Since 1 January 2021, high value (above threshold) tenders in the UK have been published via the Government’s e-procurement portal, Find a Tender service(FTS).
FTS is the public portal for all high value notices published in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The portal is used by public buyers to advertise contracts, and by suppliers to access these opportunities.
What are high value notices?
High value notices make up around 34% of all contract opportunities in the UK, with lower value notices making the other 66%. The thresholds which determine if contracts are higher or lower value change biennially, and vary in value for goods, works and services. Details of current thresholds can be found here.
Prior to 1 January 2021, high-value notices were published to the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU). With the conclusion of Brexit, high-value notices from the UK are no longer advertised on the OJEU. UK business can, however, still bid for applicable high value EU contracts. Further details on the changes introduced with Brexit can be found here.
What is the best way to search for tenders?
Find a Tender is a portal just for high value UK notices, meaning you cannot use it to access lower value tenders, notices of any value from the ROI, or high value EU notices. For full coverage of high and low value notices across the UK and ROI, as well as applicable OJEU notices – you need Tenders Direct.
Tenders Direct is the UK’s most accurate tender alert service. With our unique Peer Review Process and tailored business profiles, we can guarantee you regular, timely and relevant business opportunities.
Tenders Direct is the UK’s most accurate tender alert service. We are the only service to guarantee that with us – you’ll never miss a tender.
For more information about we can help you find and win more work in the public sector, please visit www.tendersdirect.co.uk or call us on 0800 222 9009.
Tender notices published in the UK between 11.12.20 & 17.12.20
Tenders Direct provides full coverage of public sector tenders of any value across the UK and ROI. Our team of specialists source every notice and then reclassifies each one for accuracy. We rely on humans, not algorithms, to ensure you never miss a tender. Request a free demo of our service to search through these notices, and discover what opportunities the public sector has to offer.
In the news this week
Largest council housing scheme for 50 years in Salford Salford City has approved the creation of 417 new eco-friendly homes, to help tackle the housing crisis in the city. Of the homes, 188 will be available for social rent, 127 for affordable rent, 52 to the private rented sector and 50 will be sold. They will provide a quality and sustainable range of house types and size to meet local needs.
Ambitious plans for £100million investment in Council housing will transform Renfrewshire Proposals for a major investment programme which will transform council housing in Renfrewshire over the next decade have been given the go-ahead. The Regeneration and Renewal Programme will invest at least £100million in council housing over the next 10 years, creating 300 newbuild homes, and improve existing housing in eight areas in Johnstone, Paisley and Renfrew in its first phase.
Construction, particularly for new homes, continues to receive heavy investment across the UK. Use our Construction Search Category to get an idea of the types of opportunities currently available.
Council committed to delivering delayed £130m Albion Square development Hull City Council remains committed to delivering the stalled £130m Albion Square development. The council plans to re-develop the site with a mix of new retail, housing, offices and leisure – including a new ice rink to replace the facility at Hull Arena. Delays have been encountered due to issues with securing commercial partners, the Grade II listed Three Ships mural on the old Bhs building, and the impact of Covid-19.
We will be taking a break from posting to our blog and social media from Monday 21 December 2020, until Monday 4 January 2021.
Other than the days detailed below, our offices will be open as usual during the festive period: Mon – Fri, 8am – 5pm.
Festive Closure ◆ Thursday 24 December 2020 – from 1pm ◆ Friday 25 December 2020 – ALL DAY ◆ Monday 28 December 2020 – ALL DAY ◆ Thursday 31 December 2020 – from 1pm ◆ Frida, 1 January 2020 – ALL DAY
Got an enquiry? Get in touch. ◆ Customer Services – 0800 222 9010 ◆ New Business Team – 0800 222 9009 ◆ Email – askus@tendersdirect.co.uk ◆ Live chat – http://www.tendersdirect.co.uk
Wishing you all the best for the festive season and New Year. The Tenders Direct team
Top OJEU contract award notices
Title: United Kingdom-Livingston: Security software development services Short description: To enhance the existing safety and security of Glow, Education Scotland has a requirement to place a contract with an external service provider for the creation and ongoing support of a bespoke safeguarding product and services to function within Scotland’s national digital learning platform known as Glow. Published By: Education Scotland Date Published: 15 December 2020 Framework/DPS: No Value excluding VAT: £841,250.00 Number of tenders received: 2 (Of which were SMEs: 1) Contractors: Seric Systems Ltd View full notice on Tenders Direct
Title: United Kingdom-Manchester: Construction work for buildings relating to education and research Short description: Construction of a new building and refurbishment works on the John Dalton site for the Faculty of Science and Engineering. Published by: Manchester Metropolitan University Date Published: 16 December 2020 Framework/DPS: No Value excluding VAT: £82,000,000.00 Number of tenders received: 3 Contractors: Bowmer + Kirkland Ltd View full notice on Tenders Direct
Title: United Kingdom-London: IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support Short description: Contract for the provision of a Managed Service Provider (MSP) that could help develop and deliver ARDS. Published By: Home Office Date Published: 16 December 2020 Framework/DPS: No Value excluding VAT: £30,000,000.00 Number of tenders received: 5 Contractors: Leidos Innovations UK Ltd View full notice on Tenders Direct
Online training courses: January – February 2021
Our CPD accredited courses are delivered live and online over 2 days, offering you the same benefits of classroom training but with the added comfort and convenience of doing them from home.
Your tutor for these sessions will be Jamie Edwards, who is an expert bid writer with over 20 years’ experience. His sessions are interactive, meaning you will be able to ask questions throughout and benefit from tailored feedback and advice.
These courses are delivered over Microsoft teams and you can attend without any installation required to your computer – but it is highly recommended that you join using a desktop or laptop computer rather than a tablet or mobile phone. Ideally you will have both a webcam and microphone.
In-house Training Having the right skills is critical. We can deliver bespoke in-house training to give your team the exact skills they need to find and win contracts in 2021 and beyond. Get in touch on 0800 222 9009 or email askus@tendersdirect.co.uk to discuss your needs, and find out what we can offer.
Tenders Direct is the UK’s most accurate tender alert service. We are the only service to guarantee that with us – you’ll never miss a tender.
For more information about we can help you find and win more work in the public sector, please visit www.tendersdirect.co.uk or call us on 0800 222 9009.
Tender notices published in the UK between 13.11.20 & 19.11.20
If you are interested in finding out what the market looks like for your industry, get in touch and we’ll be happy to provide you with a free overview for your business. Alternatively, start looking for opportunities with our tender search tool on www.tendersdirect.co.uk
In the news this week
£175 million more for cycling and walking as research shows public support Councils across England have been given access to a further £175 million to create safe space for cycling and walking. This news comes as surveys show 8/10 people support measures to reduce traffic in their neighbourhoods. This funding is part of the £2 billion announced in May to promote more active travel options. This funding will be used to create numerous opportunities, of all values, across the country. Visit our dedicated Construction tender category on our site to view current opportunities.
£16 million to introduce digital prescribing in hospitals 16 hospitals across England will receive a share of £16 million to introduce electronic prescribing systems, replacing the need for paper prescriptions. These systems are being used to greatly improve efficiency, and since 2018, 216 NHS trusts have adopted these systems. The long term plan is to eliminate paper prescribing across the entire NHS by 2024 – meaning there will continue to be associated Tech opportunities until then.
Extraordinary notices
Title: United Kingdom-Chester: National Framework Agreement for Provision of Sterile Services and Endoscopy Decontamination Facility Short description: The framework agreement will allow NHS organisations to procure a Supplier who can design, build and equip a SSD and subsequently maintain the facility and its equipment under a managed service contract. Suppliers may provide finance to the NHS organisation for the design, build and equip of the SSD, as well as ongoing provision of appropriate facilities management. Published By: Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Date Published: 18 November 2020 Deadline: 04 January 2021 Framework/DPS: Yes Value excluding VAT: £375,000,000.00 View full notice on Tenders Direct
When Brexit concludes at the end of this year, the government’s new e-tender service ‘Find a Tender’ will replace the OJEU in the UK for above threshold tenders. Find out what this means for finding and winning public contracts in 2021, in our new post Brexit and Public Procurement.
Top OJEU contract award notices
Title: United Kingdom-London: Pharmaceutical products Short description: Supply of a range of supportive medicines including end of life, intensive care unit and antibiotics. Published By: Department of Health and Social Care Date Published: 16 November 2020 Framework/DPS: No Value excluding VAT: £791,968.00 Number of tenders received: 1 (Of which were SMEs: 1) Contractors: Fresenius Kabi Ltd View full notice on Tenders Direct
Title: United Kingdom-Sale: Street-lighting maintenance services Short description: Reactive maintenance. Published By: Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council Date Published: 18 November 2020 Framework/DPS: Yes Value excluding VAT: £2,000,000.00 Number of tenders received: 4 Contractors: Acorn Lighting Services Ltd, Jones Lighting Ltd, SSE Contracting Ltd View full notice on Tenders Direct
Title: United Kingdom-Newport: Postal services Short description: To print personalised letters containing name, address and a unique reference/serial number for each record/person invited to take apart in the Covid-19 Infection Survey (CIS). Published By: Office for National Statistics (‘ONS’) Date Published: 18 November 2020 Framework/DPS: No Value excluding VAT: £4,500,000.00 Number of tenders received: 1 Contractors: HH Associates Ltd View full notice on Tenders Direct
Are you winning contracts in the private sector but unsure how to start in the public sector? Join us for our upcoming free webinar where we will discuss the differences between the two sectors, and how you can start bidding for public contracts.
The topics we will cover are: ◆ How the public sector differs from the private sector ◆ The similarities between tendering in both ◆ How to find public sector opportunities ◆ How to undertake your first public sector tenders
Tenders Direct is the UK’s most accurate tender alert service. We are the only service to guarantee that with us – you’ll never miss a tender. Visit www.tendersdirect.co.uk to find out more.
The Brexit transition period concluded on 1 January 2021. This means the UK is no longer a member of the EU, and is now a member of the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) Government Procurement Agreement (GPA).
Key public procurement developments to be aware of:
For any procurement started, and not completed before 31 December 2020, procurement regulations that were in place under the EU will still apply until the contract has been awarded.
From 1 January 2021, the new e-tender service ‘Find a Tender’ will replace the Official Journal of the European Union in the UK for above threshold tenders.
The existing UK government portals – Contracts Finder, Public Contracts Scotland, Sell2Wales and eTendersNI – will remain in operation and will be unchanged.
While there will be no immediate changes to procurement policies, from 1 January 2021 the government will have the power to introduce new or temporary legislation.
How does Brexit affect finding new tenders?
Tenders Direct customers are unaffected by the introduction of Find a Tender Service. Our team of Sourcing Specialists upload high value notices published through the Find a Tender service, directly to Tenders Direct. Low value tenders will also be available as normal.
If you do not currently use a tender alert service, the introduction of the Find a Tender Service means you have another portal to check for opportunities – taking you more time to find contracts that are suitable for you.
Thanks to our unique Peer Review Process, our team are able to source, review and classify all notices from Find a Tender. This process allows us to categorise notices based on the keywords you search for, creating an easy to search database. With full coverage of all UK and ROI tenders, as well as applicable EU notices, Tenders Direct offers the UK’s most accurate tender alert service.
Your Questions
Are thresholds going to change? The EU thresholds introduced on 1 January 2020 will remain in place until 1 January 2022. Future thresholds will be determined by the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) Government Procurement Agreement (GPA) – which the UK has been a member of since 1 January 2021.
How will it be regulated to ensure all notices that are meant to be published on FTS are published on there? No regulations have been introduced that we are currently aware of. This will work very much in the same way as Contracts Finder – notices ‘should’ be published to it. We will continue to use our Peer Review Process to ensure no tenders are missed, no matter where they are published.
Will the Find a Tender service display contracts published prior to 1 January 2021? Find a Tender had a blank slate on the 1 January, meaning only notices published from that date forward will be visible. Tenders Direct will however still have details of all existing notices originally published on the OJEU.
Will Tenders Direct still publish tenders from all sources? Yes, Tenders Direct Will continue to provide full coverage. This means tenders from all official UK and ROI portals (this includes Contracts Finder and Find a Tender), all low-value notices from other sources, as well as high-value opportunities from the OJEU.
Will UK suppliers still be able to bid for OJEU tenders? Yes, UK suppliers will be able to continue bidding for applicable OJEU contracts.
Will we still be able to receive OJEU tenders notifications through Tenders Direct? Yes, we will keep you informed of OJEU notices through both our alerts and tender search tool.
Will there be an option to opt out of OJEU tenders? Yes, you will be able to opt out by selecting ‘UK only’ in your profile.
Is there anything I should be aware of?
For the time being, procurement policies will remain closely aligned with the rules in place before Brexit. However, with no requirements to comply with EU directives for public procurement, the UK Government has scope to introduce changes.
In our free on demand webinar, we take a closer look at what Brexit and the introduction of Find a Tender mean for you as a supplier. The topics covered in our free on demand webinar are: • Procurement after Brexit and Find a Tender Service • What it means for public sector organisations and private companies • What will happen with above-threshold procurement (OJEU) • How to best prepare for the year ahead • Useful tips, tools, and best practice learned from working in the public sector and tendering
