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Published 3 Mar 2026, 15:49 GMT

Official UK procurement notice

Annual Report and Accounts - Creative and Design Agency

Official notice

Authority: The Crown Estate (Central government)

ServicesCompetitive flexible procedureAbove thresholdSME suitable
Published estimate£615,000≈ £205k / year · £738,000 inc. VAT · 1 value update
Submissions closed 21 Sept 2026
Contract term 3 yrsends 6 Dec 2029 · up to 6 Dec 2031 with extensions · starts 7 Dec 2026

What is being bought

Published requirement description

The Crown Estate is seeking to appoint a creative agency to support the design, production and delivery of its Annual Report and Accounts together with associated supplementary reporting documents.

The appointed agency will collaborate closely with internal teams to deliver a clear, credible, and well structured Annual Report and Accounts that meets statutory and best practice reporting expectations.

The scope of work includes the Primary Annual Report and Accounts alongside three supplementary documents, the Wales Review, Northern Ireland Review and Sustainability Data Supplement as required.

The contract is for 3 years initially with the option to extend for 2 additional years (1+1).

  • The authority expects to re-tender this requirement around 27 Jan 2031, 23:59 GMT.
  • How the procedure runs: This procurement uses the Competitive Flexible Procedure under the Procurement Act 2023. The process will have one Tender response deadline requiring the concurrent submission for both the Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ) and the Invitation to Tender (ITT) which must be submitted simultaneously. PSQ Evaluation will take place via a Conditions of Participation Assessment, whereby only those Tenderers who successfully qualify will progress and have their ITT submissions assessed at the next stage of the process. Step 1: The PSQ requests standard Tenderer information, hard binary gateway questions (mandatory/exclusion grounds) insurance information, project specific pass/fail questions and project specific scored questions (there is a minimum score of 3 to pass). Please note that a fail on any gateway question results in exclusion. Step 2: Tenderers who have passed all pass/fail questions and have received a minimum score of 3 or above at PSQ stage will have their full ITT responses evaluated. Evaluations will focus on Quality, including Social Value (70%) and Commercial (20%). The Crown Estate reserves the right to exercise Step 3 to invite the top three highest ranked Tenderers for a Presentation/Interview (10%). The contract will be awarded to the most advantageous Tender. As the PSQ and ITT will be issued and returned simultaneously, The Crown Estate accepts no liability for any costs incurred by a Tenderer in preparing an ITT response that is not evaluated as a result of PSQ failure. Tenderers must not assume that a submission of an ITT response indicates that their PSQ has been assessed as a pass.

CPV: Advertising and marketing services · Design consultancy services · Graphic design services · Publications

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · value published
Lot #1Renewal 3 yrsSMEPublished value£615,000
Contract period: 7 Dec 2026 – 6 Dec 2029 (3 yrs) · up to 6 Dec 2031 with extensionsValue: £615,000 exc. VAT · £738,000 inc. VAT
Extensions: The Crown Estate may require optional services that extend beyond the baseline Annual Report requirements. These options maybe: Copywriting and Editorial Support, where they have been required significantly for previous strategic reports as well as photography, additional project management and data visualisation. · The contract is for 3 years initially with the option to extend for 2 additional years (1+1).

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 were scored
Quality: 80%Price: 20%
Published award criteria (2)
  • Quality: Quality - including Social Value and Presentation/Interview
  • Price: Pricing Schedule for Core Services
What this means for your bid
  • Price carries 20 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 2 points. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.

Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.

Procedure terms & legal framework

From the official record
Procedure method
Competitive flexible procedure
Legal basis
UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
Procurement category
Services
Notice status
Closed
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
Yes · next expected 27 Jan 2031
First published
3 Mar 2026, 15:49 GMT
Last source update
21 Aug 2026, 23:21 BST
Award evaluation window
Submission end – 17 Nov 2026
Authority reference
79826
FTS notice number
2026/S 000-080114
Latest notice
Tender notice (UK4)
Classification (CPV)
Advertising and marketing servicesDesign consultancy servicesGraphic design servicesPublications
Delivery area
UKNorth East (UKC)North West (UKD)Yorkshire & Humber (UKE)East Midlands (UKF)West Midlands (UKG)East of England (UKH)London (UKI)
+2 moreSouth East (UKJ)South West (UKK)
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-06615a Find a Tender
How it runs

This procurement uses the Competitive Flexible Procedure under the Procurement Act 2023. The process will have one Tender response deadline requiring the concurrent submission for both the Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ) and the Invitation to Tender (ITT) which must be submitted simultaneously. PSQ Evaluation will take place via a Conditions of Participation Assessment, whereby only those Tenderers who successfully qualify will progress and have their ITT submissions assessed at the next stage of the process.

Step 1: The PSQ requests standard Tenderer information, hard binary gateway questions (mandatory/exclusion grounds) insurance information, project specific pass/fail questions and project specific scored questions (there is a minimum score of 3 to pass).

Please note that a fail on any gateway question results in exclusion.

Step 2: Tenderers who have passed all pass/fail questions and have received a minimum score of 3 or above at PSQ stage will have their full ITT responses evaluated. Evaluations will focus on Quality, including Social Value (70%) and Commercial (20%). The Crown Estate reserves the right to exercise Step 3 to invite the top three highest ranked Tenderers for a Presentation/Interview (10%). The contract will be awarded to the most advantageous Tender.

As the PSQ and ITT will be issued and returned simultaneously, The Crown Estate accepts no liability for any costs incurred by a Tenderer in preparing an ITT response that is not evaluated as a result of PSQ failure. Tenderers must not assume that a submission of an ITT response indicates that their PSQ has been assessed as a pass.

How it was run

Official notice
Run through: portal not identified
Electronic submission allowedLanguage: EN
Submission deadline
21 Sept 2026, 12:00 BST
Clarification deadline
1 Sept 2026, 12:00 BST
Submission channel
Official e-sourcing portal
Electronic submission
Allowed
Accepted languages
en
Detailed submission instructions & authority contactsFrom official release

Timeline

3 Mar 2026 → 7 Dec 2026 · 7 dates
  1. Planning notice published239 days ago
    3 Mar 2026, 15:49 GMT
  2. Market engagement194 days ago
    17 Apr 2026, 23:59 BST

    The Crown Estate intends to undertake preliminary market engagement (PME) to gather insight from the market to support the development of a proportionate and competitive procurement approach for corporate reporting services.

    The engagement will be used to test, at a high level, the proposed scope, delivery approaches, and commercial considerations associated with the integrated planning, design, and delivery of the Integrated Annual Report & Accounts and associated reporting outputs.

    Participation in this engagement will be invite‑only. Due to the anticipated volume of interest, The Crown Estate intends to engage with a representative sample of the market to ensure the engagement is proportionate, manageable, and effective.

    The invited sample may include publishing, printing, design, and reporting agencies, comprising a mix of small and medium‑sized enterprises, larger suppliers, and existing provider(s).

    Participation will be limited to a maximum of two representatives per organisation.

    Engagement activities may take the form of one‑to‑one discussions, either in person or via Microsoft Teams.

    Invited parties will be required to confirm their participation in the engagement via the registration link provided here: (secure.sourcedogg.com/profile/676e86f0-50b… ↗) and confirm the names of their nominated representatives (maximum of two).

    Further details regarding the format and logistics of the engagement will be shared directly with invited participants.

  3. Tender notice published68 days ago
    21 Aug 2026, 23:21 BST
  4. Clarification questions by57 days ago
    1 Sept 2026, 12:00 BST
  5. Submission deadline37 days ago
    21 Sept 2026, 12:00 BST
  6. Today
    29 Oct 2026
  7. Award decision expected byin 19 days
    17 Nov 2026, 23:59 GMT
  8. Contract startsin 38 days
    7 Dec 2026

Notice history

7 events · 3 releases on Find a Tender · since 3 Mar 2026
  1. Preliminary market engagement notice published
    3 Mar 2026, 15:49 GMT
    UK2
  2. Preliminary market engagement notice published
    3 Mar 2026, 16:00 GMT
    UK2
  3. Tender notice published
    21 Aug 2026, 23:21 BST
    UK4
  4. Published value published: £615,000
    21 Aug 2026, 23:21 BST
  5. Status changed to active
    21 Aug 2026, 23:21 BST
  6. Procurement method changed
    21 Aug 2026, 23:21 BST
  7. Deadline published: 21 Sept 2026, 12:00 BST
    21 Aug 2026, 23:21 BST
Published amendments (1)

The term "Tender" has been removed from the notice title to avoid any implication that a formal procurement process is underway, ensuring the notice accurately reflects its purpose as preliminary market engagement only. This notice relates solely to preliminary market engagement, intended to gather high‑level market insight. It does not relate to, initiate, or constitute a tender process, nor does…

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

The Crown Estate

Contracting authorityPublic authority - central government GB-PPON: PYYN-4743-GYVQ 1 St James Market, London, London, SW1Y 4AHContact email

Official documents & specifications (3)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Notices published for this procedure