Score it before they do

Tender self-scorer: mark your own bid the way the evaluation panel will.

Panels don't read your bid the way you wrote it. They mark it, question by question, against published criteria and weightings, on a fixed scale. This tool makes you do the same thing to yourself — before it counts.

Nothing leaves your browser. No signup, no upload, no analytics on your answers. The page works offline once loaded; print the scorecard when you're done. It's free because making you score yourself honestly is the best advert we have.

Step 1 — Your tender's criteria & weightings

Copy these from the ITT or specification — they're published in almost every UK public tender. Quality criteria only (score price separately; this tool marks the written response). If your tender doesn't publish weightings, use your best estimate and treat the result accordingly.

Step 2 — The scale panels actually use

Most UK public-sector evaluations use a 0–5 scale like this (wording varies; the shape doesn't). Two things catch bidders out: a competent, professional answer is a 3, not a 5 — and "evidence" means named, checkable specifics, not adjectives.

Score	Typical definition	What it means in practice
5	Excellent — fully meets, added value, comprehensive evidence	Answers the question, proves every claim, and shows something the buyer didn't ask for but wants
4	Good — fully meets the requirement with strong evidence	Every element addressed and evidenced; nothing generic
3	Acceptable — meets the requirement, limited evidence	The competent-professional default. Right claims, thin proof
2	Minor reservations — partially meets	Elements missing or asserted without evidence
1	Major reservations — significant gaps	Doesn't really answer the question asked
0	Unacceptable — fails to address	Missing, off-topic, or non-compliant

Step 3 — Score each answer. Honestly.

For each criterion, reread your draft answer and mark it against the scale above. Before you pick, ask the four questions a moderation panel asks — they're listed under each criterion.

Self-assessment scorecard · · fernbridge.co.uk/tools/tender-self-scorer

Criterion	Weight	Your score	Weighted	Reading

This is a self-assessment: it inherits your own optimism. Panels consistently score bids lower than bidders score themselves — the gap is largest exactly where evidence is thinnest, because you know what you meant and the panel only knows what you wrote. Treat every 4 and 5 above with suspicion unless you can point at the named, checkable evidence in the text.

Want the version where it isn't you doing the marking?

Fernbridge scores your draft against your tender's own criteria — a mock evaluation with per-question scores, the three highest-impact weaknesses each with a concrete rewrite, and a plain would-this-have-lost verdict. £99 fixed, 48 hours, openly AI-performed and human-reviewed, refunded if it tells you nothing you didn't know.

Request a review — £99