Official UK procurement notice
Welsh Event Support Framework
Authority: Cardiff University (Education)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionCardiff University is undertaking development of its upcoming procurement for a Welsh Event Support Framework.
We are looking to expand our presence at Welsh events, currently attending the Urdd, National Eisteddfod, and are starting to expand into Tafwyl with our stands often being one of the largest. Additional events may be included in our strategy.
CPV: Exhibition, fair and congress organisation services
How this framework works
From the published notice- Framework period
- 1 yr · up to 4 yrs from 28 Feb 2027
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedWhat 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).
- “Welsh Event Support Framework” is a framework: the contest is a place on its panel, not a single contract.
Pipeline intelligence · planning stage: how this market runs before the tender is published
How Cardiff University buys Exhibition, fair and congress organisation services (CPV 7995), and who usually turns up
Cardiff University’s published record next to the market for the same work. Compared with other frameworks and DPS only. Whole-market view: Exhibition, fair and congress organisation services (CPV 7995) →
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.
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 59 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?
i
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 bid0% / 17%
2–342% / 39%
4–617% / 17%
7+42% / 26%
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
Lot #1CPV 7995Published estimate£124k
i
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. The bar shows 141 past lots.
A forecast, not a list of bidders.
1 bid1%
2–311%
4–620%
7+69%
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.
No earlier contract of this buyer matches this lot on the published record.
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.
Candidate suppliers for this notice have not been worked out yet, so this is not a verdict that nobody fits.
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- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Planned procurement
- Procurement threshold
- Below threshold
- 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
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 10 Sept 2026, 10:30 BST
- Last source update
- 10 Sept 2026, 10:30 BST
- Authority reference
CU.2290.GD- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-085710- Latest notice
- Preliminary market engagement notice (UK2)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-06f663Find a Tender
How it was run
Official notice- Appointment period ends
- —
Timeline
10 Sept 2026 → 28 Feb 2027 · 4 dates- Planning notice published47 days ago10 Sept 2026, 10:30 BST
- Market engagement24 days ago2 Oct 2026, 23:59 BST
Cardiff University is undertaking early market engagement to inform the development of its upcoming procurement for a Welsh Event Support Framework.
The purpose of this engagement is to understand the marketplace and suppliers’ offerings and whether they can meet Cardiff University’s needs at Welsh Events. We are looking to expand our presence at Welsh events, currently attending the Urdd, National Eisteddfod, and are starting to expand into Tafwyl with our stands often being one of the largest. Additional events may be included in our strategy.
We usually work on a 1-year planning cycle, however, the 2028 National Eisteddfod will be held in Cardiff, so we may have slightly different requirements to our norm, with our presence being slightly bigger due to it being the University’s hometown location. Our busy period is from January/February onwards, with the events being held in May, June and July.
We are, therefore, interested in understanding whether suppliers deliver these services, the capacity available, how proactive and knowledgeable they are about these types of events, whether they work directly with organisers to ensure all aspects are thought of, and that technical aspects are considered.
We anticipate this framework being a 1 + 1 + 1 + 1 year framework.
Scope of Procurement:
We are looking to understand the scope that suppliers can deliver as we will likely need the following to be provided:
- Transportation of equipment
- Stand design, creation, installation and removal
- Branding production
- Furniture
- Lighting
- Audio visual equipment
- Workspaces
- Completing and submitting booking forms
- Liaising with event organisers
- Questionnaire Objectives
The pre-market engagement exercise will seek to:
- To establish the level of interest in the tender opportunity
- To gain an understanding of your experience of similar contracts, incorporating any lessons learnt to drive improvements.
- To listen, reflect and mitigate any foreseeable risks within the proposed contract tender exercise to ensure that the service delivered at Cardiff University remains customer centric, efficient and offers value for money.
- To inform the University’s final tender strategy, specification refinement, and commercial model.
Suppliers interested in the potential opportunity are encouraged to complete and return the questionnaire via the Universities e-tender portal In-Tend.
in-tendhost.co.uk/cardiffuniversity/ ↗
Please return the completed questionnaire on In-Tend by 12 noon on Friday 2nd October 2026. Please note that your response will be kept confidential and will not be shared with other prospective bidders. There is no limit to the amount of text you provide in your response.
This stage does not formally commence a procurement process. Participation in this pre-market engagement is voluntary and will not provide any advantage or disadvantage in any subsequent tender process.
The University anticipates refining the scope, service levels, data requirements, performance metrics, and commercial structure following this pre market Engagement.
Insights gained will inform the final tender documentation.
- Today27 Oct 2026
- Tender notice expectedin 7 days3 Nov 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Contract startsin 123 days28 Feb 2027
Notice history
1 event · 1 release on Find a Tender- Preliminary market engagement notice published10 Sept 2026, 10:30 BSTUK2
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Pipeline notice- Awards (0)
- No award published
- Contracts (0)
- No contract published
- Bid statistics
- No aggregate bid statistics published
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Official documents & specifications (1)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender