NHS DTAC v2.0 is now mandatory. Old DTAC form retires 6 April 2026. Every NHS AI supplier must be ready with documented DPIA, bias and ethical impact evidence.
Three forces shaping AI procurement right now
UK public sector buyers are under increasing pressure to collect independent AI governance evidence before award. Here is what is driving it.
NHS DTAC v2.0
Old DTAC form retires 6 April 2026. All NHS AI suppliers must use the new form when requested requiring documented DPIA, bias testing evidence and ethical impact assessment. This is Birchlow's strongest near term trigger.
Procurement Act 2023
Shifted award criteria from lowest cost to Most Advantageous Tender. AI governance evidence is now a quality signal that directly influences contract scoring. Independent validation outweighs vendor self declaration.
PPN 017 - Feb 2025
Cabinet Office guidance on AI disclosure in central government procurement. Buyers increasingly include PPN 017 style questions in tenders. Vendors who cannot answer structured governance questions lose marks in scored evaluations.
G-Cloud 15
Framework goes live 17 September 2026 for a four year term to 2030. Vendors answer AI disclosure questions on every call off contract so bid urgency remains high throughout the framework lifecycle.
"Any vendor can self certify - fill in the questionnaire and attach their own DPIA. That's free. But buyers scoring Most Advantageous Tender increasingly discount pure self declarations. It's like selling a used car: you can say it's in excellent condition yourself, or you can pay for an independent RAC or AA inspection report that the buyer can trust. Buyers pay more and move faster on the independently verified car. Same here: 'We validated ourselves' vs. 'We paid an independent analyst to review and publish our evidence on a public register.' The second version wins more bids."
Four ways to get certified
Choose the level that matches your timeline and bid requirements. All tiers include analyst review and access to the public verification register.
Structured self assessment across 5 governance domains. Preliminary score and detailed gap report showing what evidence you hold and what is missing.
Full assessment plus gap analysis report and a remediation roadmap showing exactly what to produce to reach certification readiness.
Complete analyst review of all evidence artefacts. Cryptographically signed certificate issued and published to the Birchlow public verification register.
Everything in Certify, plus post-certificate advisory, remediation workshops, evidence re-drafts, and mock buyer Q&A preparation for live bids.
Annual renewal: £1,500 · Certificate remains live and publicly verifiable · Buyers search birchlow.com/verify by vendor name
How a Birchlow certificate is earned
Six steps from self assessment to a publicly verifiable certificate. Step 4 is what makes it credible.
Buyers can verify any certificate in seconds
Every Birchlow certificate is published to a searchable public register. Buyers search by vendor name, scan a QR code, or enter the unique certificate ID. Certificates are cryptographically signed — forgery-detectable. Revocable if governance lapses. Updated in real time.
View the public register →Book a 20 minute call
We walk through your current governance documentation, identify which tier fits best, and send you an initial assessment of where your DPIA, bias documentation and ethical compliance evidence stand today.
Book a call — leon@birchlow.comNo commitment. 20 minutes. We will tell you exactly where you stand.