Official UK procurement notice
Establishment of Framework for Mediation Service– External Conflict Resolution
Authority: Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery (Central government)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionICRIR wishes to establish a call-off framework/contract for the provision of independent external workplace mediation and conflict resolution services. The service will provide access to suitably qualified and experienced mediators to support the early resolution of workplace disputes, employee relations issues and conflict situations. The arrangement will operate on an as-required basis with no guarantee of work, enabling the organisation to access specialist mediation expertise only when required. The contract will support positive employee relations outcomes, reduce the risk of escalation into formal procedures, and provide value for money through a flexible, demand-led service model.
CPV: Counselling services · Human resources management consultancy services
How this framework works
From the published notice- Type
- Closed framework
- Call-offs
- every call-off is a further competition among the appointed suppliers
- Places
- up to 10 suppliers
- Framework period
- 2 yrs · up to 4 yrs from 4 Jan 2027, Not applicable. The Framework Agreement term does not exceed four years.
Published description of the framework
The Framework Agreement will establish a panel of suitably qualified mediation service providers from which the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery (ICRIR) may procure services during the framework term. No guarantee of work or minimum spend is provided.
Call-off contracts will be awarded through mini-competition between framework suppliers. For each requirement, suppliers will be invited to submit a proposal and any applicable pricing information. Award decisions will be based on the criteria specified within the call-off documentation, taking account of the nature, complexity, expertise and value of the requirement.
Framework pricing will be established through the initial procurement process and may be refined during call-off competitions where permitted by the framework terms.
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1RenewalPublished value£40,000
What it takes to wini
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 morei
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).
Lot awarding rule: Framework appointments will be made on the basis of the Most Advantageous Tender. Tender submissions will be evaluated against Conditions of Participation, quality criteria and pricing. The evaluation will consider the tenderer's relevant experience, proposed approach to the delivery of mediation services, capability and capacity to provide the required services, and commercial value. Further details of the evaluation methodology are set out within the procurement documents.
- “Establishment of Framework for Mediation Service– External Conflict…” is a framework: the contest is a place on its panel, up to 10 suppliers, not a single contract: each call-off is a further competition, so the pricing contest starts after appointment.
Competition analysis · published record, not a forecast of who will bid
How Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery buys Social work services (CPV 8531), and who usually turns up
Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery has little published record in this market. Compared with other frameworks and DPS only. Whole-market view: Social work services (CPV 8531) →
How the contest usually goes
Winner shares use published awards; bid and price charts use contested lots.
i
How often small and medium firms win.
Share of awards where the winner’s size is known.
The counts under this question show how many awards have a known supplier size.
Across this market, small firms won 55% of awards with a known supplier size.
i
How often local firms win similar work.
Winners with a registered address in the delivery region, out of awards with a known address.
Local means the winner is registered in the region where that award was delivered.
A local branch does not count if the registered address is elsewhere.
Across this market, 67% of winners were registered in the delivery region.
i
How long buyers here take to decide after bids close.
Middle value in days from the bid deadline to the award date, on competitions that published both.
Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.
Half of these awards have an award date within 71 days of the bid deadline.
i
How often work is awarded with no recorded rival.
Direct awards and tenders where every published lot count shows one bid.
The market share is a minimum: some awards have no bid count.
Thin markets produce this too; it is not proof of a tailored specification.
Across this market, at least 15% of awarded procurements had no recorded rival.
How many bids did past lots attract?
i
How many bids past lots received.
Each colour is a bid-count range. Only competed lots with a published count are included.
Past bids do not predict this tender.
1 bid7%
2–314%
4–616%
7+63%
How did awards compare with estimates?
i
Where winning prices landed against estimates.
Each colour shows awards below, close to or above the published estimate, one lot at a time.
On a framework or DPS, prices are agreed when work is called off.
Past prices are a guide, not a bid price.
Not comparable on a framework or DPS: the price is set later, on each call-off.
Assess each lot i
What past awards tell you about each lot.
See the forecast, this buyer’s earlier suppliers and firms with relevant wins.
No supplier is confirmed as a bidder.
i
What past awards tell you about each lot.
See the forecast, this buyer’s earlier suppliers and firms with relevant wins.
No supplier is confirmed as a bidder.
Open a lot for its forecast, this buyer’s previous supplier and possible competitors, from published award history, not a bid list
Lot #1CPV 8531Published estimate£40k
i
How many bids this lot may attract.
The forecast uses similar past competitions. The bar shows either that forecast or past bid counts; the line below says which.
Each lot shows its own forecast based on its own category; forecasts for different lots of the same notice are not comparative. The bar shows 193 past lots.
A forecast, not a list of bidders.
1 bid7%
2–314%
4–616%
7+63%
i
Where the award price may land.
The forecast uses similar awards and the buyer’s estimate. The band covers the middle half of likely prices.
No comparable awards for this lot yet.
A statistical guide from past awards, not a price to bid.
Who has supplied this buyer on similar work? i
Who has done similar work for this buyer.
Past contracts are matched by buyer, title and type of work.
A past supplier may not bid again.
i
Who has done similar work for this buyer.
Past contracts are matched by buyer, title and type of work.
A past supplier may not bid again.
No earlier contract of this buyer matches this lot on the published record.
Who could compete for this lot? i
Who could compete for this lot?
Firms with relevant past wins. On a framework, we show firms on that agreement.
None is confirmed as a bidder.
i
Who could compete for this lot?
Firms with relevant past wins. On a framework, we show firms on that agreement.
None is confirmed as a bidder.
Candidate suppliers for this notice have not been worked out yet, so this is not a verdict that nobody fits.
About this data
- Source. Official UK public procurement notices (Find a Tender), reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0. New notices arrive through the day; the figures are rebuilt nightly.
- Two views, kept apart. The authority’s own track record and the wider market for the same kind of work sit side by side and are never mixed. Where the local picture is too thin, a figure widens to a broader market and says which one it used.
- Forecasts are labelled. The price forecast and its range, possible competitors and the earlier-work matches are our estimates from past awards: not published facts, not win chances and not price advice. Official notices do not say who is bidding.
- Every figure shows what it rests on. Not every notice publishes a bid count, a value or a delivery region, so each figure carries the number of records behind it, and one built on few records is marked as such. The on a figure explains it; the counting rules are in the methodology. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Below threshold - open competition
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Open admission
- Procurement threshold
- Below threshold
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Framework agreement
- Who may use this agreement
- Not stated in the notice; call-off rights may be limited to the establishing authority
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 27 Oct 2026, 11:26 GMT
- Last source update
- 27 Oct 2026, 11:26 GMT
- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-101427- Latest notice
- Tender notice (UK4)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Not published
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-0790f2Find a Tender
How to participate & submission route
Official notice Apply via eTendersNI- Requests to participate (first stage)
- —
- Appointment period ends
- 30 Nov 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Clarification deadline
- 20 Nov 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
Timeline
27 Oct 2026 → 4 Jan 2027 · 4 dates- Tender notice published4h ago27 Oct 2026, 11:26 GMT
- Today27 Oct 2026
- Clarification questions byin 24 days20 Nov 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Admission / appointment period endsin 34 days · period end, not a bid countdown30 Nov 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Contract startsin 68 days4 Jan 2027
Notice history
1 event · 1 release on Find a Tender- Tender notice published27 Oct 2026, 11:26 GMTUK4
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Nothing awarded yet- Awards (0)
- No award published
- Contracts (0)
- No contract published
- Bid statistics
- No aggregate bid statistics published
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Official documents & specifications (1)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender