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Published 23 Sept 2026, 17:23 BST

Official UK procurement notice

ID 6316996 - DAERA - Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Policy Branch - Innovation Procurement

Official notice Competition analysis

Authority: College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) (Central government)·On behalf of: CPD

ServicesOpen procedureAbove thresholdLight touch regime
Sectors: Administration, defence and social security services (75)Education & Training (80) Delivery: Northern Ireland (UKN)
Published estimate£1,900,000≈ £633k / year · £2,280,000 inc. VAT
Submission deadline 22 Oct 202615:00 BST · 28d 17h left
Clarification cut-off 13 Oct 202615:00 BST · questions to the authority
Contract term 3 yrsup to 5 yrs with extensions · starts 16 Nov 2026
Bids per lot · the market 6CPV 8052 · n=14 · competition analysis ↓

What is being bought

Published requirement description

CAFRE (the Buyer), is seeking an external Supplier to deliver elements of Innovation Farms through the Sustainable Agricultural Programme (SAP). The specification relates to Innovation Farms.

This Contract is for the provision of operational, administrative and logistical support to the delivery of Innovation Farm visits. It does not include responsibility for farm selection, technical content, or policy alignment, which remain the responsibility of the Buyer.

The contract will commence from the date of award for a period of 3 Years. There will be one option to extend by a period of 2 years.

CPV: Administration services · Education and training services · Specialist training services · Technical training services · Training programme services · Training seminars · Training services

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · value published
Lot #1Lot 1Renewal 3 yrsPublished value£1,900,000
Contract period: 16 Nov 2026 — 15 Nov 2029 (3 yrs) · up to 5 yrs with extensionsDelivery: Northern IrelandTurnover guideline: ~£1,265,511/yr≈ 2× annual value
Value
£1,900,000 exc. VAT · £2,280,000 inc. VAT
Extensions
Following the initial contract period, there is 1 potential extension period of up to 24 months. This optional extension period will be subject to review and satisfactory performance assessment by the Contracting Authority.
75100000 Administration services80000000 Education and training services80500000 Training services80510000 Specialist training services80521000 Training programme services80522000 Training seminars

Who is likely to bid for this lot ↓

What it takes to win
i

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 more
How bids are scored
Quality: 59.5%Price: 30%Social value: 10.5%
Published sub-criteria (6)
  • AC1 - Key Delivery Personnel Experience — 18.2%
  • AC2 - Programme Delivery and Implementation — 18.2%
  • AC3 - Recruitment, Promotion and Marketing Plan — 13.3%
  • AC4 - Contract Management and Business Continuity — 9.8%
  • AC6 - Total Contract Price — 30%
  • AC5 - Social value — 10.5%
Published award criteria (6)
  • AC1 - Key Delivery Personnel Experience — As per Tender Documentation
  • AC2 - Programme Delivery and Implementation — As per Tender Documentation
  • AC3 - Recruitment, Promotion and Marketing Plan — As per Tender Documentation
  • AC4 - Contract Management and Business Continuity — As per Tender Documentation
  • AC5 - Social value — As per Tender Documentation
  • AC6 - Total Contract Price — As per Tender Documentation
Conditions of participation1
  • Technical & professional ability
    As per Tender documentation.

Competition analysis · published record, not a forecast of who will bid

Training facilities (CPV 8052) in Northern Ireland — and who usually turns up

College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) has too little published record in this market to describe on its own; the Northern Ireland market stands beside whatever it has. Frameworks and DPS are kept out: they attract a different number of bids. Whole-market view: Training facilities (CPV 8052) →

1

How the contest usually goes

Left: this authority. Right: the market where the work is delivered. Bids and award-vs-estimate pairs are per lot, from contested contracts only — direct awards (including PA 2023 transparency notices) report one bid by definition and are left out. On Procurement Act 2023 notices the count is the tenders assessed at the final stage, not every submission received; pairs compare like with like (VAT-exclusive, or VAT-inclusive on both sides). Empty means nothing was published, not filled in from elsewhere.

This authority

College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE)

no contract notices in Training facilities (CPV 8052) in 36 months

College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) has published no bid reports, no comparable estimate → award pairs and no award dates that this analysis can use — in Training facilities (CPV 8052) (36 months) or across all categories (24 months).

The market · delivery region

Northern Ireland · Training facilities (CPV 8052)

contract notices delivered in Northern Ireland in 36 months: 18 in CPV 8052 (18 competed) · 109 in division 80 (91 competed, 8 route not published)

Bids per lot
i

How many companies usually bid for work like this.

Middle value of published bid counts, one per lot, for this buyer or this region in the same sector.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 8052), last 36 months: 14 lots. 6 lots are from Procurement Act 2023 notices (bids assessed, middle 3.5) and 8 from older notices (bids received, middle 6).

Nothing is filled in from UK-wide numbers. An empty tile means nothing usable was published.

6CPV 8052 · 36m · n=14 lots
Single-bid lots
i

How often only one company bid.

Share of lots that received exactly one bid, on the same competitions as the bids figure.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 8052), last 36 months: 14 lots.

High means a thin market or an incumbent that is hard to beat.

21%CPV 8052 · 36m · n=14 lots
Award vs estimate
i

Do awards for work like this land above or below the estimate.

Estimate against award per lot, for this buyer or this region in the same sector.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 8052), last 36 months: 6 pairs.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

at estimateCPV 8052 · 36m · n=6 pairs
Deadline → award date
i

How long buyers here take to decide after bids close.

Middle value in days from the deadline to the first award notice, on competitions that published both dates.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 8052), last 36 months: 6 notices.

Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.

Last 36 months.

33dCPV 8052 · 36m · n=6 notices
SME bidders
i

How much of this market goes to small and medium firms.

SME bidders where buyers published the split, otherwise SME winners.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 8052), last 36 months: 14 lots.

Last 36 months.

45%CPV 8052 · 36m · n=14 lots
Winners based in the region
i

How much work like this goes to companies based in the delivery region.

Awards in this category delivered here where the winner’s registered address is in the region.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 8052), last 36 months: 5 awards.

Registered address, so a national firm with a local branch counts as outside.

Last 36 months.

80%CPV 8052 · 36m · n=5 awards
Bids per lot robust · n=14
i

How the number of bidders is spread across lots.

Each lot with a published bid count is put in a band: one bid, two to three, four to six, seven or more. Real competitions only.

Based on 14 lots on 12 contested notices · CPV 8052, last 36 months.

  • 1 bid 21%
  • 2–3 21%
  • 4–6 29%
  • 7+ 29%

Median 6 · 14 lots on 12 contested notices · CPV 8052.

Winning award vs estimate robust · n=6
i

How often winners come in below, near or above the estimate.

Each lot with both an estimate and an award is placed by how far the award sat from the estimate.

Based on 6 lot pairs · CPV 8052, last 36 months.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

  • Below estimate 17%
  • Within ±2% 50%
  • Above estimate 33%

6 lot pairs · CPV 8052.

robust · n=6
i

Where this tender’s estimate would land if the usual pattern repeats.

We apply the buyer’s usual movement between estimate and award (or the region’s) to the estimate on this notice.

Based on the Northern Ireland market’s usual movement over 6 lots (CPV 8052), applied to the £1,900,000 estimate on this notice. The range comes from the region’s middle half.

A benchmark, not a price to bid.

Awards in Northern Ireland (CPV 8052, n=6 pairs) land a median at estimate: on this notice’s £1,900,000 that is about £1,900,000, middle half £1,900,000–£2,042,500 (quartiles from Northern Ireland · CPV 8052). Context for a bid, not a recommended price.
Coverage and what to read with care
  • Each tile explains itself. The on a figure says what it is, how it is counted and which scope this notice’s own record came from (class, division, all categories, or the authority’s 24-month row). The two columns are never blended and nothing is filled from a UK-wide figure; an empty tile means the source published nothing usable. Long form: Methodology.
  • Coverage. Roughly 40 % of notices publish a bid count; about half publish an ITL1 delivery location, so the market column reads the authority’s registered region when the notice has none (labelled). About 30 % of award-vs-estimate pairs are exact matches — the buyer published the award at the estimate. n is on every figure; a thin sample is muted, never hidden.
  • “Match” and “relevance” are model scores from the nightly matcher, not published facts. Find a Tender does not publish who is bidding. Never shown: contact details, payment behaviour, or a recommended price.

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
Open for tender
Procurement threshold
Above threshold (FTS publication)
Regulatory regime
Light touch regime
Commercial structure
Stand-alone contract (no framework)
Competition type
Competitive procedure
GPA / WTO covered
Yes (GPA)
Recurring procurement
No (one-off requirement)
First published
23 Sept 2026, 17:23 BST
Last source update
23 Sept 2026, 17:23 BST
Award evaluation window
Submission end — 12 Nov 2026, 23:59 GMT
Authority reference
ID 6316996
Latest notice
Tender notice (UK4)
Classification (CPV)
Administration servicesEducation and training servicesSpecialist training servicesTechnical training servicesTraining programme servicesTraining seminarsTraining services
Delivery area
Northern Ireland (UKN)
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-077904 Find a Tender
Contract terms summary
For further details on invoicing procedures please see : https://www.finance-ni.gov.uk/ar ticles/account-ni-good-invoicing-practice

How to participate & submission route

Official notice Submit via eTendersNI
Submission portal named on this notice: eTendersNI · Who buys & how to bid on eTendersNI
Supplier login requiredElectronic submission allowedLanguage: EN
Access & registration note: Free Northern Ireland registration
Expression of interest (EOI)
—
Tender submission deadline
22 Oct 2026, 15:00 BST
Clarification deadline
13 Oct 2026, 15:00 BST
Submission channel
Official e-sourcing portal
Electronic submission
Allowed
Accepted languages
en
Detailed submission instructions & authority contactsFrom official release
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 ↗
Published estimate £1,900,000 excludes VAT (£2,280,000 including VAT).

Timeline

5 published dates · Europe/London
  1. Tender notice publishedearlier today
    23 Sept 2026, 17:23 BST
  2. Clarification questions byin 20 days
    13 Oct 2026, 15:00 BST
  3. Submission deadlinein 29 days
    22 Oct 2026, 15:00 BST
  4. Award decision expected byin 50 days
    12 Nov 2026, 23:59 GMT
  5. Contract startsin 53 days
    16 Nov 2026, 00:00 GMT

Commercial outcome & contract awards

Nothing awarded yet
Awards (0)
No award published
Contracts (0)
No contract published
Bid statistics
No aggregate bid statistics published

Notice history

1 event · 1 release on Find a Tender
  1. Tender notice published
    23 Sept 2026, 17:23 BSTUK4

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

3 public bodies on the notice

College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE)

Contracting authorityPublic authority - central governmentNorthern Irish devolved regulations apply GB-PPON: PYCL-3331-QQMP 45 Tirgracey Road, Antrim, Northern Ireland, BT41 4PS

Other public bodies

  • CPDBeneficiary authority
  • CPD - Supplies & Services 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 IrelandGB-PPON: PVWG-8426-YWXV Belfast, Northern Ireland

Official documents & specifications (2)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Tender pack and attachments

  • Conflict of interest declarationtenderConflict of interest declarationNot published

Notices published for this procedure

  • Tender notice tenderTender noticeUK4Tender notice on Find a Tender