Do Academy Trusts Have to Use GCA RM6376?
The Academy Trust Handbook 2026 takes effect from 1 October 2026, and there has been considerable confusion about what the new supply staffing requirements actually mean.
Some academy trusts have been told:
“You can now only use recruitment agencies directly listed on GCA RM6376.”
That does not reflect the complete Department for Education position.
Paragraph 2.28 of the Academy Trust Handbook 2026 states that trusts must use the Government Commercial Agency Supply Teachers and Education Recruitment framework:
“unless they have an alternative compliant agreement with rates which do not exceed those available through the framework.”
Read the Academy Trust Handbook 2026 on GOV.UK
The Department for Education's separate supply staff guidance explains what an alternative framework or contract must satisfy.
It must:
be in line with the Procurement Act 2023
be subject to the applicable financial thresholds
not exceed the rates available through GCA RM6376.
Read the DfE Guidance on the Supply Staff Mandate
The position is therefore:
Academy trusts must use GCA RM6376 or an alternative compliant procurement arrangement meeting the DfE requirements.
That is materially different from saying academy trusts can only use recruitment agencies directly listed on GCA.
GCA-Only Is Not the Rule
GCA RM6376 is the Department for Education's default national framework for supply staffing.
However, the Academy Trust Handbook expressly provides for an alternative compliant agreement.
DfE guidance also states:
“If you choose not to use the framework, you must use another route that complies with the Procurement Act 2023.”
Read the DfE guidance on using the Supply Teachers and Education Recruitment framework
The question for an academy trust should therefore not simply be:
“Is this recruitment agency directly listed on GCA?”
It should also be:
“Can we appoint this agency through an alternative compliant procurement arrangement?”
Procurement Act 2023 and GCA RM6376 Are Not the Same Thing
The Procurement Act 2023 is legislation governing public procurement.
GCA RM6376 is a procurement framework.
GCA gives academy trusts an established route for purchasing supply staffing and education recruitment services.
The Department for Education expressly recognises that another appropriate framework or contract can be used instead where the relevant requirements are satisfied.
An agency therefore does not automatically become unavailable to academy trusts simply because it is not directly listed on RM6376.
The procurement route through which the academy trust appoints that agency is what matters.
Can an Academy Trust Use Value Match Instead of GCA?
Yes.
An academy trust can choose to use an appropriate Value Match Managed Sourcing Service (MSS) arrangement as an alternative procurement route, provided the trust is eligible to use the arrangement, completes the appropriate procurement or call-off process and satisfies the DfE requirements, including the requirement on rates.
This is not simply a theoretical alternative.
There is already published procurement evidence showing academy trusts using Value Match MSS for agency staffing.
Trinity Multi Academy Trust — Value Match MSS
Published procurement records show Trinity Multi Academy Trust using the Value Match Managed Sourcing Service for supply teachers and education recruitment.
A July 2026 award notice records a £250,000 excluding VAT call-off through Value Match MSS.
The published procurement description states that the call-off was completed through Value Match MSS as an:
“alternative compliant route to market”
with rates that do not exceed those available through GCA RM6376.
View the published Trinity Multi Academy Trust Value Match MSS award
This is clear evidence of an academy trust using Value Match as an alternative route for education recruitment rather than purchasing directly through GCA.
GLF Schools — Value Match MSS
GLF Schools provides another current example.
A September 2026 procurement notice for the supply of agency staff records the procedure as an award under framework.
The named contract is:
Value Match Managed Sourcing Service (MSS)
with a published value of £120,000 including VAT.
The notice also records the arrangement as covering agency staffing across several locations.
View the published GLF Schools Value Match MSS notice
This provides another practical example of Value Match being used within the academy sector for agency staffing.
HEART Academies Trust — Procurement Act 2023 Supply Staffing Framework
HEART Academies Trust has established a Framework to Provide Supply Agency Staff Services under the Procurement Act 2023.
The framework covers temporary, fixed-term and permanent teaching and non-teaching staffing.
Published procurement information identifies Value Match Services as supporting the framework's procurement and ongoing delivery.
The original framework appointed 51 suppliers, demonstrating the scale at which alternative Procurement Act 2023 education staffing arrangements are already operating.
View the HEART Academies Trust Find a Tender notice
Harris Federation PerCo
The Harris Federation Permanent and Contingent Recruitment Framework — PerCo provides another alternative procurement route.
Harris states that PerCo was designed to meet the requirements of the Procurement Act 2023.
It covers:
permanent recruitment
fixed-term recruitment
contingent staffing and supply teaching
classroom teaching
classroom support
pastoral roles
leadership
specialist and corporate recruitment.
The framework is designed for use by Harris academies and by other eligible multi-academy trusts, academies and schools.
Harris also states that framework contracts and pricing are managed through the Omnijo platform, through which the relevant call-off process is completed.
Read the official Harris PerCo framework information
Harris also provides dedicated guidance for schools explaining how the framework can be accessed.
Read the Harris PerCo guidance for schools and trusts
Uniform Education and Harris PerCo
Uniform Education is an approved supplier on the Harris Federation PerCo framework.
Our appointment covers relevant education recruitment categories including supply teaching, classroom teaching and classroom support and pastoral staffing.
Eligible organisations can therefore access Uniform Education through Harris PerCo, subject to the framework's eligibility and call-off requirements.
Uniform Education and Value Match
The Value Match Managed Sourcing Service is Uniform Education's principal alternative procurement route for academy trusts.
Uniform Education is approved through Value Match and can support academy trusts that choose to procure our services through an appropriate Value Match arrangement.
The trust must still follow the applicable procurement or call-off process.
However, being outside the direct GCA RM6376 supplier list does not mean that an academy trust automatically has to stop working with Uniform Education.
Where the appropriate Value Match arrangement is used and the relevant DfE requirements are met, the trust can continue working with Uniform Education through that procurement route.
What Is the £207,720 Procurement Threshold?
Current Department for Education guidance refers to a procurement threshold of:
£207,720 including VAT
For academy trusts, expected expenditure is calculated:
across the whole trust, rather than separately for each school
across the whole length of the contract where a multi-year agreement is planned.
Where total expected spend is above £207,720 including VAT, the trust must use a buying process that complies with the Procurement Act 2023.
DfE also specifically warns trusts not to agree shorter contracts simply to reduce expected expenditure below the threshold.
Read the official DfE guidance on the £207,720 threshold
The £207,720 threshold should not be confused with the academy trust supply staffing requirement itself.
Academy trusts are already subject to the GCA-or-alternative requirement.
The threshold affects the procurement process that must be followed.
Alternative Routes Must Meet the GCA Rate Requirement
Using an alternative procurement arrangement does not remove the DfE's pricing requirement.
The Department for Education states that academy trusts using a different procurement route must ensure their costs are no higher than the rates offered through the GCA framework.
DfE also requires agencies operating through alternative arrangements to provide a transparent breakdown of charges on a per-candidate basis so that the trust can compare the supplier fee against the relevant GCA rate.
Read the DfE guidance on alternative agreements and agency rates
The total daily cost of an agency worker normally comprises:
the worker's daily pay
employment on-costs such as National Insurance and pension contributions
the recruitment agency's supplier fee.
The GCA restriction applies to the relevant supplier fee or agency margin rather than simply treating the entire daily charge as agency profit.
Uniform Education will ensure that its supplier fee under an alternative arrangement does not exceed the applicable GCA limit for the relevant role.
Can Academy Trusts Keep Existing Agency Agreements?
Existing arrangements do not automatically have to end.
DfE's supply staffing guidance states that it will not force a trust to exit an existing contract, provided that the contract is compliant with the Procurement Act 2023.
Read the DfE guidance on existing supply staffing contracts
Academy trusts should therefore review their current arrangements and the procurement route supporting them rather than automatically terminating successful agency relationships simply because an agency is not directly listed on RM6376.
Does an Agency Have to Be on GCA to Be Compliant?
No.
There is no general accreditation called a “Procurement Act 2023-certified recruitment agency.”
The Procurement Act relates to the way the contracting authority procures and awards services.
An academy trust should establish:
Which procurement route is being used?
Is the trust eligible to use the arrangement?
Does it cover the staffing services required?
Has the correct procurement, award or call-off process been completed?
Have the relevant procurement thresholds been considered?
Do the charges meet the DfE requirement relating to GCA rates?
Has the trust retained the appropriate procurement records?
An agency not being directly listed on GCA and an academy trust being unable to use that agency are therefore not the same thing.
Can My Academy Trust Continue Using Uniform Education?
Yes.
Uniform Education is not currently directly listed on GCA RM6376.
However, academy trusts can access Uniform Education through alternative procurement arrangements including:
Value Match Managed Sourcing Service
and
Harris Federation PerCo
subject to the relevant eligibility, procurement and call-off requirements.
If your academy trust already has a successful working relationship with Uniform Education, do not assume that relationship needs to end simply because Uniform Education is not directly listed on GCA.
Speak to your finance or procurement team, or contact us directly.
We can provide the relevant framework, procurement and pricing information for your team to review.
Alternative Procurement Routes Are Already Being Used
There is already clear evidence of alternative education recruitment procurement arrangements operating across the academy sector.
Trinity Multi Academy Trust has used Value Match MSS for supply teachers and education recruitment.
GLF Schools has published an agency staffing procurement through Value Match MSS.
HEART Academies Trust has established a Procurement Act 2023 supply agency staffing framework supported by Value Match.
Harris Federation operates the PerCo recruitment framework, which it states was designed to meet Procurement Act 2023 requirements and can be accessed by other eligible academy trusts and schools.
These are existing procurement arrangements, not proposed future models.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do academy trusts have to use GCA RM6376?
Academy trusts must use GCA unless they have an alternative compliant agreement meeting the Department for Education's requirements.
Can an academy trust use a recruitment agency that isn't directly listed on GCA?
Yes.
The trust needs an appropriate alternative compliant procurement arrangement through which the agency can be appointed.
Can an academy trust use Value Match instead of GCA?
Yes.
An academy trust can choose an appropriate Value Match arrangement, provided it is eligible to use it, follows the required procurement or call-off procedure and satisfies the applicable DfE requirements.
Is Value Match already being used by academy trusts?
Yes.
Published procurement records show academy trusts including Trinity Multi Academy Trust and GLF Schools using Value Match MSS for agency staffing.
Can an academy trust use Harris PerCo instead of GCA?
Yes, where the organisation is eligible to use the framework and completes the appropriate call-off process.
Harris states that PerCo was designed to meet Procurement Act 2023 requirements and can be used by eligible MATs, academies and schools.
Is Uniform Education on Harris PerCo?
Yes.
Uniform Education is an approved supplier through Harris PerCo.
Is Uniform Education directly on GCA RM6376?
No.
Uniform Education is not currently a direct RM6376 supplier.
Uniform Education can, however, be accessed through alternative procurement arrangements including Value Match MSS and Harris PerCo.
Does an agency have to be “Procurement Act 2023 certified”?
No.
The Procurement Act does not provide a generic certification status for recruitment agencies.
The issue is whether the contracting authority uses an appropriate compliant procurement route.
What is the current procurement threshold?
Current DfE guidance refers to £207,720 including VAT.
For academy trusts, expected expenditure is assessed across the whole trust and across the expected duration of the agreement.
Can an academy trust keep an existing agency contract?
Yes, where that existing contract remains compliant with the Procurement Act 2023.
DfE states that it will not force trusts to leave existing compliant contracts.
The Bottom Line
GCA RM6376 is the Department for Education's default route for academy trust supply staffing.
But GCA-only is not the rule.
The Academy Trust Handbook expressly allows an:
alternative compliant agreement.
DfE guidance expressly recognises alternative frameworks and contracts where the applicable Procurement Act 2023, financial-threshold and GCA-rate requirements are satisfied.
Alternative arrangements are already operating in the academy sector through:
Trinity Multi Academy Trust — Value Match MSS
GLF Schools — Value Match MSS
HEART Academies Trust — Procurement Act 2023 supply staffing framework supported by Value Match
Harris Federation — PerCo recruitment framework
Before ending a successful relationship with a recruitment provider simply because it is not directly listed on GCA RM6376, establish whether an appropriate alternative procurement route is available.
For Uniform Education, those routes include:
Value Match MSS
and
Harris PerCo.
Speak to Uniform Education
If your academy trust, CFO, Headteacher, School Business Manager, Finance Director or Procurement Lead would like to understand the routes available, speak to us confidentially.
0203 794 8988
Uniform Education
Specialist SEND & Education Recruitment
London & Home Counties
Recruitment to Shape Future Generations
Official Sources
Academy Trust Handbook 2026 — paragraph 2.28
Read the official Academy Trust Handbook 2026 on GOV.UK
Department for Education — Guidance on the Supply Staff Mandate
Read the official DfE supply staff mandate guidance
Department for Education — How to Use the Supply Teachers and Education Recruitment Framework
Read the official DfE framework guidance
Harris Federation — Permanent & Contingent Recruitment Framework (PerCo)
Read the official Harris PerCo information
Trinity Multi Academy Trust — Value Match MSS published procurement award
View the published procurement record
GLF Schools — Value Match MSS published procurement notice
View the published procurement notice
HEART Academies Trust — Supply Agency Staff Services Framework
View the Find a Tender notice
Important Information
This page provides general information about education recruitment procurement and does not constitute legal or procurement advice.
Academy trusts remain responsible for confirming their eligibility to use a procurement arrangement, completing the applicable procurement or call-off procedure, complying with their internal governance requirements and retaining appropriate procurement records.
Procurement rules, thresholds and Government guidance can change. Schools and academy trusts should check current official guidance when commencing a procurement.
Last reviewed: 30 September 2026