Find a TenderOpen for tender Tender notice
Published 23 Sept 2026, 16:05 BST

Official UK procurement notice

SKDC-1611 Archaeological Advice Services

Authority: South Kesteven District Council (Local council)·On behalf of: Welland Procurement

ServicesOpen procedureAbove threshold
Published estimate£192,000≈ £100k / year · £240,000 inc. VAT
Submission deadline 21 Oct 202612:00 BST · 25d 20h left
Clarification cut-off 14 Oct 202612:00 BST · questions to the authority
Contract term 1 yr 11 moup to 3 yrs 11 mo with extensions · starts 30 Oct 2026
Bids per lot · this authority 4.5all categories · n=12 · competition analysis ↓

What is being bought

Published requirement description

South Kesteven District Council "The Council" is seeking a single provider "Contractor" for the provision of historic environment advice to assist the Council in relation to its activities relating to planning both Development Management (planning applications/pre-application requests/condition compliance etc) and planning policy. The Contract will cover the provision of advice for buried heritage advice (archaeological advice).

CPV: Archaeological services

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · value published
Lot #1Lot 1Renewal 1 yr 11 moPublished value£192,000
Contract period: 30 Oct 2026 — 29 Sept 2028 (1 yr 11 mo) · up to 3 yrs 11 mo with extensionsDelivery: East MidlandsTurnover guideline: ~£199,955/yr≈ 2× annual value
Value
£192,000 exc. VAT · £240,000 inc. VAT
Extensions
2 year initial term with 1+1 extension option
71351914 Archaeological services

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: 40%Price: 60%

No conditions of participation were published on the notice; check the tender documents.

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

How South Kesteven District Council buys Engineering-related scientific and technical services (CPV 7135) — and who usually turns up

South Kesteven District Council’s own published record, next to the East Midlands market for the same work. Frameworks and DPS are kept out: they attract a different number of bids. Whole-market view: Engineering-related scientific and technical services (CPV 7135) →

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

South Kesteven District Council

contract notices in 36 months: 1 in CPV 7135 · 5 in division 71 (3 without competition) · 35 in all categories (11 without competition · 3 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 buyer’s tenders in all categories, last 36 months: 12 lots. 11 lots are from Procurement Act 2023 notices (bids assessed, middle 5) and 1 from older notices (bids received, middle 2).

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

4.5all categories · 36m · n=12 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 buyer’s tenders in all categories, last 36 months: 12 lots.

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

8%all categories · 36m · n=12 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 buyer’s tenders in all categories, last 36 months: 12 pairs.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

4% belowall categories · 36m · n=12 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 buyer’s tenders in all categories, last 36 months: 11 notices.

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

Last 36 months.

24dall categories · 36m · n=11 notices
Notice updates
i

How often this buyer changes a notice after publishing it.

Middle number of amendments per notice. Deadline extensions and corrections both count.

Based on this buyer’s tenders in all categories, last 24 months: 83 notices.

Last 24 months.

0all categories · 24m · n=83 notices
Awarded without competition
i

How often this buyer awards without a competition.

Direct or limited awards as a share of its notices that say which procedure was used. These routes are legal in defined cases. This is just the record.

Based on this buyer’s tenders in this industry (CPV 71), last 36 months: 5 notices.

Last 36 months.

60%division 71 · 36m · n=5 notices
Bids per lot robust · n=12
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 12 lots on 12 contested notices · all categories, last 36 months.

  • 1 bid 8%
  • 2–3 25%
  • 4–6 33%
  • 7+ 33%

Median 4.5 · 12 lots on 12 contested notices · all categories.

Winning award vs estimate robust · n=12
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 12 lot pairs · all categories, last 36 months.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

  • Below estimate 50%
  • Within ±2% 42%
  • Above estimate 8%

12 lot pairs · all categories.

The market · delivery region

East Midlands · Engineering-related scientific and technical services (CPV 7135)

contract notices delivered in East Midlands in 36 months: 37 in CPV 7135 (24 competed, 9 route not published) · 459 in division 71 (307 competed, 83 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 7135), last 36 months: 14 lots. 7 lots are from Procurement Act 2023 notices (bids assessed, middle 4) and 7 from older notices (bids received, middle 3).

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

4CPV 7135 · 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 7135), last 36 months: 14 lots.

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

0%CPV 7135 · 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 7135), last 36 months: 8 pairs.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

7% belowCPV 7135 · 36m · n=8 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 7135), last 36 months: 7 notices.

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

Last 36 months.

23dCPV 7135 · 36m · n=7 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 7135), last 36 months: 10 lots.

Last 36 months.

46%CPV 7135 · 36m · n=10 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 7135), last 36 months: 14 awards.

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

Last 36 months.

64%CPV 7135 · 36m · n=14 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 13 contested notices · CPV 7135, last 36 months.

  • 1 bid 0%
  • 2–3 43%
  • 4–6 43%
  • 7+ 14%

Median 4 · 14 lots on 13 contested notices · CPV 7135.

Winning award vs estimate robust · n=8
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 8 lot pairs · CPV 7135, last 36 months.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

  • Below estimate 63%
  • Within ±2% 13%
  • Above estimate 25%

8 lot pairs · CPV 7135.

robust · n=12
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 this buyer’s own usual movement over 12 lots (all categories), applied to the £192,000 estimate on this notice.

A benchmark, not a price to bid.

Awards in South Kesteven District Council (all categories, n=12 pairs) land a median 4% below: on this notice’s £192,000 that is about £184,128. 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
Standard
Commercial structure
Stand-alone contract (no framework)
Competition type
Competitive procedure
GPA / WTO covered
Unspecified in notice
Recurring procurement
No (one-off requirement)
First published
23 Sept 2026, 16:05 BST
Last source update
23 Sept 2026, 16:05 BST
Award evaluation window
Submission end — 30 Oct 2026, 23:59 GMT
Latest notice
Tender notice (UK4)
Classification (CPV)
Archaeological services
Delivery area
East Midlands (UKF3)
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-0778f0 Find a Tender

How to participate & submission route

Official notice Submit via ProContract (Due North)
Submission portal named on this notice: ProContract (Due North) · Who buys & how to bid on ProContract
Supplier login requiredElectronic submission allowedLanguage: EN
Access & registration note: Free · short registration with manual review; public opportunity list
Expression of interest (EOI)
—
Tender submission deadline
21 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
Clarification deadline
14 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
Submission channel
Official e-sourcing portal
Electronic submission
Allowed
Accepted languages
en
Detailed submission instructions & authority contactsFrom official release
Published estimate £192,000 excludes VAT (£240,000 including VAT).

Timeline

5 published dates · Europe/London
  1. Tender notice published2 days ago
    23 Sept 2026, 16:05 BST
  2. Clarification questions byin 19 days
    14 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
  3. Submission deadlinein 26 days
    21 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
  4. Contract startsin 34 days
    30 Oct 2026, 00:00 GMT
  5. Award decision expected byin 35 days
    30 Oct 2026, 23:59 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, 16:05 BSTUK4

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

2 public bodies on the notice

South Kesteven District Council

Contracting authorityPublic authority - sub-central government GB-PPON: PCZL-1652-YMNZ Council Offices, The Picture House, St Catherine's Road,, Grantham, East Midlands, NG31 6TT [email protected]

Other public bodies

  • Welland ProcurementProcess contact pointProcuring entityBuyerGB-PPON: PVMQ-1845-NYPP Melton Mowbray, East Midlands [email protected]

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