Soft Market Testing Exercise for the Provision of an Accounting and Finance Cloud Based Software Solution

Notice Information

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Notice Title

Soft Market Testing Exercise for the Provision of an Accounting and Finance Cloud Based Software Solution

Notice Description

CDS Co-operatives is a charitable community benefit society first established in 1975 to support the development of new housing co-ops. Our core purpose is to provide, support and promote co-op and community-led housing - so that more people can shape the things that matter to them; at home, in their neighbourhood or community. CDS seeks to publish a soft market testing exercise for the provision of an Accounting and Finance Cloud Based Software Solution to manage its operations, comply with housing regulations, and deliver value for money. The primary aim of the scoping exercise is to retain all existing organisational functionality, while also identifying opportunities to: * Improve operational efficiency * Increase the level of automation * Strengthen financial and control frameworks Any proposed enhancements must be deliverable in a cost-effective and proportionate manner and integrate with Microsoft applications. Following implementation, CDS must be fully self-sufficient, with the internal capability to manage and administer the system independently, without requiring ongoing support or intervention from the supplier. The overarching objective of any proposed upgrade is to enhance cross-team collaboration, streamline financial processes, and improve overall operational efficiency across the organisation. Essential core capabilities of future software - Functional requirement: * Optical Character Recognition (OCR) as a core capability in future software system * The ability to use alphanumeric characters for analysis codes must be supported to enhance flexibility in coding and classification. * Support consolidated and hierarchical reporting and capability to logically group these codes. * Standardised Chart of Accounts to ensure uniformity in general ledger coding across all areas of the business. * Support data export to Microsoft Excel and other commonly used file formats and reporting tools to enable analysis, sharing, and integration with external systems. * Facilitate import and export interfaces with other systems (BEACON and PLENTIFIC), using a structure that can be easily modified to meet future integration requirements. * Support the closure of accounting periods by authorised personnel, in accordance with defined access controls and separately for CDS, the subsidiary and the individual clients. * Support the ability to process future-dated transactions while allowing the current accounting period to be closed, ensuring continuity in operations and accurate period-end reporting (for example period '13' for post yearend adjustments). * Retain and provide access to nominal ledger data for the current financial year as well as for any prior comparative years, to support historical analysis and year-on-year reporting. * Enable hierarchical drill-down functionality, allowing users to navigate from high-level reporting line items to the associated general ledger accounts, and the original transaction line items * Generate Profit and loss/ Income and Expenditure statement, Balance Sheet and cash flow re-porting * Ability to match an invoice against multiple purchase orders. * Allow for 30-character field for Unique Property Reference number for the Fixed Asset module * Allows negative depreciation (for amortisation of Grant) * Allows for 15 Finance User licenses and 40 business user licenses for purchase ordering (projections at time of scoping exercise, however numbers may change slightly)

Planning Information

CDS currently operates its legacy finance and accounting system using SunSystems (version 6.4), alongside Sharperlight, representing the latest on‑premise version of the platform. This solution has been delivered and supported by a service provider for over 10 years. While this arrangement has provided a stable and familiar platform, the continued reliance on a legacy, on‑premise system may present increasing challenges in terms of cost, efficiency, and resilience over the long term. As off‑the‑shelf finance solutions, technology standards, and user expectations continue to evolve, CDS must evaluate whether SunSystems continues to offer value for money when compared to modern, cloud‑based alternatives. These alternatives may provide enhanced automation, scalability, collaboration, and control, potentially at a lower whole‑life cost. With the current contract approaching expiry, CDS has an opportunity to explore the market for a potential single, integrated software solution. At this stage, CDS is seeking to gain a high‑level understanding of cloud‑based products available in the market, including comparative functionality and indicative costs for an organisation of a similar size and remit. This soft market engagement will help CDS assess market capacity, supplier capability, and overall interest, and will inform the development of a potential future procurement process. Integration with Microsoft technologies, including Power BI (or equivalent tools), is expected to be a standard feature of any proposed solution. NEXT STEPS: Interested suppliers are invited to participate by considering the outline requirements set out in the previous section. These requirements are not intended to be exhaustive or restrictive; rather, this preliminary market engagement exercise is designed to help us better understand the scope of services identified, as well as the market's capacity and capability. An initial online supplier briefing session will be held in early July via Microsoft Teams. Following this, a questionnaire will be issued to interested suppliers to gather further information and insights regarding the proposed scope and the broader supply market. To participate, suppliers are required to register their interest by submitting an Expression of Interest (EOI) to procurement@cds.coop. All EOIs must be submitted via this mailbox, as we are committed to ensuring a fair, transparent, and competitive process in accordance with the Procurement Act 2023. This notice does not constitute a commitment to procure. Its purpose is to inform the development of our procurement strategy and to help shape any future procurement process. There is no commercial advantage or disadvantage to any organisation as a result of participating in this market engagement exercise. This process is intended to focus on gathering insights from the market as a whole, rather than assessing the merits of individual suppliers. EOIs should include the following information: • Reference: Procurement - CDSPME_FN001 • Full name and role of key participant(s) • Company name and Companies House registration number • Contact details (email address and telephone number) •Outline of proposed solution This soft market engagement is not a formal tender exercise. Participation will not prejudice or affect suppliers' eligibility to take part in any future procurement process. We anticipate holding 60-minute online system demonstration sessions with suppliers throughout July 2026. Please note that the schedule may be subject to change depending on the volume of responses received. Invitations to participate in these sessions will be issued only to suppliers who have submitted a response. The purpose of these sessions is to provide suppliers with the flexibility to guide the discussion and focus on the aspects of their response that they consider to be the most valuable and impactful for CDS. Suppliers should be prepared either to demonstrate the key capabilities of their system or to deliver a comprehensive overview of their solution. CDS representatives will also use these sessions to ask questions, seek clarification on submitted responses, and provide feedback where appropriate.

Notice Details

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Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID: ocds-h6vhtk-06b50b
Publication Source: Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice: https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/056296-2026
Current Stage: Planning
All Stages: Planning

Procurement Classification

Notice Type: UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Procurement Type: Standard
Procurement Category: Services
Procurement Method: Not Specified
Procurement Method Details: Not specified
Tender Suitability: SME, VCSE
Awardee Scale: Not specified

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

48 - Software package and information systems

72 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support

CPV Codes

48000000 - Software package and information systems

72000000 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value: Not specified
Lots Value: Not specified
Awards Value: Not specified
Contracts Value: Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date: 15 Jun 20261 weeks ago
Submission Deadline: Not specified
Future Notice Date: 30 Jun 20265 days to go
Award Date: Not specified
Contract Period: 1 Jan 2027 - 31 Dec 2028 2-3 years
Recurrence: Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status: Planning
Lots Status: Planning
Awards Status: Not Specified
Contracts Status: Not Specified

Buyer & Supplier

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Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer: CDS COOPERATIVES
Contact Name: Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email: Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone: Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality: 82 TANNER STREET
Postcode: SE1 3GN
Post Town: South East London
Country: England
Major Region (ITL 1): TLI London
Basic Region (ITL 2): TLI4 Inner London - East
Small Region (ITL 3): TLI44 Lewisham and Southwark
Delivery Location: Not specified
Local Authority: Southwark
Electoral Ward: London Bridge & West Bermondsey
Westminster Constituency: Bermondsey and Old Southwark

Further Information

Notice Documents

https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/056296-2026
15th June 2026 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/056214-2026
15th June 2026 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender

Notice URLs

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

JSON Markdown

The Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS) is a framework designed to increase transparency and access to public procurement data in the public sector. It is widely used by governments and organisations worldwide to report on procurement processes and contracts.

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