Find a TenderAwarded
Published 21 Nov 2025, 13:57 GMT

Official UK procurement notice

International Student Recruitment - In Country

Official notice

Authority: University Of Edinburgh (Education)

ServicesOpen procedureSME suitable
Published estimate£825,000exc. VAT
Submissions closed 22 Dec 2025awarded 20 Mar 2026
Awarded to Grok Global Services

What is being bought

Published requirement description

The University is seeking a Contractor(s) for the provision of In-Country Presence by establishing staff based in key recruitment regions — South Asia and South East Asia.

CPV: Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security · Recruitment services

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · no lot value published
Lot #1The University of Edinburgh wishes to conduct an open tender to appoint a third-party…AwardedRenewal

The University of Edinburgh wishes to conduct an open tender to appoint a third-party provider capable of hosting staff working on our behalf overseas.

The University intends to enhance its international student recruitment activity by establishing an in-country presence within key recruitment markets in South Asia and South East Asia. As part of this initiative, the University will deploy individuals working on our behalf to operate within these regions and requires external support to facilitate their effective establishment and ongoing operations.

This contract is being funded by the University’s Strategic Fund and at present, is only available for the initial 18-month term of the contract. However, it is the intention of The International and Postgraduate Recruitment Team (IRPT) to apply for a subsequent round. If successful, it is at this point the extension period will be enacted.

The budget for the initial 18-month contract term is 375,000 GBP (excluding VAT). Subject to additional funding being secured for a further two years, a further 450,000 GBP (excluding VAT) may be made available, provided the University secures such funding and enacts the extension period. This additional funding is not guaranteed at this stage. If all extensions are enacted, the total contract value would be 825,000 GBP.

Delivery: Scotland
Extensions: A further 1 x 2-year is extension is available at end of initial term.Variant bids: not allowed

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 were scored
Quality: 70%Price: 30%
Published award criteria (2)
  • Quality: 70
  • Price: 30
What this means for your bid
  • Price carries 30 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 3 points. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.

Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.

Procedure terms & legal framework

From the official record · publisher note attached
Procedure method
Open procedure
Legal basis
CELEX · 32014L0024 Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (Directive 2014/24/EU)
Procurement category
Services
Notice status
Awarded
Procurement threshold
Unspecified in notice
Regulatory regime
Standard
Commercial structure
Stand-alone contract (no framework)
Competition type
Competitive procedure
GPA / WTO covered
Yes (GPA)
Recurring procurement
No (one-off requirement)
First published
21 Nov 2025, 13:57 GMT
Last source update
23 Mar 2026, 10:16 GMT
Award evaluation window
22 Dec 2025 – …
Authority reference
EC1080
FTS notice number
2026/S 000-026106
Classification (CPV)
Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and securityRecruitment services
Delivery area
Scotland (UKM75)
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-05e65c Find a Tender

Publisher note: (SC Ref:827233)

How it was run

Official notice
Run through: Public Contracts Scotland · Who buys & how to bid on PCS
Supplier login requiredLanguage: EN
Access & registration note: Free single registration for Scotland; PCS-Tender (Jaggaer) for full bidding
Submission deadline
22 Dec 2025, 12:00 GMT
Submission channel
{"electronicSubmission"}
Accepted languages
en
Bids opened
22 Dec 2025, 12:00 GMT
Detailed submission instructions & authority contactsFrom official release

Timeline

22 Dec 2025 → 22 Apr 2026 · 4 dates
  1. Submission deadline308 days ago
    22 Dec 2025, 12:00 GMT
  2. Bids opened308 days ago
    22 Dec 2025, 12:00 GMT
  3. Notice published217 days ago
    23 Mar 2026, 10:16 GMT
  4. Bids must remain valid until186 days ago
    22 Apr 2026, 23:59 BST

Notice history

1 event · 2 releases on Find a Tender
  1. Status changed to complete
    23 Mar 2026, 10:16 GMT

Commercial outcome & contract awards

Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast
Awards 1
Awarded value £8251 contract exc. VAT
Bids received 88 from SMEs
Contracts signed 1latest 20 Mar 2026
Awarded toValueDateStatus
Grok Global ServicesSME£825 †—Awarded

Contracts

Bid statistics published by the authority

BidsSMEVCSEValid bid range
8bids · 8 electronic · 6 from abroad8——

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

University Of Edinburgh

Contracting authorityEducationBody governed by public lawEducation Charles Stewart House, 9-16 Chambers Street, Edinburgh, Scotland, EH1 1HTContact name, email, phone Published organisation website ↗

Dispute resolution & review bodies

  • Edinburgh Sherrif CourtReview body EdinburghContact phone

Bidders & participating suppliers

1 commercial party on the notice

Official documents & specifications (2)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Tender pack and attachments

  • Economic and financial selection criteriatenderEconomic and financial selection criteria
  • Technical selection criteriatenderTechnical selection criteria