Search Flexibility Market Rules

v1.0Current version

Published12/12/2025Effective date12/12/2025Release date12/12/2025

Delivery Plan Procedure

Document Summary

This document describes the processes for creating the Market Facilitator’s two-year Delivery Plan and annual Delivery Schedule.

Propose change

Delivery Plan Procedure - Flexibility Market Rules - Elexon

1Publication and Implementation Dates

1.1

The Publish Date and the Implementation Date for this Governance Document are as follows:

Term	Date
Publish Date	12 December 2025
Implementation Date	12 December 2025

1.2

The Publish Date and Implementation Date form part of the legal baseline for this Governance Document and shall be taken as the effective dates for the purposes of interpretation and version control.

1.3

In the event of any discrepancy between the dates stated above and those referenced in any accompanying publication, metadata, or communication, the dates recorded in this Governance Document shall prevail.

1.4

For the avoidance of doubt, the Implementation Date represents the date on which the obligations, rights, and procedures set out in this Governance Document take operational effect.

2Introduction

2.1Purpose

2.1.1

This document establishes the governance and procedural framework for developing, gathering stakeholder comments, approving, and publishing the Delivery Plan and Delivery Schedule. It defines how Delivery Plan Opportunities are identified, evaluated, prioritised, and incorporated into the Delivery Plan; and how stakeholder engagement is undertaken to inform and refine the Delivery Plan and Delivery Schedule

2.1.2

This procedure ensures that the Market Facilitator’s planning processes are transparent, evidence-based, and aligned with the performance objectives set by the Authority in the Governance Framework Document.

2.1.3

This document:

Establishes the governance framework for developing and publishing the Delivery Plan, and for gathering and incorporating stakeholder comments to shape that Delivery Plan;
establishes the governance framework for the development and publication of the Delivery Schedule;
sets out the guidelines and process for adding and managing Delivery Plan Opportunities; and
Describes the stakeholder engagement for inputs and seeking views on Delivery Plan Opportunities.

2.2Scope

2.2.1

This procedure applies to the preparation, publication, amendment, and ongoing management of the Delivery Plan and the Delivery Schedule.

2.2.2

It covers:

The development of the Delivery Plan, setting out the Market Facilitator’s key priorities, activities, timelines and deliverables for the relevant Delivery Plan Period;
the development of the annual Delivery Schedule, providing a detailed view of the activities to be undertaken in each Business Year;
the processes for managing Delivery Plan Opportunities, including their validation, prioritisation, and stakeholder engagement; and
the process for revising the Delivery Plan or Delivery Schedule where necessary, including engagement with the Stakeholder Advisory Board and other stakeholders.

2.3Delivery Plan and Delivery Schedule

2.3.1

As Market Facilitator, Elexon is the custodian and owner of the Delivery Plan and the Delivery Schedule. The content of the Delivery Plan will be based on Delivery Plan Opportunities and any other matters that the Market Facilitator considers necessary to fulfil the performance objectives set by the Authority in the relevant Governance Framework Document. The Delivery Plan shall also take into account comments received from stakeholders.

2.3.2

The Authority will publish a new version of the Governance Framework Document for each Delivery Plan Period, specifying the Market Facilitator’s performance objectives and scope for that period.

2.3.3

The Delivery Plan shall be prepared and published every two years, covering the subsequent two Business Years. The Business Year aligns with the Elexon business planning cycle and financial year defined under the Balancing and Settlement Code.

2.3.4

The Delivery Schedule, published once per Business Year, shall provide a detailed and granular view of the activities and tasks outlined in the Delivery Plan for the subsequent Business Year.

2.3.5

The Market Facilitator’s decision on the Delivery Plan and the Delivery Schedule shall be final. There shall be no right of appeal.

2.4Main Users of this procedure and their responsibilities

2.4.1

The main users of this procedure are:

The Market Facilitator, whose responsibilities are to:
1. Lead the development, drafting and publication of the Delivery Plan and Delivery Schedule.
2. Coordinate stakeholder engagement activities and gather comments and feedback to inform the Delivery Plan.
Stakeholder Advisory Board, whose responsibilities are to:
1. Provide strategic input, oversight and give its views on the draft Delivery Plan prior to publication.
System Operators (SOs), Flexibility Service Providers and other stakeholders, whose responsibilities are to:
1. Contribute to the development of the Delivery Plan by participating in engagement activities such as workshops and webinars, submitting Delivery Plan Opportunities, and providing comments on draft Delivery Plans.

3High-level processes

3.1Setting the Delivery Plan

3.1.1

Collection and evaluation of Delivery Plan Opportunities – The Market Facilitator shall evaluate the Delivery Plan Opportunities, having regard to the Delivery Plan Objectives and any guidance issued by the Authority, and determine which Delivery Plan Opportunities should be included in the draft Delivery Plan.

3.1.2

Setting Delivery Plan Objectives for the relevant Delivery Plan period – The Market Facilitator shall set the Delivery Plan Objectives based on the scope and performance objectives set by the Authority in the relevant Governance Framework Document, taking into account its own analysis of Delivery Plan Opportunities in accordance with paragraph 2.3 and its wider strategic leadership considerations.

3.1.3

Preparation of the draft Delivery Plan – The Market Facilitator shall prepare and issue a draft of the Delivery Plan for the purpose of gathering comments from stakeholders. The draft Delivery Plan shall be based on the evaluation and prioritisation of Delivery Plan Opportunities, in accordance with paragraph 3.3, and any other items that the Market Facilitator considers necessary to include.

3.1.4

Stakeholder engagement activities – The Market Facilitator shall engage with stakeholders on the draft Delivery Plan, for example through webinars, workshops or other appropriate engagement mechanisms, as needed. The draft Delivery Plan shall also be made available for stakeholder comments.

3.1.5

Stakeholder Advisory Board engagement activities – The Market Facilitator shall formally seek the views of the Stakeholder Advisory Board on the draft Delivery Plan. The SAB shall be provided with any public comments received from stakeholders on the draft Delivery Plan so that these may be taken into account when forming its views on the draft Delivery Plan.

3.1.6

Refinement of the draft Delivery Plan – Following engagement with stakeholders and the Stakeholder Advisory Board, the Market Facilitator shall update and refine the draft Delivery Plan, taking into account all comments received.

3.1.7

Publication of the Delivery Plan – Following refinement of the draft Delivery Plan, in accordance with 3.1.6, the Market Facilitator shall publish the final Delivery Plan on the Elexon Website and notify stakeholders prior to the commencement of the Business Year to which the Delivery Plan relates.

3.2Setting the Delivery Schedule

3.2.1

The Market Facilitator shall prepare and publish a Delivery Schedule each Business Year for the subsequent Business Year.

3.2.2

The key steps for developing the Delivery Schedule are as follows:

Assess the activities in the Delivery Plan – review the draft or final Delivery Plan, as applicable, to assess timescales, sequencing, dependencies, constraints, and any other material changes in circumstances since its publication.
Identify dependencies and sequencing – analyse Delivery Plan Items to identify interdependencies, critical inputs, and constraints, and assess whether any additional Delivery Plan Opportunities should be incorporated into the Delivery Schedule.
Schedule the Delivery Plan Items – allocate Delivery Plan Items across the Business Year, taking account of dependencies and sequencing.
Validate the Delivery Schedule – ensure that the Delivery Schedule is realistic, deliverable, and aligned with the Delivery Plan Objectives. Seek stakeholder comments and views of the Stakeholder Advisory Board, as required.
Publish the Delivery Schedule – publish the final Delivery Schedule on the Elexon Website and notify stakeholders prior to the commencement of the Business Year to which it relates.

3.3Delivery Plan Opportunities validation and prioritisation

3.3.1

The Market Facilitator and any Interested Person may submit Delivery Plan Opportunities for consideration. Upon receipt of a Delivery Plan Opportunity, the Market Facilitator shall validate and prioritise it in accordance with paragraph 3.3. The Market Facilitator shall maintain and publish a log of all submitted Delivery Plan Opportunities, including their status, on the Elexon Website at least quarterly.

3.3.2

The Market Facilitator shall undertake any necessary internal assessments, and complete an initial evaluation to determine which Delivery Plan Opportunities should be considered for inclusion in the Delivery Plan or Delivery Schedule in accordance with paragraph 3.1 or paragraph 3.2 or whether an amendment to the Delivery Plan or Delivery Schedule should be made in accordance with paragraph 3.5.

3.3.3

The Market Facilitator shall engage the Stakeholder Advisory Board at least quarterly to discuss, review and provide input on the validation and prioritisation of Delivery Plan Opportunities, including any proposed additions, removals or re-prioritisations within the Delivery Plan or Delivery Schedule.

3.3.4

The Market Facilitator shall validate each Delivery Plan Opportunities against:

The Market Facilitator’s scope and performance objectives, as determined by the Authority in the relevant Governance Framework Document; and
The Delivery Plan Objectives.

3.3.5

Where necessary, the Market Facilitator shall also prioritise Delivery Plan Opportunities in accordance with the following criteria:

Alignment with the Delivery Plan objectives – includes being able to demonstrate a link to the Delivery Plan.
Implementation costs – considering the cost and how easy the Delivery Plan Opportunity is to implement. Includes the likely implications for Stakeholders, e.g. scope of any process Delivery Plan Opportunity, potential system impacts, cross-code changes, and the level of industry resource required, such as requirements to hold workgroup meetings.
Importance – includes the perceived value, criticality and risk to industry and consumers (e.g. interaction with or enabling of other financial/regulatory/licence/compliance obligations, changes to costs for Stakeholders), taking account of written guidance that the Authority may provide.
Time-sensitivity – includes where Delivery Plan Opportunities require rapid consideration within the process. Both complexity and importance should be factors considered in evaluating time-sensitivity as well as the timescales for implementation.

3.3.6

Prioritisation will be used to determine which Delivery Plan Opportunities to work on and at what pace. Delivery Plan Opportunities shall be categorised as:

Low priority – Delivery Plan Opportunities that will be included in our backlog and considered in subsequent Delivery Periods.
Standard priority – requires standard timelines.
High priority – requires faster assessment and delivery.

3.4Delivery Plan (DP) Process

Delivery Plan Process diagram showing the activities for collating and prioritising Delivery Plan Opportunities and updating the Flexibility Markets Delivery Plan.

Figure 1: Delivery Plan Process - describes the key activities for collating, prioritising Delivery Plan Opportunities to update the Flexibility Markets Delivery Plan

3.5Amending the Delivery Plan or Delivery Schedule

3.5.1

Upon identification of any changes to Delivery Plan Opportunities, or any other factors that may materially impact the Delivery Plan or the Delivery Schedule, the Market Facilitator shall assess the implications, benefits, and feasibility of a potential amendment. Triggers may include (without limitation):

a request or direction from the Authority;
an upheld appeal in relation to the Market Facilitator’s budget; or
any material change in circumstances, including new or reprioritised Delivery Plan Opportunities, affecting deliverability or scope.

3.5.2

Where the Market Facilitator considers that an amendment may be required, it shall prepare a change amendment proposal setting out the proposed amendment(s), the rationale, and anticipated impacts.

3.5.3

Where the Market Facilitator proposes to amend the Delivery Plan and or Delivery schedule, it may, if appropriate, seek stakeholder comments and views of the Stakeholder Advisory Board.

3.5.4

Following its assessment and having taken into account any comments and feedback received under paragraph 3.5.3, the Market Facilitator shall decide whether to amend the Delivery Plan and/or the Delivery Schedule.

3.5.5

Any approved amendment shall be incorporated into a republished version of the Delivery Plan and/or Delivery Schedule (as applicable), which shall be published on the Elexon Website and notified to stakeholders. The Market Facilitator shall maintain an audit trail of versions and effective dates.

Process diagram for amending and republishing the Delivery Plan or Delivery Schedule.

Figure 2: Amending and re-publishing the Delivery Plan or Delivery Schedule Process

4Acronyms and defined terms

4.1List of Acronyms

None Used

4.2List of Definitions

A master list of definitions can be found in the Market Facilitator Glossary.

The following definitions are specific to this Governance Document. These are supplemented by the definitions in the Market Facilitator Glossary. If there is an inconsistency between definitions, the definition in this document shall prevail.

Acronyms and defined terms

Term	Aliases	Definition
Business Year	-	each successive period of twelve months beginning on 1st April in each year
Delivery Plan Item	-	a specific activity, deliverable, or area of work included in the Delivery Plan, whether or not it originated from a Delivery Plan Change Opportunity
Delivery Plan Objective	-	an objective set by the Market Facilitator in its Delivery Plan for a Delivery Plan Period, which gives effect to, and is consistent with, the performance objectives specified for the Market Facilitator by the Authority in their relevant Governance Framework Document
Delivery Plan Period	-	the period specified by the Authority in the Governance Framework Document as the period to which a Delivery Plan relates

FGD: Delivery Plan Procedure - Amendment record

Guidance

This section is provided as guidance to this flexibility governance document. Therefore, it is not legally binding and falls outside of the formal change management process.

Version	Published Date	Document Status	Description of Changes	Change Proposal Reference	Market Facilitator Decision Report Ref
1.0	12/12/2025	Final	Document Published	-	-

Annex 1: Associated meta-data

Guidance

This annex is provided as guidance to this flexibility governance document . Therefore, it is not legally binding and falls outside of the formal change management process.

Identifier	FGD-DPP
Title	Delivery Plan Procedure
Type	Flexibility Market Governance
Collection	Governance Document
Audience	NESO, DNOs, Market Facilitator, Flexibility Service Providers, Ofgem, SAB, other interested persons
Expertise	N/A
Owner	Market Facilitator
Expected benefit	N/A
Related end-to-end process reference	N/A
References	FGD-CMP, FGD-SAB, FGD-FMF,
IsReferencedBy
Published version number	1.0
Applicability	N/A
Published Date	12/12/2025
Implementation Date	12/12/2025
End Date	-
Terms of variations
List of Derogations	N/A
IsReplacedBy	N/A
Replaces	N/A
Status	Final
Change since last version	N/A
Description	This document describes the processes for creating the Market Facilitator’s two-year Delivery Plan and annual Delivery Schedule.