Official UK procurement notice
ID 6020932 DAERA - CAFRE - Horticulture Pilot Scheme
Authority: College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) (Central government)·On behalf of: CPD
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThe College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE), were seeking to appoint a Supplier to design, administer and deliver the professional support element of the Horticulture Pilot Scheme, an initiative which aims to stimulate growth within Northern Ireland’s (NI’s) horticulture industry. The Pilot Horticulture Scheme is a key component of DAERA’s Sustainable Agriculture Programme (SAP), which encompasses a range of strategic measures designed to support the long-term development and sustainability of the production horticulture industry in Northern Ireland. Suppliers should refer to the Specification Schedule for full detail on the deliverables and requirements of this contract. Neither CPD nor the Buyer can provide any guarantee as to the level of business under this contract.
Note the Contract value included within this notice is the maximum value and is included for information only. The final number of growers per pilot scheme is not finalised.
- No preliminary market engagement: Preliminary market engagement was undertaken under ID 5450807/ID 5826850. It was advertised via eTendersNI on 24 July 2024 and closed 09 September 2024. It is noted the PME undertaken for this requirement was carried out before the PA2023 and PR 2024 went live on 24 February 2025, therefore a PME notice was not applicable.
CPV: Accounting, auditing and fiscal services · Agricultural, forestry, horticultural, aquacultural and apicultural services · Business and management consultancy and related services · Business and management consultancy services · Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security · Recruitment services · Specialist training services · Training services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1AwardedRenewalPublished value£5,024,000
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).
- AC1 Experience of Facilitators: 13.3 percent
- AC2 Business Continuity: 13.3 percent
- AC3a Methodology - Contract and Administration Requirements: 2.8 percent
- AC3b Methodology: Delivery of Grower Workshops/Visits/Information Sessions: 3.5 percent
- AC3c Methodology - Identification of Areas of Business Growth: 2.1 percent
- AC3d Methodology - Production of a Business Development Plan: 2.1 percent
- AC3e Methodology - Delivery of Professional Mentoring Support: 2.8 percent
- AC4 Social Value: 10.5 percent
- AC6 Resource Distribution: 4.9 percent
- AC7 Risk Management: 4.9 percent
- AC8 Contract and Account Management: 4.9 percent
- AC9 Price: 30 percent
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Open procedure
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Services
- 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)
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 6 Nov 2025, 16:17 GMT
- Last source update
- 27 Feb 2026, 13:51 GMT
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 29 Jan 2026
- Authority reference
ID 6020932- FTS notice number
2025/S 000-071772- Latest notice
- Contract details notice (UK7)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-05dc28Find a Tender- Contract terms summary
For further details on invoicing procedures please see : www.finance-ni.gov.uk/ar ↗ ticles/account-ni-good-invoicing-practice.
The estimated value figure indicated in the Scope Section represents an overall estimated contract value. This value reflects the potential scale of the contract and takes into account potential optional extension periods and the uptake of potential optional services as detailed in the tender documents. Neither CPD nor the contracting Authority can provide any guarantee as to the level of business under this contract. The Contracting Authority does not bind itself to accept the lowest or any tender. Suppliers remain responsible for all costs and expenses incurred by them or by any third party acting under instructions from the Supplier in connection with taking part in this procurement process regardless of whether such costs arise as a consequence, directly or indirectly of any amendments made to the procurement documents by the Contracting Authority at any time. No legally binding contract shall arise (and a Supplier shall have no legitimate expectation that a contract will be entered into) until such time as entry into the Contract has been confirmed by the Contracting Authority
- Risks
If at any time during the procurement, or post award, it comes to the attention of the Contracting Authority (CA) or CPD, by whatever means, that a Supplier has become ‘excluded’ or ‘excludable’ as per Sec 57 of the PA 2023, the CA, after compliance with its obligations under the PA 23, reserves the right to exclude said Supplier from the procurement procedure or terminate any contract they have been awarded.
The Contracting Authority expressly reserves the rights:
(I). not to award any contract as a result of the procurement process commenced by publication of this notice;
(II). to make whatever changes it may see fit to the content and structure of the tendering Competition;
How it was run
Official notice- Submission deadline
- 8 Dec 2025, 23:59 GMT
- Clarification deadline
- 28 Nov 2025, 23:59 GMT
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
Tenders must be submitted electronically via the relevant Call for Tender (CfT) opportunity on eTendersNI, website details immediately below.
Paper submissions will not be accepted or considered and will be rejected by the Contracting Authority / Buyer.
The tender documents are available with unrestricted and full direct access, free of charge, at: URL etendersni.gov.uk/epps ↗
Timeline
6 Nov 2025 → 27 Feb 2026 · 8 dates- Tender notice published354 days ago6 Nov 2025, 16:17 GMT
- Clarification questions by331 days ago28 Nov 2025, 23:59 GMT
- Submission deadline321 days ago8 Dec 2025, 23:59 GMT
- Contract starts270 days ago29 Jan 2026
- Award decision expected by269 days ago29 Jan 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Assessment summaries sent259 days ago9 Feb 2026
- Standstill ends249 days ago18 Feb 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Latest notice published241 days ago27 Feb 2026, 13:51 GMT
Notice history
5 events · 3 releases on Find a Tender · since 6 Nov 2025- Tender notice published6 Nov 2025, 16:17 GMTUK4
- Contract award notice published9 Feb 2026, 12:51 GMTUK6
- Status changed to complete9 Feb 2026, 12:51 GMT
- Contract signature expected20 Feb 2026, 23:59 GMTscheduled
- Contract details notice published27 Feb 2026, 13:51 GMTUK7
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| RSK ADAS Limited23 Feb 2026 – 30 Apr 2030 · up to 30 Apr 2031Extensions: CAFRE reserve the right to extend the contract for an additional fifth year | £5,020,000 | 9 Feb 2026 | Awarded |
Contracts
ID 6020932 DAERA - CAFRE - Horticulture Pilot Scheme · RSK ADAS Limited
- Signed
- 20 Feb 2026
- Value
- £5,020,000
- Period
- 23 Mar 2026 – 30 Apr 2030 · up to 30 Apr 2031 with extensions
- Status
- active
- Extensions
- CAFRE reserve the right to extend the contract for an additional fifth year
- Options
- While maximum delivery budgets will be allocated to each service area upon award of the contract, a degree of flexibility shall be permitted within these allocations. When a grower or horticulture business demonstrates a need for increased support in one service area—such as enhanced agronomy services following the implementation of a business development plan—resources may be reallocated from another service area (e.g., supply chain support). Therefore, although there may be a certain amount of actual members under the scheme, some elements may not be required and others may see an increase. This is subject to the overall annual budget cap and with the prior written agreement of the Horticulture Pilot Scheme Manager. CAFRE reserves the right to make modifications to the scope of services as necessary during the contract period, including the introduction of new service requirements or the removal of obsolete ones, in line with the evolving operational needs of Northern Ireland’s Horticulture Industry. This flexibility is intended to ensure that support is responsive and maximises the impact of the Horticulture Pilot Scheme. Other external professionals may be engaged where specialist expertise falls outside the remit of the Facilitator, Agronomist, Business Specialist, or Supply Chain Specialist. For example, a Human Resources Consultant may be required to deliver a targeted workshop relating to recruitment, selection, or employment of staff. Such instances are expected to be infrequent throughout the Horticulture Pilot Scheme
4 agreed KPIs: KPI 1 Provision of Supplier Staff · KPI 2 Supplier invoicing · KPI 3 Satisfactory performance of authorised and adequately equipped Supplier Staff …
- KPI 1 Provision of Supplier Staff, Scheme operates as planned
- KPI 2 Supplier invoicing, Invoices are submitted are accurate and submitted on time
- KPI 3 Satisfactory performance of authorised and adequately equipped Supplier Staff, All activities are delivered to an adequate standard.
- KPI 4 Social Value Commitments, Supplier progress on initiative(s)
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1final-stage tenders | 0 | 0 | — |
Who bid
- wonRSK ADAS Limited · North West England
Bidders as named on the Procurement Act 2023 award notice. “Won” means the bidder holds an award on this notice.
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
3 public bodies on the noticeOther public bodies
- CPDBeneficiary authority
- CPD - Supplies & Service DivisionProcess contact pointProcuring entityConstruction and Procurement Delivery - Supplies and Services Division, is a Centre of Procurement Expertise and provides a central procurement function for central government in Northern Ireland
Bidders & participating suppliers
1 commercial party on the notice- RSK ADAS LimitedAwarded supplier
Official documents & specifications (3)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Contract details notice Contract details notice on Find a Tender
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender