PAS 91 SQ readiness checker free interactive tool for UK facilities management contractors
Tick the documents and policies you hold today. The checker scores your readiness across the eight standardised PAS 91 / SQ modules plus your sector accreditations, lists every missing item, and tells you whether your evidence pack is ready, borderline, or sitting on major gaps.
Pick the sector
Sector picks the right specialist accreditation list.
Identity and contact
Buyer needs to know who they're contracting with.
Financial information
Three years of accounts, plus liquidity evidence. The hardest module for young firms.
Insurances
Employer's Liability is statutory. PL floor is sector-driven.
Health and safety
Policy, procedures, accident history, SSIP. The most-rejected SQ module.
Quality management
ISO 9001 or a documented equivalent. Buyers reject 'we have processes' as an answer.
Environmental
ISO 14001 lifts you above most SMEs. Carbon Reduction Plan is now mandatory above £5m.
Equality, diversity and modern slavery
Modern slavery statement is statutory above £36m turnover. Equality policy expected at every tier.
Technical references
Three contracts in the last three years, all relevant to the buyer's scope.
Sector accreditations
The non-negotiables for your sector. Hard reject without these.
Live readiness
Verdict
Major gaps
Ready
0%
Don't apply yet. Build the evidence pack first.
Missing documents (39)
- Identity and contact: Companies House registration number
- Identity and contact: VAT number (if registered)
- Identity and contact: Certificate of incorporation
- Identity and contact: Trading address and registered office
- Financial information: Three years of audited or filed accounts
- Financial information: Latest annual turnover declared
- Financial information: Current balance sheet / management accounts
- Financial information: Cashflow forecast (12 months)
- Financial information: Directors and officers history clean
- Financial information: Parent company guarantee (if applicable)
- Insurances: Employer's Liability £10m+ certificate
- Insurances: Professional Indemnity (if consultancy element)
- +27 more (see the full list above)
Save your evidence pack once and reuse it on every CleanTender bid.
Build my SQ profile, freeWhat buyers really want
Four modules that decide the SQ.
All eight modules count, but four of them swing 90% of pass / fail decisions on UK soft FM SQs. Get these tight, the rest is admin.
Hardest module
Financial standing
Three years of filed accounts, current management accounts, cashflow forecast. New firms fail here even with strong delivery.
Most-rejected
Health and safety
Director-signed policy, SSIP (CHAS / SafeContractor / Constructionline), three years of accident records, RAMS bank, COSHH register.
Status signal
Quality and environment
ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 lift you above the SME pack. Carbon Reduction Plan is mandatory above £5m central-government spend.
Killer detail
Technical references
Three contracts in the last three years, all relevant in scope. Older or off-scope references trigger borderline scores.
Why SQ rejection is so common
The pass mark is paperwork, not delivery.
Most SME contractors deliver well. Most still fail at the SQ stage. The reason: the SQ tests evidence, not capability. Buyers can't risk a public tender on a story. They need filed accounts, signed policies, valid certificates, and three matching references. Nine times in ten, a rejection is a missing document, not a missing skill.
What the checker won't tell you
- Document quality. Holding an H&S policy is one thing; whether it's signed, dated and tailored to your work is another. The checker assumes ticked = current.
- Reference relevance. Three contract references count, but only if their scope and value match the buyer's. The checker can't read the contract pack.
- Buyer add-ons. NHS Trusts, MoD framework, schools and councils each layer their own questions on top. Always read the SQ pack twice.
Questions, answered.
What is PAS 91?
PAS 91 was the British Standards Institution's standardised pre-qualification questionnaire for construction-related procurement. It was officially withdrawn in 2022, but UK public buyers continue to model their Selection Questionnaire (SQ) sections on its modules: identity, financial, insurance, health and safety, quality, environment, equality, and technical references. If you can answer PAS 91, you can answer the SQ.
How does the readiness checker score me?
Each PAS 91 module has a list of documents and policies the buyer expects. You tick what you hold today. The checker computes your percent ready per module, averages across modules, and bands you Ready (90%+), Borderline (70 to 89%), or Major gaps (under 70%). The missing-documents list is generated automatically.
What's the difference between PAS 91 and the SQ?
PAS 91 was the standard. The Selection Questionnaire (SQ) is the live equivalent published by Cabinet Office under PPN 03/24 (England), with sister versions in Wales and Scotland. The questions and evidence requirements are functionally identical. Most public buyers in soft FM publish a buyer-flavoured SQ that is 80% PAS 91 by another name.
Is the checker tailored to my sector?
Yes. The eight core modules apply to all UK soft FM contractors (cleaning, security, grounds, waste, catering). On top, the checker adds a sector accreditations module: BICSc and SSIP for cleaning, SIA ACS and BS 7858 for security, NPTC for grounds, Waste Carrier's Licence for waste, HACCP and Food Hygiene Rating for catering.
How do I export my results?
Click the Print or save as PDF button at the bottom of the form. It uses your browser's print-to-PDF feature so the missing-documents list and module scores save cleanly to a single page. Free, no email capture, your data never leaves your browser.
What's the most-rejected SQ module?
Health and safety. Buyers expect a written H&S policy signed by a director, a current SSIP accreditation (CHAS, SafeContractor or Constructionline), three years of accident records, and a RAMS bank that proves you've thought about the work. Generic H&S statements get rejected on the first read.
Do I need ISO 9001 and 14001?
Strictly: not always. Practically: yes for any contract over £500k. Most buyers will accept a documented Quality Management System or Environmental Management System equivalent if it's evidence-rich. The threshold for acceptance is high. ISO certificates short-cut the conversation.
Build the evidence pack once, use it on every bid.
CleanTender Pro stores every certificate, policy and reference your SQ needs. Bids cite the same pack. Renewals get reminders. Free tier covers the first three months.
Read next