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planningFind a Tender · planning Update

AI Tutoring Tools for Education

Buyer: Department for Education →

BuyerDepartment for Education
Statusplanning
DeadlineNot published
Value£1,500,000
Published19 Feb 2026

What is being bought

Purpose of the Engagement The Department is engaging with the market to gather insight that will help shape thinking around the development of safe, curriculum‑aligned AI tutoring tools. This work follows the government’s commitment to explore how AI‑powered tutoring tools, co‑designed with teachers and aligned to the National Curriculum could support disadvantaged pupils and complement high‑quality teaching.

Delivery location

UK, GB

Categories

Information technology services 72222300

Lot details

Lot 1

No lot description published.

Statusplanning
Contract periodFrom 15 Jun 2026 to 14 May 2028
SME suitabilitySuitable for SMEs

What is included

ItemCategoryQuantity
1Information technology servicesNot published

Comparable-procurement analytics

Benchmarked against retained Find a Tender procedures with CPV division 72. The category anchor is Information technology services (72222300); this is a deliberately broad market comparator. The comparison is shown at several levels rather than pretending one company or region is always the best benchmark.

Comparison setProceduresReported bids per procedureNamed award suppliersPrice evidence
Market: CPV division 723,6091 median · 7.9 average (1,133 of 3,609 with a bid count)1.7 average (1,291 of 3,609 with named award suppliers)Not published
Same buyer10Not publishedNot publishedNot published
Delivery region: UK1,1141 median · 11 average (320 of 1,114 with a bid count)2.4 average (382 of 1,114 with named award suppliers)Not published
Similar published value (0.5×–2×)2954 median · 12.7 average (3 of 295 with a bid count)2.7 average (3 of 295 with named award suppliers)Not published

“Reported bids” is an official aggregate, sometimes reported per lot; it is the closest available competition measure. “Named award suppliers” are winners, not all applicants.

Price-outcome signal

Not enough comparable procedures currently publish both a GBP tender value and a usable lowest-valid-bid value to calculate a responsible price-reduction benchmark. Tenderline deliberately does not infer a saving from named award suppliers or from missing award values.

Procurement strategy & market signals

Framework agreementNot published
Dynamic purchasing systemNot published
Competitive procurementNot published
Recurring requirementNot published
Procurement method rationaleNot published
Rationale classificationsNot published
Special regimeNot published
Covered byNot published
Submission policyNot published
Selection criteriaNot published
Risk detailsNot published

Planning & early market engagement

BudgetValue not published
No-engagement rationaleNot published
Planning documents1
Planning milestones1
MilestoneTypeDueStatus
Aims of the Pre‑Market Engagement 1. Present the Policy Context and Emerging Vision We will outline the government’s intent to support the development of safe, trusted AI tutoring tools that enhance learning while maintaining strong safeguards and preserving the central role of teachers. 2. Gather Insight from the Market The Department is seeking active feedback to improve its understanding of: a. Key Development Challenges Obstacles suppliers face in creating safe, effective, curriculum‑aligned tools, particularly those designed to support disadvantaged pupils. b. Opportunities for Collaboration -How government and industry can work together on shared challenges, including: -Safety and safeguarding expectations -Evidence generation and evaluation -Data integration and interoperability with school systems -Approaches to scaling solutions nationally These areas relate to the government’s ambition for tools to be co‑developed with teachers, robustly tested, and aligned with the National Curriculum ahead of any potential wider use. 3. Inform Future Commercial Thinking Feedback from suppliers, including responses to a forthcoming Request for Information, will help the Department consider potential future commercial options. This may include defining scope, delivery models, and possible commercial approaches that would support the safe and equitable adoption of AI tutoring tools. The pre-market engagement will be carried out via the Microsoft Teams on 18/02/2026 between 14:00 and 15:55 (full time may not be needed, but please be there from the start). Interested suppliers should register their interest and by completing the following Microsoft Form. Please submit the form by 17/02/2026 at 17:00 to guarantee an invite to the event: https://forms.office.com/e/3qeamCCH59engagement25 Feb 2026scheduled

Related procurements

No linked framework, prior procurement or reprocurement published.

Documents & submission route

Source data inventory

Diagnostic view. “Not published” means this current release does not provide a value.

OCIDocds-h6vhtk-065408
Latest release ID015370-2026
Latest release timestampThu Feb 19 2026 15:41:55 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
Sourcefind-a-tender
Official notice URLNot published
Tender statusplanning
Procurement methodNot published
Procurement method detailsNot published
Main procurement categoryservices
Above thresholdYes
Legal basis2023/54
Tender period: startNot published
Tender period: endNot published
Expression of interest deadlineNot published
Enquiry deadlineNot published
Award period: startNot published
Award period: endNot published
Submission method detailsNot published
Submission languagesNot published
Electronic catalogue policyNot published
Total tender value£1,500,000
Tender lots in source1
Tender items in source1
Tender documents in source0
Awards in latest release0
Contracts in latest release0
Parties in latest release1

Notice history

DateEventReference
19 Feb 2026planningUpdate015370-2026
18 Feb 2026planningUpdate014992-2026
13 Feb 2026planning013464-2026

All source data

Unmodified official OCDS data retained by Tenderline for this procurement process.

Complete current OCDS release JSON
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        "description": "Suppliers advised that the previous link to the RFI wasn't functional. The Form has been generated anew, identical to before. Please reach out to matthew.wootton@education.gov.uk if you're unable to access the form still, and a link will be sent to you directly.\nLink to RFI: https://forms.office.com/e/qp3vxEkcz5\nFor any suppliers that need a copy of the Pre-Market Engagement Slides, please submit a request to the following mailbox: AItutoring.PROGRAMME@education.gov.uk"
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      }
    ]
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Complete JSON history (3 releases)
19 Feb 2026 · 015370-2026 · planningUpdate
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18 Feb 2026 · 014992-2026 · planningUpdate
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13 Feb 2026 · 013464-2026 · planning
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      {
        "id": "engagement",
        "type": "engagement",
        "status": "scheduled",
        "dueDate": "2026-02-25T23:59:59+00:00",
        "description": "Aims of the Pre‑Market Engagement\n1. Present the Policy Context and Emerging Vision\nWe will outline the government’s intent to support the development of safe, trusted AI tutoring tools that enhance learning while maintaining strong safeguards and preserving the central role of teachers.\n2. Gather Insight from the Market\nThe Department is seeking active feedback to improve its understanding of:\na. Key Development Challenges\nObstacles suppliers face in creating safe, effective, curriculum‑aligned tools, particularly those designed to support disadvantaged pupils.\nb. Opportunities for Collaboration\n-How government and industry can work together on shared challenges, including:\n-Safety and safeguarding expectations\n-Evidence generation and evaluation\n-Data integration and interoperability with school systems\n-Approaches to scaling solutions nationally\nThese areas relate to the government’s ambition for tools to be co‑developed with teachers, robustly tested, and aligned with the National Curriculum ahead of any potential wider use.\n3. Inform Future Commercial Thinking\nFeedback from suppliers, including responses to a forthcoming Request for Information, will help the Department consider potential future commercial options. This may include defining scope, delivery models, and possible commercial approaches that would support the safe and equitable adoption of AI tutoring tools.\nThe pre-market engagement will be carried out via the Microsoft Teams on 18/02/2026 between 14:00 and 15:55 (full time may not be needed, but please be there from the start).  \nInterested suppliers should register their interest and by completing the following Microsoft Form. Please submit the form by 17/02/2026 at 17:00 to guarantee an invite to the event:\nhttps://forms.office.com/e/3qeamCCH59"
      }
    ]
  },
  "initiationType": "tender"
}