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Published 30 Sept 2026, 08:52 BST

Official UK procurement notice

Tender for the Provision of Legal Services

Official notice Competition analysis

Authority: Ards and North Down Borough Council (Local council)

8 lotsServicesOpen procedureAbove thresholdSME suitable
Sectors: Business Services & Consultancy (79) Delivery: Delivery location not published
Published estimate£1,785,000envelope for 8 lots · £2,142,000 inc. VAT
Submission deadline 28 Oct 202612:00 GMT · 28d 2h left
Clarification cut-off 28 Oct 202612:00 GMT · questions to the authority
Contract term 1 yrup to 5 yrs with extensions · starts 1 Feb 2027
Bids per lot · this authority 5CPV 7910 · n=7 · competition analysis ↓

What is being bought8 lots · detail below

Published requirement description

Tenders are sought by Ards and North Down Borough Council for the Provision of Legal Services.

  • The authority expects to re-tender this requirement around 1 Sept 2031, 23:59 BST.

CPV: Legal services

Lots and requirements (8)Procurement structure

8 lots · all with a published value (£1,785,000 together) · same conditions of participation on every lot · same evaluation weights on every lot
Lot #1PlanningRenewal 1 yrSMEPublished value£675,000
This Lot is for the provision of Legal Services for Planning. Please see Document A - Invitation to Tender for full details.
Contract period: 1 Feb 2027 — 31 Jan 2028 (1 yr) · up to 5 yrs with extensionsEligibility: SME eligibleTurnover guideline: ~£1,350,000/yr≈ 2× annual value
Value
£675,000 exc. VAT · £810,000 inc. VAT
Extensions
The Contract start date is anticipated to be 1 February 2027. The Contract will initially be awarded for a period of one year with an option to extend for a further 4 x 12-month periods, to be reviewed annually.
79100000 Legal services

Who is likely to bid for this lot ↓

Lot #2Land and PropertyRenewal 1 yrSMEPublished value£200,000
This Lot is for the provision of Legal Services for Land and Property. Please see Document A - Invitation to Tender for full details.
Contract period: 1 Feb 2027 — 31 Jan 2028 (1 yr) · up to 5 yrs with extensionsEligibility: SME eligibleTurnover guideline: ~£400,000/yr≈ 2× annual value
Value
£200,000 exc. VAT · £240,000 inc. VAT
Extensions
The Contract start date is anticipated to be 1 February 2027. The Contract will initially be awarded for a period of one year with an option to extend for a further 4 x 12-month periods, to be reviewed annually.
79100000 Legal services

Who is likely to bid for this lot ↓

Lot #3EmploymentRenewal 1 yrSMEPublished value£250,000
This Lot is for the provision of Legal Services for Employment. Please see Document A - Invitation to Tender for full details.
Contract period: 1 Feb 2027 — 31 Jan 2028 (1 yr) · up to 5 yrs with extensionsEligibility: SME eligibleTurnover guideline: ~£500,000/yr≈ 2× annual value
Value
£250,000 exc. VAT · £300,000 inc. VAT
Extensions
The Contract start date is anticipated to be 1 February 2027. The Contract will initially be awarded for a period of one year with an option to extend for a further 4 x 12-month periods, to be reviewed annually.
79100000 Legal services

Who is likely to bid for this lot ↓

Lot #4EnforcementRenewal 1 yrSMEPublished value£300,000
This Lot is for the provision of Legal Services for Enforcement. Please see Document A - Invitation to Tender for full details.
Contract period: 1 Feb 2027 — 31 Jan 2028 (1 yr) · up to 5 yrs with extensionsEligibility: SME eligibleTurnover guideline: ~£600,000/yr≈ 2× annual value
Value
£300,000 exc. VAT · £360,000 inc. VAT
Extensions
The Contract start date is anticipated to be 1 February 2027. The Contract will initially be awarded for a period of one year with an option to extend for a further 4 x 12-month periods, to be reviewed annually.
79100000 Legal services

Who is likely to bid for this lot ↓

Lot #5Local Government GovernanceRenewal 1 yrSMEPublished value£50,000
This Lot is for the provision of Legal Services for Local Government Governance. Please see Document A - Invitation to Tender for full details.
Contract period: 1 Feb 2027 — 31 Jan 2028 (1 yr) · up to 5 yrs with extensionsEligibility: SME eligibleTurnover guideline: ~£100,000/yr≈ 2× annual value
Value
£50,000 exc. VAT · £60,000 inc. VAT
Extensions
The Contract start date is anticipated to be 1 February 2027. The Contract will initially be awarded for a period of one year with an option to extend for a further 4 x 12-month periods, to be reviewed annually.
79100000 Legal services

Who is likely to bid for this lot ↓

Lot #6Information GovernanceRenewal 1 yrSMEPublished value£90,000
This Lot is for the provision of Legal Services for Information Governance. Please see Document A - Invitation to Tender for full details.
Contract period: 1 Feb 2027 — 31 Jan 2028 (1 yr) · up to 5 yrs with extensionsEligibility: SME eligibleTurnover guideline: ~£180,000/yr≈ 2× annual value
Value
£90,000 exc. VAT · £108,000 inc. VAT
Extensions
The Contract start date is anticipated to be 1 February 2027. The Contract will initially be awarded for a period of one year with an option to extend for a further 4 x 12-month periods, to be reviewed annually.
79100000 Legal services

Who is likely to bid for this lot ↓

Lot #7ProcurementRenewal 1 yrSMEPublished value£125,000
This Lot is for the provision of Legal Services for Procurement. Please see Document A - Invitation to Tender for full details.
Contract period: 1 Feb 2027 — 31 Jan 2028 (1 yr) · up to 5 yrs with extensionsEligibility: SME eligibleTurnover guideline: ~£250,000/yr≈ 2× annual value
Value
£125,000 exc. VAT · £150,000 inc. VAT
Extensions
The Contract start date is anticipated to be 1 February 2027. The Contract will initially be awarded for a period of one year with an option to extend for a further 4 x 12-month periods, to be reviewed annually.
79100000 Legal services

Who is likely to bid for this lot ↓

Lot #8Civil Liability (Litigation)Renewal 1 yrSMEPublished value£95,000
This Lot is for the provision of Legal Services for Civil Liability (Litigation). Please see Document A - Invitation to Tender for full details.
Contract period: 1 Feb 2027 — 31 Jan 2028 (1 yr) · up to 5 yrs with extensionsEligibility: SME eligibleTurnover guideline: ~£190,000/yr≈ 2× annual value
Value
£95,000 exc. VAT · £114,000 inc. VAT
Extensions
The Contract start date is anticipated to be 1 February 2027. The Contract will initially be awarded for a period of one year with an option to extend for a further 4 x 12-month periods, to be reviewed annually.
79100000 Legal 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 · same split on all 8 lots
Quality: 70%Price: 30%
Published sub-criteria (4)
  • Methodology, Approach and Plan — 20%
  • Team Experience — 30%
  • Contract Management and Contingency — 20%
  • Cost — 30%
Published award criteria (4)
  • Methodology, Approach and Plan — Please see Document A - Invitation to Tender for full details of this criterion.
  • Team Experience — Please see Document A - Invitation to Tender for full details of this criterion.
  • Contract Management and Contingency — Please see Document A - Invitation to Tender for full details of this criterion.
  • Cost — Please see Document A - Invitation to Tender for full details of this criterion.
Conditions of participation · identical on every lot2
  • Economic & financial standing
    a. Insurances - Please see Document A - Invitation to Tender for full details.
  • Technical & professional ability
    a. Professional Qualification - Please see Document A - Invitation to Tender for full details.

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

How Ards and North Down Borough Council buys Legal services (CPV 7910) — and who usually turns up

Ards and North Down Borough Council’s own published record, next to the Northern Ireland market for the same work. Frameworks and DPS are kept out: they attract a different number of bids. Whole-market view: Legal services (CPV 7910) →

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

Ards and North Down Borough Council

contract notices in 36 months: 1 in CPV 7910 · 15 in division 79 (1 without competition · 4 route not published) · 47 in all categories (3 without competition · 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 buyer’s tenders in this sector (CPV 7910), last 36 months: 7 lots. All 7 lots are from older notices, which count bids received.

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

5CPV 7910 · 36m · n=7 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 this sector (CPV 7910), last 36 months: 7 lots.

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

0%CPV 7910 · 36m · n=7 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 this industry (CPV 79), last 36 months: 7 pairs.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

at estimatedivision 79 · 36m · n=7 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 this industry (CPV 79), last 36 months: 5 notices.

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

Last 36 months.

87ddivision 79 · 36m · n=5 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: 36 notices.

Last 24 months.

3all categories · 24m · n=36 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 79), last 36 months: 11 notices.

Last 36 months.

9%division 79 · 36m · n=11 notices
Bids per lot · history, not this notice’s lots robust · n=7
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 7 lots on 1 contested notices · CPV 7910, last 36 months.

  • 1 bid 0%
  • 2–3 14%
  • 4–6 71%
  • 7+ 14%

Middle value 5 · 7 lots on 1 contested notices · CPV 7910.

Winning award vs estimate robust · n=7
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 7 lot pairs · division 79, last 36 months.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

  • Below estimate 29%
  • Within ±2% 71%
  • Above estimate 0%

7 lot pairs · division 79.

The market · authority’s region

Northern Ireland · Legal services (CPV 7910)

contract notices delivered in Northern Ireland in 36 months: 18 in CPV 7910 (14 competed, 3 route not published) · 337 in division 79 (291 competed, 33 route not published) · the notice publishes no delivery location, so the authority’s registered region is used

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 7910), last 36 months: 23 lots. 6 lots are from Procurement Act 2023 notices (bids assessed, middle 2.5) and 17 from older notices (bids received, middle 4).

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

3CPV 7910 · 36m · n=23 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 7910), last 36 months: 23 lots.

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

9%CPV 7910 · 36m · n=23 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 7910), last 36 months: 5 pairs.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

at estimateCPV 7910 · 36m · n=5 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 7910), last 36 months: 5 notices.

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

Last 36 months.

54dCPV 7910 · 36m · n=5 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 7910), last 36 months: 23 lots.

Last 36 months.

67%CPV 7910 · 36m · n=23 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 7910), last 36 months: 7 awards.

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

Last 36 months.

100%CPV 7910 · 36m · n=7 awards
Bids per lot · history, not this notice’s lots robust · n=23
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 23 lots on 10 contested notices · CPV 7910, last 36 months.

  • 1 bid 9%
  • 2–3 48%
  • 4–6 26%
  • 7+ 17%

Middle value 3 · 23 lots on 10 contested notices · CPV 7910.

Winning award vs estimate robust · n=5
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 5 lot pairs · CPV 7910, last 36 months.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

  • Below estimate 0%
  • Within ±2% 60%
  • Above estimate 40%

5 lot pairs · CPV 7910.

robust · n=7
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.

This notice gives one total for several lots, so we show the percentage but do not turn it into pounds.

A benchmark, not a price to bid.

The middle award in Ards and North Down Borough Council (division 79, n=7 pairs) lands at estimate. Applied to each lot’s own published value in the lot table below — the notice total (£1,785,000) is an envelope for 8 lots and is not converted.
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
Yes (GPA)
Recurring procurement
Yes · next expected 1 Sept 2031
First published
30 Sept 2026, 08:52 BST
Last source update
30 Sept 2026, 08:52 BST
Award evaluation window
Submission end — 20 Jan 2027, 23:59 GMT
Latest notice
Tender notice (UK4)
Classification (CPV)
Legal services
Delivery area
Not published
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-077d07 Find a Tender
Contract terms summary
Please see Document A - Invitation to Tender for more details on Billing and Invoicing

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
28 Oct 2026, 12:00 GMT
Clarification deadline
28 Oct 2026, 12:00 GMT
Submission channel
Official e-sourcing portal
Electronic submission
Allowed
Accepted languages
en
Detailed submission instructions & authority contactsFrom official release
Tenders must be submitted online via eTendersNI - etendersni.gov.uk/epps/home.do ↗

Timeline

5 published dates · Europe/London
  1. Tender notice publishedearlier today
    30 Sept 2026, 08:52 BST
  2. Clarification questions byin 28 days
    28 Oct 2026, 12:00 GMT
  3. Submission deadlinein 28 days
    28 Oct 2026, 12:00 GMT
  4. Award decision expected byin 113 days
    20 Jan 2027, 23:59 GMT
  5. Contract startsin 124 days
    1 Feb 2027, 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
    30 Sept 2026, 08:52 BSTUK4

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

Ards and North Down Borough Council

Contracting authorityPublic authority - sub-central governmentNorthern Irish devolved regulations apply GB-PPON: PTTZ-3295-PYCW City Hall, The Castle, Bangor, Northern Ireland, BT20 4BT [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