Official UK procurement notice
Peatland ACTION FW02 Field Ecologists Framework
Authority: Scottish Natural Heritage
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionNatureScot work to improve our natural environment in Scotland and inspire everyone to care more about it. We work to ensure that all nature in Scotland - our key habitats and landscapes, all our green space and our native species - are maintained, enhanced and bring us benefits. Our priority is a nature-rich future for Scotland and an effective response to the climate emergency.
Peatland ACTION funding - from Scottish Government - primarily supports on-the-ground peatland restoration activities and is open for applications from eligible land managers who have peatlands that would benefit from restoration. There are no geographical restrictions or target areas for Peatland ACTION funding. Peatlands are an iconic part of the Scottish landscape and have many benefits for people and nature. Healthy peatlands provide important ecosystem services including storing and sequestering carbon, supporting unique and specialised biodiversity, improving downstream water quality, and regulating water flow to provide natural flood management. In contrast, damage to peatlands reduces or reverses these benefits. For example, degraded peatlands release stored carbon and are a major global source of greenhouse gas emissions.
Peatland ACTION is led and funded by Scottish Government and delivered in partnership with NatureScot, Cairngorms National Park Authority, Loch Lomond & the Trossachs National Park Authority, Forestry and Land Scotland, and Scottish Water.
Since 2012, Peatland ACTION has set over 66,000 hectares of degraded peatland on the road to recovery, but this effort needs to accelerate rapidly in the coming years to help address the twin crises of the climate emergency and biodiversity loss.
The appointed Field Ecologists will work with the Peatland ACTION Technical Team and Project Officers located across Scotland to help support species and ecological survey requirements for Peatland ACTION restoration sites.
- Recurrence: Prior to the expiry of the contract including any extension periods exercised.
CPV: Agricultural, forestry, horticultural, aquacultural and apicultural services · Digital mapping services · Engineering-related scientific and technical services · Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) services other than for construction · Environmental impact assessment other than for construction · Environmental indicators analysis other than for construction · Environmental monitoring other than for construction · Environmental services · Ground-drainage work · Ground-stabilisation work · Lignite and peat · Peat · +1 more
How this framework works
From the published notice- Places
- up to 20 suppliers
- Framework period
- 2 mo from 18 Jan 2027
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedLot #1The primary role for the appointed Field Ecologists will be to carry out protected…Renewal
The primary role for the appointed Field Ecologists will be to carry out protected species surveys on request, which may include surveys for breeding birds (including Schedule 1 species), raptor roosts, mammals, freshwater pearl mussel, reptiles, or plants.
Field Ecologists must be suitably skilled and experienced in carrying out a range of species surveys of this nature. Surveys conducted prior to peatland restoration work commencing on site will be used to plan the restoration work and ensure all project personnel (agents, contractors / workers) are aware of the presence of any protected species on site and any mitigation and licensing requirements.
Surveys conducted during restoration works will also be used to provide continued ecological support to project personnel, including mitigation requirements, safe working distances/buffer zones, preparation of species protection plans and may include giving toolbox talks. Additional information: Scotland Excel is acting on behalf of NatureScot in the execution of this tender but will not be party to the contract or the management of the contract throughout its lifetime.
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 (7)
- Key Personnel: 25
- Data Management and Submission Processes: 25
- Capacity and Resourcing: 25
- Health, Safety and Remote Site Working: 15
- Fair Work First: 5
- price: 30
- Sustainability: 5
Published award criteria (8)
- Geographic Region: Information Only
- Key Personnel: 25%
- Data Management and Submission Processes: 25%
- Capacity and Resourcing: 25%
- Health, Safety and Remote Site Working: 15%
- Sustainability: 5%
- Fair Work First: 5%
- Price: 30%
- Price carries 30 of 130 points: a 10% discount moves about 3 points. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.
- “Peatland ACTION FW02 Field Ecologists Framework” is a framework: the contest is a place on its panel, up to 20 suppliers, not a single contract.
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.
Competition analysis · published record, not a forecast of who will bid
How Scottish Natural Heritage buys Environmental services (CPV 9070), and who usually turns up
Scottish Natural Heritage has little published record in this market. Compared with other frameworks and DPS only. Whole-market view: Environmental services (CPV 9070) →
How the contest usually goes
Winner shares use published awards; bid and price charts use contested lots.
i
How often small and medium firms win.
Share of awards where the winner’s size is known.
The counts under this question show how many awards have a known supplier size.
Small firms have won here. Neither number says whether you qualify; it describes who has been winning.
i
How often local firms win similar work.
Winners with a registered address in the delivery region, out of awards with a known address.
Local means the winner is registered in the region where that award was delivered. The market figure counts awards delivered in Scotland.
A local branch does not count if the registered address is elsewhere.
Most of this buyer’s recorded winners were registered outside the region where that award was delivered.
i
How long buyers here take to decide after bids close.
Middle value in days from the bid deadline to the award date, on competitions that published both.
Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.
Half of these awards have an award date within 74 days of the bid deadline.
i
How often work is awarded with no recorded rival.
Direct awards and tenders where every published lot count shows one bid.
The market share is a minimum: some awards have no bid count.
Thin markets produce this too; it is not proof of a tailored specification.
Missing bid counts may hide more single-bid awards. This share is a minimum.
How many bids did past lots attract?
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How many bids past lots received.
Each colour is a bid-count range. Only competed lots with a published count are included.
Past bids do not predict this tender.
1 bid5% / 0%
2–327% / 24%
4–65% / 12%
7+64% / 65%
How did awards compare with estimates?
i
Where winning prices landed against estimates.
Each colour shows awards below, close to or above the published estimate, one lot at a time.
On a framework or DPS, prices are agreed when work is called off.
Past prices are a guide, not a bid price.
Not comparable on a framework or DPS: the price is set later, on each call-off.
Assess each lot i
What past awards tell you about each lot.
See the forecast, this buyer’s earlier suppliers and firms with relevant wins.
No supplier is confirmed as a bidder.
i
What past awards tell you about each lot.
See the forecast, this buyer’s earlier suppliers and firms with relevant wins.
No supplier is confirmed as a bidder.
Open a lot for its forecast, this buyer’s previous supplier and possible competitors, from published award history, not a bid list
Our matching links this notice to “Peatland Action Monitoring (RMN) Surveyor Framework 2026” of this authority, but none of the 10 panel members sit in a category matching this notice.
Lot #1The primary role for the appointed Field Ecologists will be to carry out protected…CPV 9070Published estimate£450k
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How many bids this lot may attract.
The forecast uses similar past competitions. The bar shows either that forecast or past bid counts; the line below says which.
Each lot shows its own forecast based on its own category; forecasts for different lots of the same notice are not comparative.
A forecast, not a list of bidders.
1 bid1%
2–365%
4–617%
7+17%
i
Where the award price may land.
The forecast uses similar awards and the buyer’s estimate. The band covers the middle half of likely prices.
No comparable awards for this lot yet.
A statistical guide from past awards, not a price to bid.
Who has supplied this buyer on similar work? i
Who has done similar work for this buyer.
Past contracts are matched by buyer, title and type of work.
A past supplier may not bid again.
i
Who has done similar work for this buyer.
Past contracts are matched by buyer, title and type of work.
A past supplier may not bid again.
| Supplier | This buyer’s earlier contract | Lot | Award value | Why listed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AECOM LIMITEDWorked for this buyer | UKHab Survey & Natural Capital Assessment of NHS Estatenotice published Sept 2025 | — | — | Similar wording and category |
Who could compete for this lot? i
Who could compete for this lot?
Firms with relevant past wins. On a framework, we show firms on that agreement.
None is confirmed as a bidder.
i
Who could compete for this lot?
Firms with relevant past wins. On a framework, we show firms on that agreement.
None is confirmed as a bidder.
| Supplier | Won in this category | Live contracts | Award vs estimate |
|---|---|---|---|
AECOM LIMITEDLarge | £58m127 awards in 36m · last this month | 28 live · £38m iPublic contracts this supplier still holds. Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book. Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity. | 8% below n=26 |
| £5.1m33 awards in 36m · last 1 month ago | 12 live · £1.2m iPublic contracts this supplier still holds. Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book. Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity. | at estimate n=1 | |
| £786k9 awards in 36m · last 1 month ago | 4 live · £557k iPublic contracts this supplier still holds. Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book. Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity. | 25% below n=5 | |
| £408k7 awards in 36m · last 1 month ago | None on file | at estimate n=2 | |
| £45k1 award in 36m · last 2 months ago | 1 live · £45k iPublic contracts this supplier still holds. Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book. Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity. | 7% above n=1 |
About this data
- Source. Official UK public procurement notices (Find a Tender), reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0. New notices arrive through the day; the figures are rebuilt nightly.
- Two views, kept apart. The authority’s own track record and the wider market for the same kind of work sit side by side and are never mixed. Where the local picture is too thin, a figure widens to a broader market and says which one it used.
- Forecasts are labelled. The price forecast and its range, possible competitors and the earlier-work matches are our estimates from past awards: not published facts, not win chances and not price advice. Official notices do not say who is bidding.
- Every figure shows what it rests on. Not every notice publishes a bid count, a value or a delivery region, so each figure carries the number of records behind it, and one built on few records is marked as such. The on a figure explains it; the counting rules are in the methodology. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.
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
- Open admission
- Procurement threshold
- Unspecified in notice
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Framework agreement
- Who may use this agreement
- Not stated in the notice; call-off rights may be limited to the establishing authority
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Yes (GPA)
- Recurring procurement
- Yes · Prior to the expiry of the contract including any extension periods exercised.
- First published
- 11 Sept 2026, 16:04 BST
- Last source update
- 11 Sept 2026, 16:04 BST
- Award evaluation window
- 6 Nov 2026 – …
- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-086589- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-06f877Find a Tender
- Electronic trading
- e-invoicing allowed · electronic ordering · electronic payment
Publisher note: NOTE: To register your interest in this notice and obtain any additional information please visit the Public Contracts Scotland Web Site at https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/Search/Search_Switch.aspx?ID=842768. The buyer has indicated that it will accept electronic responses to this notice via the Postbox facility. A user guide is available at https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/sitehelp/help_guides.aspx. Suppliers are advised to allow adequate time for uploading documents and to dispatch the electronic response well in advance of the closing time to avoid any last minute problems. A sub-contract clause has been included in this contract. For more information see: http://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/info/InfoCentre.aspx?ID=2363 (SC Ref:842768) Download the ESPD document here: https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/ESPD/ESPD_Download.aspx?id=842768
How to participate & submission route
Official notice Apply via Public Contracts Scotland- Requests to participate (first stage)
- —
- Appointment period ends
- 6 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Clarification deadline
- —
- Submission channel
- {"electronicSubmission"}
- Accepted languages
- en
- Bid validity
- 120 days from the deadline
- Bids opened
- 6 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT
Timeline
11 Sept 2026 → 18 Jan 2027 · 4 dates- Notice published45 days ago11 Sept 2026, 16:04 BST
- Today27 Oct 2026
- Admission / appointment period endsin 10 days · period end, not a bid countdown6 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Bids openedin 10 days6 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Contract startsin 82 days18 Jan 2027
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Nothing awarded yet- Awards (0)
- No award published
- Contracts (0)
- No contract published
- Bid statistics
- No aggregate bid statistics published
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Dispute resolution & review bodies
- Inverness Sheriff Court and Justice of the Peace CourtReview body
Official documents & specifications (2)
Official links; attachments are not copiedTender pack and attachments
- Economic and financial selection criteria
- Technical selection criteria