Official UK procurement notice
Future Infrastructure Programme · UK public procurement notice
Authority: Norfolk County Council (Local council)
What is being bought2 lots · detail below
Published requirement descriptionNorfolk County Council is purchasing network equipment and services and replacement server infrastructure.
This procurement is being split into two lots: Lot 1 (Network) and Lot 2 (Server).
Lot 1 - The requirement of the Provider will be to deliver network equipment and services to replace its existing legacy Huawei based network solution, Wifi, Firewalls, switch gear, access points and optionally the content filtering solution. This will also support and enhance the existing zero trust network strategy. These services are used by all staff across Norfolk County Council and some partners.
Lot 2 - The requirement of the Provider will be to deliver a replacement virtual server infrastructure and hyperconverged virtual server infrastructure.
- How the procedure runs: 1. Request to Participate and Evaluation: a. Providers are invited to submit a response to this RTP which will be assessed on the basis of: i. Shortlisting Questions - as set out in Form E of this document (100% weighting during this stage) ii. Pass/Fail criteria - as set out in Form B, C and D of this RTP. b. Following the evaluation of the RTP the 3 highest scoring providers for each lot will be shortlisted to the dialogue stage. c. Unsuccessful Bidders will receive their scores for each of the Form E questions along with the rationale for receiving those scores. Unsuccessful Bidders will also be informed of the scoring range for the highest scoring 3 bidders and where their Bid was ranked. There will be no standstill period at this stage. d. The scores issued at the Request to Participate stage will have no bearing on the scores for the final tender assessment. They will solely be used to down select the bidders who will advance to dialogue. The final tender will have a different set of questions, potentially an updated specification or pricing schedule, and may have a different evaluation panel. 2. Dialogue Period: a. Shortlisted bidders will be issued an Invitation to Participate in Dialogue document where they will be invited to provide an outline solution and pricing ahead of the dialogue sessions. b. Dialogue will likely take the form of multiple half day meetings on Teams during the dates outlined section 5.1. This stage is designed to: i. Clarify and refine proposals. ii. Explore solutions and pricing model in more detail. iii. Address any ambiguities or areas of development identified during the initial evaluation. iv. Discuss terms and conditions c. The Council reserves the right to remove or add additional stages of dialogue to ensure both parties have a clear understanding of requirements and expectations before final the final tender submission where bidders can amend their bids. This may take the form of structured meetings or written communications. The Council also reserves the right to amend the specification, pricing model, and terms and conditions throughout this process. 3. Final Tender Submission: a. Following the conclusion of the dialogue period, tenderers will be invited to submit a final tender. These final tenders will be evaluated on both quality (70% weighting) and price (30% weighting) to determine the successful tender. Tenders will be evaluated in accordance with the process and descriptors as set out in this Request to Participate. . b. When the Council has obtained all required internal approvals for the proposed award, Standstill letters and Assessment Summaries will be issued to all bidders that were invited to participate in dialogue. A Contract Award Notice will also be published. This will commence the 8 working day mandatory standstill period.
CPV: IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support · Software package and information systems
Lots and requirements (2)Procurement structure
2 lots · all with a published value · evaluation weights differ by lotLot #1NetworkAwardedRenewalPublished value£0
The source published no individual description for this lot.
- Economic & financial standing
Conditions of participation are in the request to participate document and include: Technical or professional ability, minimum technical requirements, general IT and cloud security requirements, past performance, references, economic and financial standing, Modern Slavery Act requirements, health and safety, compliance with equality legislation, and willingness and ability to comply with contractual requirements
- Technical & professional ability
Conditions of participation are in the request to participate document and include: Technical or professional ability, minimum technical requirements, general IT and cloud security requirements, past performance, references, economic and financial standing, Modern Slavery Act requirements, health and safety, compliance with equality legislation, and willingness and ability to comply with contractual requirements
- Condition of participationshortlisting
Shortlisting questions as per the RTP documentation:
1.1 - Sustainability - 5%
1.2 - Security and configuration of data / management of sub-contractors - 5%
1.3 - Supply chain management and logistics - 15%
2.1 - Service Capability - Core LAN, Access, Wireless - 13%
2.2 - Management and Security Tools 12%
2.3 - Capacity and vendor partnerships 10%
2.4 - Case Study - 40%
Lot #2ServerAwardedRenewalPublished value£0
The source published no individual description for this lot.
- Economic & financial standing
Conditions of participation are in the request to participate document and include: Technical or professional ability, minimum technical requirements, general IT and cloud security requirements, past performance, references, economic and financial standing, Modern Slavery Act requirements, health and safety, compliance with equality legislation, and willingness and ability to comply with contractual requirements
- Technical & professional ability
Conditions of participation are in the request to participate document and include: Technical or professional ability, minimum technical requirements, general IT and cloud security requirements, past performance, references, economic and financial standing, Modern Slavery Act requirements, health and safety, compliance with equality legislation, and willingness and ability to comply with contractual requirements
- Condition of participationshortlisting
Shortlisting Questions:
1.1 - Sustainability - 5%
1.2 - Security and configuration of data / management of sub-contractors - 5%
1.3 - Supply chain management and logistics - 15%
3.1 - Service Capability - 13%
3.2 - Management and Security Tools - 12%
3.3 - Capacity and vendor partnerships - 10%
3.4 - Case Study - 40%
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).
Lots publish different evaluation splits; there is no single procedure weighting.
| Lot | Quality | Price | Environmental | Split |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 · Network | 65% | 30% | 5% | |
| 2 · Server | 65% | 30% | 5% |
- Price carries 30 points on every lot: a 10% discount moves about 3 points.
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Competitive flexible procedure
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Goods
- Notice status
- Awarded
- Procurement threshold
- Above threshold (FTS publication)
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Yes (GPA, CPTPP)
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 9 Feb 2026, 16:13 GMT
- Last source update
- 20 Oct 2026, 16:08 BST
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 20 Jul 2026
- Authority reference
NCCT43328- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-011523- Latest notice
- Contract award notice (UK6)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-064b8fFind a Tender
- How it runs
- Request to Participate and Evaluation:
a. Providers are invited to submit a response to this RTP which will be assessed on the basis of:
i. Shortlisting Questions - as set out in Form E of this document (100% weighting during this stage)
ii. Pass/Fail criteria - as set out in Form B, C and D of this RTP.
b. Following the evaluation of the RTP the 3 highest scoring providers for each lot will be shortlisted to the dialogue stage.
c. Unsuccessful Bidders will receive their scores for each of the Form E questions along with the rationale for receiving those scores. Unsuccessful Bidders will also be informed of the scoring range for the highest scoring 3 bidders and where their Bid was ranked. There will be no standstill period at this stage.
d. The scores issued at the Request to Participate stage will have no bearing on the scores for the final tender assessment. They will solely be used to down select the bidders who will advance to dialogue. The final tender will have a different set of questions, potentially an updated specification or pricing schedule, and may have a different evaluation panel.
- Dialogue Period:
a. Shortlisted bidders will be issued an Invitation to Participate in Dialogue document where they will be invited to provide an outline solution and pricing ahead of the dialogue sessions.
b. Dialogue will likely take the form of multiple half day meetings on Teams during the dates outlined section 5.1. This stage is designed to:
i. Clarify and refine proposals.
ii. Explore solutions and pricing model in more detail.
iii. Address any ambiguities or areas of development identified during the initial evaluation.
iv. Discuss terms and conditions
c. The Council reserves the right to remove or add additional stages of dialogue to ensure both parties have a clear understanding of requirements and expectations before final the final tender submission where bidders can amend their bids. This may take the form of structured meetings or written communications. The Council also reserves the right to amend the specification, pricing model, and terms and conditions throughout this process.
- Final Tender Submission:
a. Following the conclusion of the dialogue period, tenderers will be invited to submit a final tender. These final tenders will be evaluated on both quality (70% weighting) and price (30% weighting) to determine the successful tender. Tenders will be evaluated in accordance with the process and descriptors as set out in this Request to Participate. .
b. When the Council has obtained all required internal approvals for the proposed award, Standstill letters and Assessment Summaries will be issued to all bidders that were invited to participate in dialogue. A Contract Award Notice will also be published. This will commence the 8 working day mandatory standstill period.
- Risks
Please note that both Norfolk County Council and Suffolk County Council have approved a devolution deal which is expected to lead to the establishment of a Mayoral Combined County Authority with strategic powers, headed by an elected mayor. Subject to the government laying a Statutory Instrument and to its approval by Parliament to formally establish the new combined authority, the first Mayoral election is expected to be in 2028.
Government has also invited participation by Norfolk in Local Government Review. This process has the potential to lead to unitary local government in Norfolk. One of these changes could happen without the other. The contract may be assigned or novated to any successor authority(ies) to Norfolk County Council or to any joint body incorporating or formed by any such successor. The County Council or a successor authority or joint body may order services on behalf of other local authorities serving any area within Norfolk's current geographical boundaries.
How it was run
Official notice- Requests to participate (first stage)
- 11 Mar 2026, 09:00 GMT
- Submission deadline
- 11 Mar 2026, 09:00 GMT
- Clarification deadline
- 2 Mar 2026, 11:00 GMT
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
This procurement will be managed electronically via the Councils e-procurement system. To participate in this procurement, applicants must first be registered on the system at in-tendhost.co.uk/norfolkcc ↗. Full instructions for registration and use of the system can be found at in-tendhost.co.uk/norfolkcc/aspx/Buyer… ↗. Once registered you will be able to see the procurement project under the tenders section and express an interest to view the documentation and access any clarifications. If you encounter any difficulties whilst using the system you can contact the In-tend support team by phoning +44 8442728810 or e-mailing [email protected].
Timeline
9 Feb 2026 → 29 Oct 2026 · 8 dates- Tender notice published258 days ago9 Feb 2026, 16:13 GMT
- Clarification questions by237 days ago2 Mar 2026, 11:00 GMT
- Submission deadline228 days ago11 Mar 2026, 09:00 GMT
- Award decision expected by97 days ago20 Jul 2026, 23:59 BST
- Contract starts87 days ago31 Jul 2026, 00:00 BST
- Assessment summaries sent6 days ago20 Oct 2026, 00:00 BST
- Latest notice published5 days ago20 Oct 2026, 16:08 BST
- Today25 Oct 2026
- Standstill endsin 4 days29 Oct 2026, 23:59 GMT
Notice history
6 events · 3 releases on Find a Tender · since 9 Feb 2026- Tender notice published9 Feb 2026, 16:13 GMTUK4
- Tender notice published12 Feb 2026, 11:54 GMTUK4
- Published value published: £7,000,00012 Feb 2026, 11:54 GMT
- Contract award notice published20 Oct 2026, 16:08 BSTUK6
- Status changed to complete20 Oct 2026, 16:08 BST
- Contract signature expected30 Oct 2026, 23:59 GMTscheduled
Published amendments (1)
Information has been added to the notice. Updated to include estimated values and reflect the award criteria in the RTP document.
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lot 1 · Network1 award | |||
| Specialist Computer Centres PlcFuture Infrastructure Programme - Lot 1 Network30 Oct 2026 – 29 Oct 2029Options: The purchase of phases 2-4 of the WAN rollout. The Council has reserved the right to make additional purchases of Network equipment, support and professional services during the life of the Contract in accordance with Clause 3.4 of the Terms and Conditions and Form G of the Invitation to Final Tender. | £2,290,082 | 20 Oct 2026standstill to 29 Oct 2026 | Standstill |
| Lot 2 · Server1 award | |||
| CDW LimitedFuture Infrastructure Programme - Lot 2 Server30 Oct 2026 – 29 Oct 2029Options: The Council has reserved the right to make additional purchases of server equipment and any associated support, in accordance with Clause 3.4 of the Terms and Conditions and Form G of the Invitation to Final Tender. | £606,385 | 20 Oct 2026standstill to 29 Oct 2026 | Standstill |
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Lot | Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 · Network | 3final-stage tenders | 1 | 0 | — |
| 2 · Server | 3final-stage tenders | 0 | 0 | — |
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Bidders & participating suppliers
2 commercial parties on the notice- CDW LIMITEDAwarded supplier
- SPECIALIST COMPUTER CENTRES PLCAwarded supplier
Official documents & specifications (9)
Official links; attachments are not copiedTender pack and attachments
Notices published for this procedure
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender