strongly recommends” reading it to understand the options you can select. Decide who owns the code before suppliers price it.
• Call-Off Schedules 9A to 9E, security: short form, consultancy, development, supplier-led assurance and buyer-led assurance. Pick the one that matches the data and the risk.
• Call-Off Schedule 10, exit management: it now includes an annex on the scope of termination assistance. Fill it in while everyone is still friendly.

Check cyber and insurance yourself

Only Lot 2 suppliers had to hold Cyber Essentials Plus before award. For Lot 1, the buyer guide suggests you check whether suppliers hold it. Framework-level insurance for Lot 1 is also lighter than DOS6’s. The guide confirms you can ask for more cover if your risk needs it.

The contract starts with the first statement of work

The buyer guide is explicit that a DOS7 call-off only takes effect once the first statement of work is agreed and signed. Framework Schedule 6 includes both the order form and a statement of work template. This is the hook a fixed-price outcome hangs on.

Transparency carries on after award

Under the Act, you publish a contract details notice within 30 days of entering the contract. Above £5 million, you also publish the contract and three KPIs. You also publish a payments compliance notice each quarter in which any payment reaches £30,000 or more. Modifications and terminations need their own notices too.

How to buy a fixed-price outcome on Lot 1

DOS7 doesn’t prescribe a pricing model. The buyer guide says you can set the pricing mechanism for Lots 1 to 3. It gives time and materials and delivery-based pricing as examples. Charges then change only by written agreement, for indexation, a specific change in law or benchmarking.

So a fixed price is available to you. It works when each fixed price buys a defined phase, not the whole unknown. Here’s the route we’d recommend.

1. Get approvals and access in place

The buyer guide asks for budget approval and an agreed procurement strategy before you start. Central government buyers follow the Digital Assurance Playbook. You’ll need a Public Procurement Gateway account, approved by your organisation’s administrator, to reach the Contract Award Service.

2. Buy the phase you can describe

The GOV.UK Service Manual is clear that you shouldn’t start building during discovery. Lot 1 follows the same agile shape, with discovery, alpha, beta and live.

If you can’t yet say what the service must do, buy discovery on its own, at a fixed price. If discovery is done, buy alpha and beta with fixed deliverables per phase. Pricing a whole service before discovery invites a contingency you’ll pay whether or not it’s used.

3. Write outcomes, not hours

Describe what must be true at the end of each phase. “Citizens can apply online and caseworkers can process applications without rekeying” is an outcome. “Two developers for six months” is a Lot 3 requirement wearing a Lot 1 badge.

For each phase, state:

• the users and the problem
• the deliverables you will accept, and how you’ll accept them
• the constraints: hosting, data, integrations, accessibility, security schedule
• who owns the code, from Call-Off Schedule 1
• what happens after the phase, including exit

4. Choose the competition and the weightings

Use pre-market engagement if the requirement is still forming. The buyer guide says a representative subset of suppliers is fine for an early idea. It asks you to keep a record of every session.

Then pick single, two or multi stage. Set quality and price weightings that match how settled the scope is. Use filters only where they’re genuinely relevant to the work. The opportunity listing shows suppliers which filters you chose.

5. Ask for the breakdown behind the fixed price

For Lot 1, the buyer guide’s best practice is a detailed breakdown of the total price, showing specialist roles and their costs. Ask for it even on a fixed price. It shows whether the team is real and whether the plan is credible.

You can also send the bidders’ names to the GCA’s customer service centre. They’ll help you check quoted day rates don’t exceed each supplier’s framework maximum.

6. Award, stand still, then sign

Give every bidder written feedback with a full scoring breakdown. The buyer guide recommends a standstill period of 8 working days, especially for high-value contracts. Then sign the order form and the first statement of work, and publish your contract details notice.

A checklist for your Lot 1 requirement

• Budget approval and procurement strategy agreed
• Public Procurement Gateway and Contract Award Service access set up
• The phase you’re buying named: discovery, alpha, beta or live
• Outcomes and acceptance criteria written for that phase
• Pricing mechanism chosen: a fixed price per phase, with a role breakdown
• Call-Off Schedule 1 intellectual property option selected
• Security schedule chosen from 9A to 9E
• Cyber Essentials Plus and insurance requirements stated, if needed
• Exit and termination assistance described in Call-Off Schedule 10
• Competition type and quality and price weightings set
• Pre-market engagement recorded
• Standstill period and feedback planned
• Contract details notice diarised for within 30 days

DOS7 or G-Cloud 15 for a custom build?

The two frameworks overlap this autumn, which is where the confusion comes from. G-Cloud 15 (RM1557.15) started on 6 August 2026. G-Cloud 14 ends on 28 October 2026.

For a custom build, the answer is short. The G-Cloud 15 agreement page excludes bespoke design and development and points buyers who need it to DOS7.

In practice, many services use both. Buy the build on DOS7 Lot 1. Buy the hosting, the off-the-shelf software and the ongoing cloud support on G-Cloud 15 where it fits. Be wary of a G-Cloud “cloud support” service that is really a development team. If the deliverable is new software, DOS7 is the honest route.

What good looks like from a supplier

Being on DOS7 tells you a supplier passed the GCA’s checks. With over 1,700 suppliers, it tells you very little about who will do the work well. Ask instead:

• Will they price a phase as a fixed outcome, and show you the team behind it?
• What did they build for a public body, and what happened after launch?
• Do they build to WCAG 2.2 AA as standard, not as an extra?
• Who owns the code, the cloud account and the documentation at the end?
• How will they hand over if you take it in-house or change supplier?

Where we fit

Contic is an approved supplier on DOS7 Lot 1, Digital Outcomes, through the Government Commercial Agency. Our DOS7 page explains how to commission us through the Contract Award Service.

For a UK defence body, we built a secure prototype planning tool. For Everyone’s Invited, AI anonymises submissions. It saved about 12,500 hours of review and has published 52,794 testimonies.

We work at a fixed price as standard, and you own the code and the IP. Everything we build meets WCAG 2.2 AA, and we hold Cyber Essentials Plus. If you’re shaping a Lot 1 requirement, the first conversation and an architectural review are free. More on how we work with public bodies is on our government page, and on fixed price versus time and materials.