*Please note this is not a call for competition, this is a PIN notice for a BEIS requirement. * Research summary The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) wishes to commission an evaluation of the Phase 3 of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS).

Phase 3 PSDS succeeds both previous phases with the sole objective to reduce (non-traded) carbon emissions from public sector buildings.

This phase will make £1.425 billion of funding available over the period 2022/23 to 2024/25, with the focus on the decarbonisation of heat to help the UK to meet its Carbon Budgets and Net Zero commitments through the implementation of decarbonisation measures in buildings across the public sector (although the scheme also funds energy efficiency measures alongside this).

As with the previous phases, Salix will be the delivery partner of Phase 3 PSDS.

The scheme follows Phase 2 PSDS in focusing on a 'whole building' approach, combining heat decarbonisation with energy efficiency measures.

However, there are some key differences to Phase 3, including the amount of funding available, the introduction of multi-year funding alongside the single year funding route, and that there is no funding cap on the value of funding awarded.

Alongside PSDS, there is the Public Sector Low Carbon Skills Fund (LCSF).

The Phase 3 LCSF will continue to make grant funding available (2022/23 to 2024/25) for public sector organisations to access the necessary skills and expertise required to put in place a heat decarbonisation plan.

While LCSF is a stand-alone scheme, it is in scope of this evaluation so that BEIS can assess the role that Phase 3 LCSF played in the delivery of Phase 3 PSDS.

BEIS expects the study to deliver process, impact and economic evaluations, beginning in July 2022 with Stage 1 (process evaluation, and impact and economic evaluation scoping).

Stage 2 will run from April 2024 to March 2026 and will consist of the ongoing process evaluation and impact and economic evaluations.

Reporting of process evaluation interim findings will be required in March 2023 and March 2024 to inform any changes to Phase 3 PSDS and future policy.

BEIS expects all evidence to be synthesised with final reporting on the process, impact and economic evaluations in March 2026.

The process evaluation is expected to take place across both stages of the study and will focus on investigating how Phase 3 PSDS develops from the initial setup through to the final delivery of projects.

It aims to understand what happens during scheme implementation, how the scheme design and administration have supported the delivery of the PSDS aims and what worked more (or less well and why).

LCSF will also be explored as part of the process evaluation.

The process evaluation will need to include primary research and secondary analysis of scheme data. (Description of activity continues below)