Official UK procurement notice
Marine Macrobenthic Invertebrate Sample Analysis (2025-2033)
Authority: Environment Agency (Central government)·On behalf of: DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThe Marine Macrobenthic Invertebrate Sample Analysis Framework (2025–2033) is an open framework agreement led by the Environment Agency on behalf of the Defra Group, with an estimated value of £4.9 million over eight years (excluding VAT).
The Framework will comprise of 5 Suppliers.
The contract starts on 12 December 2025 and expires on 11 December 2028. The Contract may run until 11 December 2033, subject to the extensions provision.
- No preliminary market engagement: No preliminary market engagement was conducted prior to the publication of this tender. The requirement is well-defined, and the authority possesses sufficient market knowledge from recent similar procurements. As such, additional engagement was not deemed necessary to inform the procurement strategy or specification. This approach ensures efficient use of resources while maintaining compliance with the principles of transparency, equal treatment, and non-discrimination.
CPV: Environmental monitoring other than for construction
How this framework works
From the published notice- Type
- Open framework · open framework scheme (admission reopens)
- Call-offs
- every call-off is a further competition among the appointed suppliers
- Bids received
- 5 bids received · 5 suppliers appointed
- Framework period
- 8 yrs from 1 Nov 2025
- Scheme runs until
- 11 Dec 2033
- Supplier levy on call-offs (max %)
- n/a
Who may buy through it
Services will be procured by the Business Partners (Environment Agency (EA), Natural England (NE) and Natural Resources Wales (NRW)), on an ad-hoc basis, based on the business need, under a Call-Off Agreement. The Bids for each assignment will been evaluated in competition, on a commercial basis.
Published description of the framework
Services will be procured by the Business Partners (Environment Agency (EA), Natural England (NE) and Natural Resources Wales (NRW)), on an ad-hoc basis, based on the business need, under a Call-Off Agreement. The Bids for each assignment will been evaluated in competition, on a commercial basis.
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1AwardedPublished value£4,900,000
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).
Published sub-criteria (2)
- Tender (Technical): 70%
- Commercial: 30%
Published award criteria (2)
- Tender (Technical): The technical and commercial split is 70% technical / 30% Commercial
- Commercial: The technical and commercial split is 70% technical / 30% Commercial
- Price carries 30 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 3 points. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.
- “Marine Macrobenthic Invertebrate Sample Analysis (2025-2033)” is a framework: the contest is a place on its panel, not a single contract: each call-off is a further competition, so the pricing contest starts after appointment.
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.
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
- Open framework scheme
- Who may use this agreement
- Services will be procured by the Business Partners (Environment Agency (EA), Natural England (NE) and Natural Resources Wales (NRW)), on an ad-hoc basis, based on the business need, under a Call-Off Agreement. The Bids for each assignment will been evaluated in competition, on a commercial basis. · open scheme: new suppliers can join during the term
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Yes (GPA)
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 21 Aug 2025, 15:26 BST
- Last source update
- 5 Jan 2026, 16:21 GMT
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 10 Oct 2025
- Authority reference
C29870- FTS notice number
2025/S 000-050595- Latest notice
- Contract details notice (UK7)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Not published
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-058c49Find a Tender- Contract terms summary
Rate Card Compliance: All charges must align with the maximum allowable rates set out in the Pricing Schedule and formal rate card. No charges exceeding these rates will be accepted unless explicitly agreed in writing by the contracting authority. Mini-Competitions: Work will be awarded via mini-competitions under the framework, and pricing must reflect the agreed scenario-based rates.
- Risks
Detailed in the Tender and KPIs
How it was run
Official notice- Appointment period ends
- 18 Sept 2025, 14:00 BST
- Clarification deadline
- 11 Sept 2025, 23:59 BST
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
- Supplier levy on call-offs (max %)
- call-off levy · n/a
Timeline
21 Aug 2025 → 5 Jan 2026 · 8 dates- Tender notice published21 Aug 2025, 15:26 BST
- Clarification questions by11 Sept 2025, 23:59 BST
- Admission / appointment period ends399 days ago · period end, not a bid countdown18 Sept 2025, 14:00 BST
- Award decision expected by377 days ago10 Oct 2025, 23:59 BST
- Contract starts356 days ago1 Nov 2025
- Assessment summaries sent350 days ago7 Nov 2025
- Standstill ends331 days ago25 Nov 2025, 23:59 GMT
- Latest notice published290 days ago5 Jan 2026, 16:21 GMT
Notice history
6 events · 4 releases on Find a Tender · since 21 Aug 2025- Tender notice published21 Aug 2025, 15:26 BSTUK4
- Contract award notice published14 Nov 2025, 15:03 GMTUK6
- Status changed to complete14 Nov 2025, 15:03 GMT
- Contract signature expected28 Nov 2025, 23:59 GMTscheduled
- Contract award notice published4 Dec 2025, 15:36 GMTUK6
- Contract details notice published5 Jan 2026, 16:21 GMTUK7
Routine re-releases (4)
- 2025-08: 1 release · 21 Aug 2025
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| APEM, Hebog Environmental Limited, Ocean Ecology, Thomson Environmental Services, University of HullOpen Framework Contract for the supply of Services for Marine Macrobenthic Invertebrate Sample Analysis on behalf of the Environment Agency28 Nov 2025 – 25 Nov 2028 · up to 25 Nov 2033Extensions: Up to 8 years (3+1+2+2), ending no later than 25 November 2033. · Options: Each Contract will be awarded for 3 years with the option to extend. · Amended: The Framework will now commence on the 12 December 2025 to allow for Framework signatures. | £4,900,000 | 4 Nov 2025standstill to 25 Nov 2025 | Standstill |
Contracts
C32162 - Marine Macrobenthic Invertebrate Sample Analysis (2025-2033)
- Signed
- 11 Dec 2025
- Value
- £4,900,000
- Period
- 12 Dec 2025 – 11 Dec 2028 · up to 11 Dec 2033 with extensions
- Status
- active
- Extensions
- Each Contract will be awarded for 3 years with the option to extend. Up to 8 years (3+1+2+2), ending no later than 11 December 2033.
- Options
- Each Contract will be awarded for 3 years with the option to extend. Up to 8 years (3+1+2+2), ending no later than 11 December 2033.
1 agreed KPI: Appendix 2 - Key Performance Indicators - KPIs
- Appendix 2 - Key Performance Indicators - KPIs, Appendix 2 - Key Performance Indicators - KPIs
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5final-stage tenders | 3 | 0 | — |
Who bid
- wonAPEM Limited · North West England
- wonThomson Environmental Consultants Limited · South East England
- wonHebog Environmental Limited · Wales (Cymru)
- wonOcean Ecology Limited · South West England
- wonUniversity of Hull · Yorkshire and the Humber
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
- DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRSBeneficiary authority
- DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRSProcuring entityResponsible for procuring the service on behalf of the Environment Agency.
Framework contractors & participating bidders
5 commercial parties on the notice- APEM LimitedFramework contractor
- Hebog Environmental LimitedFramework contractor
- Ocean Ecology LimitedFramework contractor
- Thomson Environmental Consultants LimitedFramework contractor
- University of HullFramework contractor
Official documents & specifications (4)
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
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender