If you manage staffing or budgets in a school or trust, you have probably started hearing about the new Government Commercial Agency (GCA) framework for supply staff, known as RM6376. There’s a lot of discussion around the framework, and we wanted to provide some cast-iron clarity around the topic.
At Aura Education, we want to give you a clear, honest picture of what the framework is, why it is a positive step for the sector, and what it actually means for schools and trusts, wherever you are in the UK.
The short version: the framework raises standards, which we welcome, and for most schools it changes far less than the headlines suggest.
The Context: What the Framework Is
RM6376, the Supply Teachers and Education Recruitment framework, is run by the GCA, the body that was Crown Commercial Service until earlier this year. It runs from 30 April 2026 to 29 April 2029 and sits under the Procurement Act 2023.
In practical terms, it is a list of pre-approved agencies that schools and trusts can use through a single, standardised set of terms, with the aim of improving value for money on the roughly £1.4 billion a year that schools spend on agency staff.
Why It Is a Good Thing
We have no quarrel with what the framework is trying to achieve. We support it, and we hope it provides protection for schools and trusts who may have been taken advantage of in recent years.
The framework sets out to:
- Protect children. Suppliers must vet workers in line with the Department for Education’s Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) standards.
- Control costs. Agency fees are capped at up to £45 per day for teachers and up to £38 per day for education support staff, with transparency over what the worker is paid versus what the agency takes.
- Reward continuity. After 12 weeks, a temporary worker can move into a permanent role with no transfer fee.
- Simplify contracting. Standardised terms mean schools are not renegotiating from scratch with every agency.
These are sensible protections. They also describe how a good agency should already be operating, which is exactly how Aura Education has worked since opening our doors in 2023.
The Part Most People Get Wrong: You Still Have a Choice
Here is where the headlines can mislead. The framework does not ban schools from using agencies that are not named on it. The position depends on what kind of school you are.
If you are a local authority (maintained) school, the framework is recommended best practice, but not a requirement. You remain free to choose your agencies as you do now.
If you are an academy trust, the 2026 Academy Trust Handbook, due in September 2026, is expected to require you to use the framework for supply staffing unless you have an alternative compliant arrangement. An alternative arrangement is compliant when it follows the Procurement Act 2023 and the rates you secure do not exceed the framework rates.
The Department for Education has also confirmed it will not force any trust to exit an existing contract.
So the real question for a trust is not, “Are we allowed to use another agency?” but rather, “Does our supply spend reach the level where a formal procurement process is required?”
Which Is Why (Some Of) The Numbers Matter
This is the detail that gets lost, and it matters a great deal.
The Procurement Act 2023 only requires a formal, regulated procurement process once your spend reaches a financial threshold. For schools and trusts, which are treated as sub-central contracting authorities, that threshold is £207,720 for goods and services.
Three points are worth understanding clearly:
- The figure is inclusive of VAT, not net of it.
- It is measured over the whole life of the contract, including any extension options, not a single year.
- For a trust, supply spend is assessed at trust level and aggregated across all schools, rather than school by school.
Below that threshold, the Act’s below-threshold provisions do not apply to schools, which means you have genuine flexibility. You can follow your own internal financial regulations and continue working with the agencies you trust. There is no requirement to run a formal tender and no need to read the framework as something that removes your choice.
For many individual schools, and for a good number of smaller trusts, aggregated supply spend will sit comfortably below £207,720. If that is you, the practical compliance burden is light. You simply keep working with a transparent agency whose rates stand up against the framework and have your value-for-money evidence ready for governors and auditors.
Larger trusts with higher aggregated spend are more likely to be above the threshold, and many of those already have procurement arrangements in place, whether through a managed service provider or a framework route. If that describes your trust, the framework slots into planning you have very likely already done.
The honest takeaway is this: do not let the word “mandate” push you into assuming you must overhaul your staffing arrangements. For a large share of schools, the framework changes very little day to day.
Where Aura Education Fits
We are not currently named on RM6376. As the above hopefully makes clear, that does not stop you from working with us, and it does not make doing so non-compliant.
What it does mean is that we hold ourselves to the same standards the framework is built around, and in many cases go further:
- Rates that stand up to the framework. We keep our charges in line with the framework caps and provide a clear per-candidate breakdown, enabling you to evidence value for money with confidence.
- Safeguarding at the core. Our vetting and referencing meet KCSIE standards for every candidate we place, whatever the role or setting.
- Specialist knowledge across the sector. From early years and primary through to secondary, SEND, and leadership roles, we understand the demands of each setting, not just how to fill a rota.
- A relationship, not a transaction. Whether you are based in Liverpool and the North West or further afield, our team gets to know your school, your culture, and the people you trust, then builds on that placement after placement. The framework is a procurement tool; it is not a substitute for knowing your school.
Talk It Through With Us
If you are weighing up what the framework means for your school or trust, we are happy to help you think it through with no obligation.
We can talk you through where your spend is likely to sit against the threshold, compare our rates against the framework for the roles you need, and make sure whatever route you choose is one you can stand behind.
Get in touch with one of our trusted and informed Aura Consultants today to learn more about how we can support you this year and beyond.
