Find a TenderOpen for tender Tender notice
Published 2 Oct 2026, 17:04 BST

Official UK procurement notice

003726 - Internal Audit Management System

Authority: Durham County Council (Local council)

GoodsBelow threshold - open competitionBelow threshold
Published estimate£170,000≈ £57k / year · £204,000 inc. VAT
Submission deadline 5 Nov 202610:00 GMT · 33d 17h left
Clarification cut-off 30 Oct 202610:00 GMT · questions to the authority
Contract term 3 yrsup to 6 yrs with extensions · starts 1 Apr 2027
Bids per lot · this authority 2division 48 · n=6 · competition analysis ↓

What is being bought

Published requirement description

Replacement of Internal Audit Software system. Full requirements can be found in Document 3a. Contract Specification and PSQ Appendix 1 of the tender documents, which are available free of charge at www.open-uk.org

The reason for this procurement is due to our existing Internal Audit Management Software being on premise and the Council is currently undergoing a 'cloud first' strategy.

CPV: Industry specific software package

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · value published
Lot #1Lot 1Renewal 3 yrsPublished value£170,000
Contract period: 1 Apr 2027 — 31 Mar 2030 (3 yrs) · up to 6 yrs with extensionsDelivery: North EastTurnover guideline: ~£113,230/yr≈ 2× annual value
Value
£170,000 exc. VAT · £204,000 inc. VAT
Extensions
The Contract period is for an initial 3-year period, with the option to extend for a further 1 x 36 months subject to satisfactory performance, service continuity and the Council's future requirements.
48100000 Industry specific software package

Who is likely to bid for this lot ↓

What it takes to win
i

How this buyer will score bids.

The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).

Evaluation split and conditions of participation as published — the tender pack may add more
How bids are scored
Quality: 50%Price: 50%
Published sub-criteria (6)
  • Statement of Works — 20%
  • Training and Knowledge Transfer — 5%
  • Hypercare and Post Hypercare Support — 5%
  • System Demonstration — 15%
  • Desirable System Functionality — 5%
  • Price — 50%

No conditions of participation were published on the notice; check the tender documents.

Competition analysis · published record, not a forecast of who will bid

How Durham County Council buys Industry specific software package (CPV 4810) — and who usually turns up

Durham County Council’s own published record, next to the North East England market for the same work. Frameworks and DPS are kept out: they attract a different number of bids. Whole-market view: Industry specific software package (CPV 4810) →

1

How the contest usually goes

Left: this authority. Right: the market where the work is delivered. Bids and award-vs-estimate pairs are per lot, from contested contracts only — direct awards (including PA 2023 transparency notices) report one bid by definition and are left out. On Procurement Act 2023 notices the count is the tenders assessed at the final stage, not every submission received; pairs compare like with like (VAT-exclusive, or VAT-inclusive on both sides). Empty means nothing was published, not filled in from elsewhere.

This authority

Durham County Council

contract notices in 36 months: 10 in CPV 4810 (7 route not published) · 24 in division 48 (1 without competition · 14 route not published) · 161 in all categories (24 without competition · 41 route not published)

Bids per lot
i

How many companies usually bid for work like this.

Middle value of published bid counts, one per lot, for this buyer or this region in the same sector.

Based on this buyer’s tenders in this industry (CPV 48), last 36 months: 6 lots. 3 lots are from Procurement Act 2023 notices (bids assessed, middle 2) and 3 from older notices (bids received, middle 3).

Nothing is filled in from UK-wide numbers. An empty tile means nothing usable was published.

2division 48 · 36m · n=6 lots
Single-bid lots
i

How often only one company bid.

Share of lots that received exactly one bid, on the same competitions as the bids figure.

Based on this buyer’s tenders in this industry (CPV 48), last 36 months: 6 lots.

High means a thin market or an incumbent that is hard to beat.

17%division 48 · 36m · n=6 lots
Award vs estimate
i

Do awards for work like this land above or below the estimate.

Estimate against award per lot, for this buyer or this region in the same sector.

Based on this buyer’s tenders in this industry (CPV 48), last 36 months: 4 pairs.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

3% abovedivision 48 · 36m · n=4 pairs
Deadline → award date
i

How long buyers here take to decide after bids close.

Middle value in days from the deadline to the first award notice, on competitions that published both dates.

Based on this buyer’s tenders in this industry (CPV 48), last 36 months: 3 notices.

Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.

Last 36 months.

42ddivision 48 · 36m · n=3 notices
Notice updates
i

How often this buyer changes a notice after publishing it.

Middle number of amendments per notice. Deadline extensions and corrections both count.

Based on this buyer’s tenders in all categories, last 24 months: 408 notices.

Last 24 months.

0all categories · 24m · n=408 notices
Awarded without competition
i

How often this buyer awards without a competition.

Direct or limited awards as a share of its notices that say which procedure was used. These routes are legal in defined cases. This is just the record.

Based on this buyer’s tenders in this sector (CPV 4810), last 36 months: 3 notices.

Last 36 months.

0%CPV 4810 · 36m · n=3 notices
Bids per lot robust · n=6
i

How the number of bidders is spread across lots.

Each lot with a published bid count is put in a band: one bid, two to three, four to six, seven or more. Real competitions only.

Based on 6 lots on 6 contested notices · division 48, last 36 months.

  • 1 bid 17%
  • 2–3 67%
  • 4–6 17%
  • 7+ 0%

Middle value 2 · 6 lots on 6 contested notices · division 48.

Winning award vs estimate moderate · n=4
i

How often winners come in below, near or above the estimate.

Each lot with both an estimate and an award is placed by how far the award sat from the estimate.

Based on 4 lot pairs · division 48, last 36 months.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

  • Below estimate 25%
  • Within ±2% 25%
  • Above estimate 50%

4 lot pairs · division 48.

The market · delivery region

North East England · Industry specific software package (CPV 4810)

contract notices delivered in North East England in 36 months: 47 in CPV 4810 (20 competed, 12 route not published) · 408 in division 48 (161 competed, 100 route not published)

Bids per lot
i

How many companies usually bid for work like this.

Middle value of published bid counts, one per lot, for this buyer or this region in the same sector.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 4810), last 36 months: 10 lots. 7 lots are from Procurement Act 2023 notices (bids assessed, middle 2) and 3 from older notices (bids received, middle 3).

Nothing is filled in from UK-wide numbers. An empty tile means nothing usable was published.

2.5CPV 4810 · 36m · n=10 lots
Single-bid lots
i

How often only one company bid.

Share of lots that received exactly one bid, on the same competitions as the bids figure.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 4810), last 36 months: 10 lots.

High means a thin market or an incumbent that is hard to beat.

20%CPV 4810 · 36m · n=10 lots
Award vs estimate
i

Do awards for work like this land above or below the estimate.

Estimate against award per lot, for this buyer or this region in the same sector.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 4810), last 36 months: 6 pairs.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

11% belowCPV 4810 · 36m · n=6 pairs
Deadline → award date
i

How long buyers here take to decide after bids close.

Middle value in days from the deadline to the first award notice, on competitions that published both dates.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 4810), last 36 months: 7 notices.

Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.

Last 36 months.

43dCPV 4810 · 36m · n=7 notices
SME bidders
i

How much of this market goes to small and medium firms.

SME bidders where buyers published the split, otherwise SME winners.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 4810), last 36 months: 9 lots.

Last 36 months.

88%CPV 4810 · 36m · n=9 lots
Winners based in the region
i

How much work like this goes to companies based in the delivery region.

Awards in this category delivered here where the winner’s registered address is in the region.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 4810), last 36 months: 21 awards.

Registered address, so a national firm with a local branch counts as outside.

Last 36 months.

19%CPV 4810 · 36m · n=21 awards
Bids per lot robust · n=10
i

How the number of bidders is spread across lots.

Each lot with a published bid count is put in a band: one bid, two to three, four to six, seven or more. Real competitions only.

Based on 10 lots on 10 contested notices · CPV 4810, last 36 months.

  • 1 bid 20%
  • 2–3 60%
  • 4–6 10%
  • 7+ 10%

Middle value 2.5 · 10 lots on 10 contested notices · CPV 4810.

Winning award vs estimate robust · n=6
i

How often winners come in below, near or above the estimate.

Each lot with both an estimate and an award is placed by how far the award sat from the estimate.

Based on 6 lot pairs · CPV 4810, last 36 months.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

  • Below estimate 67%
  • Within ±2% 0%
  • Above estimate 33%

6 lot pairs · CPV 4810.

moderate · n=4
i

Where this tender’s estimate would land if the usual pattern repeats.

We apply the buyer’s usual movement between estimate and award (or the region’s) to the estimate on this notice.

Based on 4 lots, so only the direction is shown, not a pound figure.

A benchmark, not a price to bid.

The middle award in Durham County Council (division 48, n=4 pairs) lands 3% above. Too few pairs to turn into a pound figure with any confidence — read the percentage as a rough direction, not this notice’s estimate converted.
Coverage and what to read with care
  • Each tile explains itself. The on a figure says what it is, how it is counted and which scope this notice’s own record came from (class, division, all categories, or the authority’s 24-month row). The two columns are never blended and nothing is filled from a UK-wide figure; an empty tile means the source published nothing usable. Long form: Methodology.
  • Coverage. Roughly 40 % of notices publish a bid count; about half publish an ITL1 delivery location, so the market column reads the authority’s registered region when the notice has none (labelled). About 30 % of award-vs-estimate pairs are exact matches — the buyer published the award at the estimate. n is on every figure; a thin sample is muted, never hidden.
  • “Match” and “relevance” are model scores from the nightly matcher, not published facts. Find a Tender does not publish who is bidding. Never shown: contact details, payment behaviour, or a recommended price.

Procedure terms & legal framework

From the official record
Procedure method
Below threshold - open competition
Legal basis
UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
Procurement category
Goods
Notice status
Open for tender
Procurement threshold
Below threshold
Regulatory regime
Standard
Commercial structure
Stand-alone contract (no framework)
Competition type
Competitive procedure
GPA / WTO covered
Unspecified in notice
Recurring procurement
No (one-off requirement)
First published
2 Oct 2026, 17:04 BST
Last source update
2 Oct 2026, 17:04 BST
Authority reference
OPEN20261825
Latest notice
Tender notice (UK4)
Classification (CPV)
Industry specific software package
Delivery area
North East (UKC14)
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-07802a Find a Tender

How to participate & submission route

Official notice
Expression of interest (EOI)
—
Tender submission deadline
5 Nov 2026, 10:00 GMT
Clarification deadline
30 Oct 2026, 10:00 GMT
Electronic submission
Allowed
Detailed submission instructions & authority contactsFrom official release
Tender documents can be accessed free of charge on the Open Portal at www.open-uk.org ↗ Clarifications and submissions must be made via the Open Portal
Published estimate £170,000 excludes VAT (£204,000 including VAT).

Timeline

4 published dates · Europe/London
  1. Tender notice publishedjust passed
    2 Oct 2026, 17:04 BST
  2. Clarification questions byin 28 days
    30 Oct 2026, 10:00 GMT
  3. Submission deadlinein 34 days
    5 Nov 2026, 10:00 GMT
  4. Contract startsin 180 days
    1 Apr 2027, 00:00 BST

Commercial outcome & contract awards

Nothing awarded yet
Awards (0)
No award published
Contracts (0)
No contract published
Bid statistics
No aggregate bid statistics published

Notice history

1 event · 1 release on Find a Tender
  1. Tender notice published
    2 Oct 2026, 17:04 BSTUK4

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

Durham County Council

Contracting authorityPublic authority - sub-central government GB-PPON: PMPB-8772-VYWM Corten House, Dunholme Close, Durham, North East, DH1 5WB

Official documents & specifications (1)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Notices published for this procedure

  • Tender notice tenderTender noticeUK4Tender notice on Find a Tender