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Pilot, procurement and price

Start with a free pilot. Pay only if it works for you.

A 12-week pilot costs nothing, is live within a week and measures the difference against your own baseline. After that, an annual subscription priced by your council’s application volume, set up so it can be bought without a full tender.
Request a pilot Try it with an application

Two steps

Pilot, then subscription

Step 1

Pilot

Free

Live within a week · 12 weeks · no obligation to buy

  • Two to four application types of your choice
  • Your local validation list set up and approved by you
  • Your validation team on the officer screen
  • Baseline from your back office, a final measurement report
  • A weekly check-in and support within one working day

Step 2

Annual subscription

Priced by application volume

We quote per council

  • Every application type, for applicants and officers
  • Your local list kept up to date with you, every version approved by you
  • Updates when national rules or guidance change
  • Support, the measurement page and exports
  • Priced to stay well below the threshold for a full procurement procedure

How to buy

Routes that work under the Procurement Act 2023

Position at 14 November 2026. Check your contract standing orders; this is not legal advice.

Below the threshold

From 1 January 2026 the threshold for services bought by local authorities is £207,720 including VAT, estimated over the whole term. A pilot plus a first year of ValidFirst stays well below it for any single council, so no above-threshold procedure is needed.

Direct award or quotes

Below the threshold, your contract standing orders decide whether you may award directly or need quotes. A contract of £30,000 or more including VAT is notifiable: if you advertise it, you publish a below-threshold tender notice, and after award a contract details notice.

Frameworks

ValidFirst is not on G-Cloud 15 or any other framework yet. We intend to apply in the first window for new suppliers, whose date has not been announced.

Sources: Procurement Act 2023, sections 85 and 87; Procurement Act 2023 (Threshold Amounts) (Amendment) Regulations 2025; Procurement Act 2023 guidance (GOV.UK); G-Cloud 15 (Government Commercial Agency).

Included

What the subscription covers

Included

  • All application types, for applicants, agents and officers
  • Setting up your local validation list, and each new version
  • Updates to the national requirements when legislation or guidance changes
  • Officer accounts with email code, passkeys or Microsoft Entra ID
  • Your council’s name, logo and colours on the applicant pages
  • The measurement page, the audit log and exports to your back office
  • Support by email within one working day

What your council provides

  • Your current local validation list and its publication date
  • A senior responsible owner (often the Head of Planning) and a day-to-day contact in the validation team
  • Your DPO’s review of the DPIA and the data processing terms, and an IT security review
  • Baseline figures from your back office for the last 12 months: applications received, valid first time, days to validation, top invalidity reasons
  • A link from your planning web pages and invalid-application letters

Questions

What procurement asks

For a quote or the pilot proposal, email hello@validfirst.co.uk. The security, data protection and AI documents are on the trust page.

Is a free pilot a public contract?
A pilot at no charge is not a contract for pecuniary interest, so the Procurement Act 2023 procedures don’t apply to it. You still need a short pilot agreement, the data processing terms, your DPO’s DPIA and sign-off under your own governance. A pilot does not entitle us to a direct award afterwards.
Can we buy through G-Cloud?
Not yet. ValidFirst is not on G-Cloud 15. We intend to apply in the first window for new suppliers; its date has not been announced. Until then, councils use the below-threshold routes on this page.
Is there a charge for applicants?
No. The council’s subscription covers its applicants and agents. ValidFirst doesn’t change the planning fee.
What happens if we stop?
You keep the measurement report and can export all your data in one go. Access ends on the end date and your data is deleted 30 days later.
Are you registered as a supplier?
Registration on the Central Digital Platform is in progress. The Digital Planning Directory listing is planned.