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Published 15 Sept 2026, 15:01 BST

Official UK procurement notice

UK2 Notice Template — UK public procurement notice

Authority: Department for Science, Innovation & Technology (Central government)

ServicesAbove thresholdSME suitableVCSE suitable
Sectors: Research & Development (R&D) (73) Delivery: UK
Published estimate £175,000£210,000 inc. VAT
Tender notice expected 5 Oct 2026from the planned procurement notice
Contract term 5 moup to 8 mo with extensions · starts 2 Nov 2026

What is being bought

Published requirement description

Lot 1: Advanced Connectivity Technologies Workforce and Skills Study

Indicative scope:

Assess the current workforce demand in the ACT sector using vacancy data, to understand demand for key roles, skills and qualifications. Set out how this demand breaks down by region, demographics and earnings.

Map education and training pathways, including undergraduate, postgraduate, doctoral, further education and apprenticeship routes.

Assess current and emerging workforce and skills gaps by technology family, skill level, region and demographic characteristics.

Develop five-year workforce and skills scenarios and identify practical interventions for government, industry, SMEs and training providers.

Undertake structured stakeholder engagement and robust validation, sensitivity analysis and quality assurance.

Indicative deliverables:

Project plan and detailed methodology.

Current workforce analysis report.

Future workforce scenario analysis report.

Stakeholder engagement summary.

Final synthesis report and recommendations.

Complete datasets, models and assumptions log.

Policy and analytical presentations; publishable accessible outputs.

Lot 2: Connectivity Sector Adoption and Future Networks Study

Indicative scope:

Read the full description (890 more characters)

Synthesise UK and international evidence on adoption, implementation and scaling of advanced connectivity technologies and services.

Assess benefits, barriers, enablers, delivery models, funding approaches, regulation, governance and place-based factors.

Undertake comparative case study and policy analysis, supported by proportionate stakeholder engagement.

Conduct a structured horizon scan of emerging technologies, services, use cases, risks and future demand drivers, including 6G.

Develop evidence-based conclusions and prioritised policy, investment and intervention recommendations.

Indicative deliverables:

Evidence synthesis and comparative policy report.

Horizon scanning output.

Final synthesis report and prioritised recommendations.

Policy briefing or slide deck for senior decision-makers.

Case study annex and two presentations.

Accessible, publication-ready source files and outputs.

CPV: Research services

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · no lot value published
Lot #1Lot 1PlannedRenewal 5 moSMEVCSE
Contract period: 2 Nov 2026 — 31 Mar 2027 (5 mo) · up to 8 mo with extensionsEligibility: SME eligibleVCSE eligibleDelivery: UK
Extensions
Extension options published
73110000 Research services

Procedure terms & legal framework

From the official record
Legal basis
UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
Procurement category
Services
Notice status
Planned procurement
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
15 Sept 2026, 15:01 BST
Last source update
15 Sept 2026, 15:01 BST
Latest notice
Preliminary market engagement notice (UK2)
Classification (CPV)
Research services
Delivery area
UK
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-06fa53

How it was run

Submission deadline
—

Timeline

4 published dates · Europe/London
  1. Planning notice published5 days ago
    15 Sept 2026, 15:01 BST
  2. Market engagementin 12 days
    2 Oct 2026, 23:59 BSTPlease contact Naomi Jones DI Commercial Lead for the full RFI Questionaire
  3. Tender notice expectedin 15 days
    5 Oct 2026, 23:59 BST
  4. Contract startsin 42 days
    2 Nov 2026, 00:00 GMT

Commercial outcome & contract awards

Pipeline notice
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. Preliminary market engagement notice published
    15 Sept 2026, 15:01 BSTUK2

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

Department for Science, Innovation & Technology

Contracting authorityPublic authority - central government GB-PPON: PVWZ-3216-PVQL 22 Whitehall, London, London, SW1A 2EG [email protected]
View buyer profile →

Official documents & specifications (1)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Notices published for this procedure