TenderlineUK
Procurement Intelligence
Official OCDS
Find a Tender
Open for tender
Official procurement procedure

161_27 Artist Grounds’, Brushes, Art Pads and Painting Tools

goods
Open procedure
Educational equipment
Handicraft and art supplies
Painters' brushes
+1 more
UK
Open submission portal
Official notice
Published value
£6,666,667
Submission deadline 2 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
Lots published6
Procurement Executive Summary
AI & Search Synopsis
Generated from official OCDS record
Tenderline Synopsis: Leicestershire County Council, trading as ESPO: "161_27 Artist Grounds’, Brushes, Art Pads and Painting Tools". Published status: active. Published value: £6,666,667. 6 published lots. Recorded submission deadline: 2 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST. Published submission portal: www.eastmidstenders.org.
Contracting AuthorityLeicestershire County Council, trading as ESPOScope & CategoriesGOODS (6 lots)Submission Window
25d 13h left
2 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
Submission Gateway
www.eastmidstenders.org
Legal Basis & Regime2023/54 · Open procedure · Above thresholdEstimated Value (exc. VAT)£6,666,667
Bidder Intelligence · Authority Profile: Leicestershire County Council, trading as ESPO
Market Analytics
View Authority Profile →
Derived from OCDS awards & bid statistics
Published history for Leicestershire County Council, trading as ESPO. These figures describe retained records, not a forecast of bids or a measure of buyer bias.
Average Price Reduction
Not availableInsufficient comparable data
Requires at least 5 comparable procedures
Competition Density
19.4Bids / Report
0% of reports have one bid
Supplier ConcentrationNo estimate
Insufficient attributable awardsNo concentration estimate available
Payment Terms
Check noticePublished terms
Payment obligations depend on the applicable regime and contract. Consult the official documents.
Coverage: 179 active published awards; 63 bid reports (which may be per lot). Supplier values exclude multi-supplier awards, frameworks and DPS, and use GBP only. They are published award values, not payments. Price reduction compares single-lot, single-award, single-supplier GBP procedures with explicitly non-framework/non-DPS status; increases remain in the average. Unpublished data stays unknown. Awarded suppliers are winners, not all bidders.
Procedure terms
Contracting AuthorityLeicestershire County Council, trading as ESPO
Procedure methodOpen procedure
Procurement categorygoods
Statusactive
Framework / DPSFramework
CompetitionNot published
Above thresholdYes
Legal basisUKPGA · 2023/54
Tender period startsNot published
Clarification deadline25 Sept 2026, 17:00 BST
Electronic submissionallowed
Submission languagesen
Published3 Sept 2026, 14:03 BST
Last source update3 Sept 2026, 14:03 BST
Recurring procurementNot published
ClassificationEducational equipment, Handicraft and art supplies, Painters' brushes, Processed paper and paperboard
Delivery area
UK
OCIDocds-h6vhtk-069373
How to participate
Open submission portal
Submission methodNot published
Electronic submissionallowed
Clarification deadline25 Sept 2026, 17:00 BST
Submission languagesen
Expression of interest deadlineNot published
E-Sourcing Portal
Open portal
Submission instructions
Refer to all instructions captured via https://www.eastmidstenders.org/ (or alternatively by searching for the Opportunity on https://procontract.due-north.com/Opportunities/Index).
What is being bought
ESPO is a trading department of Leicestershire County Council. It is a non-profit making body owned and operated jointly by six local authorities. We provide a catalogue range, providing our customers with access to over 28,000 products that cover all key areas of education and wider public sector requirements. We are establishing a catalogue framework for the supply of Artist brushes, Artist grounds, portfolios, easels and mats for delivery to ESPO’s distribution centre and to individual customers. The Framework is divided into 6 lots. Please refer to the tender documents for any further details (including further details on each of the lots) - the closing date for submission of Tenders is 12:00 (12 noon / 12pm) on 02 October 2026. To tender (please proceed to step (e) if an expression of interest has already been completed): (a) Go to https://www.eastmidstenders.org/ (b) Register (if not already registered on ProContract e.g., via https://procontract.due-north.com/Register); (c) Search for tender opportunity 161_27 (via "View Opportunities" from the EastMidsTenders Portal, or alternatively via searching on https://procontract.due-north.com/Opportunities/Index); (d) Express an interest; (e) Download the tender documents (from the ProContract Activity summary screen). Any questions or clarifications relating to this tender opportunity should be submitted to ESPO as a message on the eProcurement Portal, once an Expression of interest has been completed.
What changed
From the official release history
  1. Published value updated to £6,666,667
    3 Sept 2026, 14:03 BST
  2. Status changed to active
    3 Sept 2026, 14:03 BST
  3. Official notice release published
    3 Sept 2026, 14:03 BST
  4. Submission deadline changed to 2 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
    3 Sept 2026, 14:03 BST
  5. Published value updated to £5,000,000
    28 May 2026, 10:51 BST
  6. Official notice release published
    28 May 2026, 10:51 BST
  7. tender value changed
    7 May 2026, 14:12 BST
  8. Status changed to planned
    7 May 2026, 14:12 BST
  9. Official notice release published
    7 May 2026, 14:12 BST
  10. Buyer information updated
    7 May 2026, 14:12 BST
Lots and requirements (6)
Published by the contracting authority
  • Lot 1 · #1
    Artist Brushes
    active
    Options
    Renewal
    Published value£603,333
    The purpose of this Lot is to offer ESPO customers high quality and competitively priced artist brushes made of various materials such as hog hair brushes, synthetic brushes, round and flat brushes. These products are intended for use primarily within educational sector, with delivery to ESPO’s distribution centre (Supply Method A).
    Contract period1 Mar 2027, 00:00 GMT — 31 Mar 2029, 23:59 BST
    Eligibility
    SME eligible
    Options / renewalESPO reserves the right to add or remove products (i.e., those products listed within the Framework Pricing Schedule, 161_27) throughout the lifetime of the Framework, so long as they are within the Framework scope. · Once the initial period of the contract has ended (i.e., 31 March 2029), there is an option to extend the framework by up to a further 23 months. This is dependent on ESPO, ESPO Customers, and market needs, as well as the performance of sales. Total estimated values captured in this notice include the option to extend the framework as noted above.
  • Lot 2 · #2
    Painting Tools and Equipment
    active
    Options
    Renewal
    Published value£103,333
    The purpose of this Lot is to offer ESPO customers high quality and competitively priced painting tools and equipment, including rollers, painting knives, sponges, mixing tools and other accessories. These products are intended for use primarily within the education sector, with delivery to ESPO's distribution centre (Supply Method A).
    Contract period1 Mar 2027, 00:00 GMT — 31 Mar 2029, 23:59 BST
    Eligibility
    SME eligible
    Options / renewalESPO reserves the right to add or remove products (i.e., those products listed within the Framework Pricing Schedule, 161_27) throughout the lifetime of the Framework, so long as they are within the Framework scope. · Once the initial period of the contract has ended (i.e., 31 March 2029), there is an option to extend the framework by up to a further 23 months. This is dependent on ESPO, ESPO Customers, and market needs, as well as the performance of sales. Total estimated values captured in this notice include the option to extend the framework as noted above.
  • Lot 3 · #3
    Artists Books, Pads and Papers
    active
    Options
    Renewal
    Published value£4,793,333
    The purpose of this Lot is to offer ESPO customers high quality and competitively priced artists' books, pads and papers, including sketchbooks, cartridge paper, watercolour paper and specialist art papers. These products are intended for use primarily within the education sector, with delivery to ESPO's distribution centre (Supply Method A).
    Contract period1 Mar 2027, 00:00 GMT — 31 Mar 2029, 23:59 BST
    Eligibility
    SME eligible
    Options / renewalESPO reserves the right to add or remove products (i.e., those products listed within the Framework Pricing Schedule, 161_27) throughout the lifetime of the Framework, so long as they are within the Framework scope. · Once the initial period of the contract has ended (i.e., 31 March 2029), there is an option to extend the framework by up to a further 23 months. This is dependent on ESPO, ESPO Customers, and market needs, as well as the performance of sales. Total estimated values captured in this notice include the option to extend the framework as noted above.
  • Lot 4 · #4
    Drying Racks and Easels
    active
    Options
    Renewal
    Published value£533,333
    The purpose of this Lot is to offer ESPO customers high quality and competitively priced drying racks and easels suitable for use in educational art environments. Products include tabletop and floor-standing easels, drying racks and associated accessories, with delivery to ESPO's distribution centre or direct delivery to individual customer establishments (Supply Method A and B).
    Contract period1 Mar 2027, 00:00 GMT — 31 Mar 2029, 23:59 BST
    Eligibility
    SME eligible
    Options / renewalESPO reserves the right to add or remove products (i.e., those products listed within the Framework Pricing Schedule, 161_27) throughout the lifetime of the Framework, so long as they are within the Framework scope. · Once the initial period of the contract has ended (i.e., 31 March 2029), there is an option to extend the framework by up to a further 23 months. This is dependent on ESPO, ESPO Customers, and market needs, as well as the performance of sales. Total estimated values captured in this notice include the option to extend the framework as noted above.
  • Lot 5 · #5
    Portfolios and Canvasses
    active
    Options
    Renewal
    Published value£413,333
    The purpose of this Lot is to offer ESPO customers high quality and competitively priced portfolios and canvases, including canvas boards, stretched canvases, canvas rolls and art storage portfolios. These products are intended for use primarily within the education sector, with delivery to ESPO's distribution centre (Supply Method A).
    Contract period1 Mar 2027, 00:00 GMT — 31 Mar 2029, 23:59 BST
    Eligibility
    SME eligible
    Options / renewalESPO reserves the right to add or remove products (i.e., those products listed within the Framework Pricing Schedule, 161_27) throughout the lifetime of the Framework, so long as they are within the Framework scope. · Once the initial period of the contract has ended (i.e., 31 March 2029), there is an option to extend the framework by up to a further 23 months. This is dependent on ESPO, ESPO Customers, and market needs, as well as the performance of sales. Total estimated values captured in this notice include the option to extend the framework as noted above.
  • Lot 6 · #6
    Pots, Palettes and Jars
    active
    Options
    Renewal
    Published value£220,000
    The purpose of this Lot is to offer ESPO customers high quality and competitively priced products for use with paints and other art materials. Products include paint pots, mixing palettes, water pots, storage jars and related accessories. These products are intended for use primarily within the education sector, with delivery to ESPO's distribution centre (Supply Method A).
    Contract period1 Mar 2027, 00:00 GMT — 31 Mar 2029, 23:59 BST
    Eligibility
    SME eligible
    Options / renewalESPO reserves the right to add or remove products (i.e., those products listed within the Framework Pricing Schedule, 161_27) throughout the lifetime of the Framework, so long as they are within the Framework scope. · Once the initial period of the contract has ended (i.e., 31 March 2029), there is an option to extend the framework by up to a further 23 months. This is dependent on ESPO, ESPO Customers, and market needs, as well as the performance of sales. Total estimated values captured in this notice include the option to extend the framework as noted above.
Timeline
  1. Pipeline notice
    28 May 2026, 10:51 BST
  2. Pipeline notice
    7 May 2026, 14:12 BST
  3. Procedure published
    3 Sept 2026, 14:03 BST
  4. engagement
    10 Jul 2026, 23:59 BST · scheduled
    The purpose of the Pre-Market Engagement (PME) is to cover a range of topics designed to best explore our requirements in a possible future procurement. These topics may include: 1. Develop ESPO’s requirements and approach to the procurement. 2. Help better identify suitable suppliers in the market and to understand their supply chains. 3. Understand products/service offerings from suppliers and the marketplace in general. Engagement with suppliers is anticipated to be a mix of methods, including Requests for Information (RFI) hosted on the EastMidsTenders eProcurement Portal (www.eastmidstenders.org), and meetings (both virtual and in-person). Visits to supplier’s premises may also be used where deemed to be of particular use. Suppliers wishing to participate in the engagement process must first express an interest as follows: (a) Go to https://www.eastmidstenders.org/; (b) Register (if not already registered on ProContract); (c) Search for tender opportunity '161_27' (via "View Opportunities" from the EastMidsTenders Portal); d) Express an interest. Suppliers can then access the RFI questionnaire in the ‘Messages’ section via the ‘Activity’ dashboard once an expression of interest has been registered - the deadline for responding to the RFI is 17:00 (5pm) on 03 July 2026. Responses to the RFI as well as any questions or clarifications should be submitted to ESPO as a message on the eProcurement Portal. Notwithstanding the above process, as this procurement exercise is a renewal of an existing ESPO framework, ESPO reserves the right to engage with some, all or none of the incumbent suppliers appointed to the existing ESPO framework, alongside any additional suppliers identified following the above expressions of interests and/or a RFI exercise.
  5. Submission deadline
    2 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
Commercial outcome and competition
AwardsNo award published
ContractsNo contract published
Bid statisticsNo aggregate bid statistics published
Buyer and organisations in this procedure

Leicestershire County Council, trading as ESPO

Contracting authority GB-PPON-PYDD-1122-TCVN
View buyer profile

  • Leicestershire County Council, trading as ESPO
    buyer

    GB-PPON: PYDD-1122-TCVN
    Barnsdale Way, Grove Park, Enderby, Leicester, UKF22, LE19 1ES, GB
    tenders@espo.org
Documents (6)
Official links; attachments are not copied
Related procedures (0)
No data
No related procedures published
Planning and rationale
Planning budgetNot published
No-engagement rationaleNot published
Procedure rationaleNot published