Official UK procurement notice
Bycatch Monitoring Programme (BMP) - 26-35
Authority: DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS (Central government)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionDefra intends to run an open tender to procure a new long-term UK Bycatch Monitoring Programme and is seeking Expressions of Interest from suppliers capable of delivering the requirements.
The programme will monitor and assess the bycatch of sensitive marine species in UK fisheries, including (but not limited to) cetaceans, seabirds, seals, and elasmobranchs. The requirement will primarily cover England and Scotland, with potential involvement from other Devolved Administrations.
The successful supplier will build on the existing programme by increasing monitoring coverage where required, enhancing data collection and analysis, integrating monitoring approaches such as observer monitoring and electronic monitoring, and improving understanding of bycatch patterns across fisheries, gear types, locations and seasons.
Key outputs will include bycatch monitoring data, annual bycatch estimates and trends, technical reporting, and evidence to support national and international reporting obligations.
We envisage that, if a new supplier is appointed, the new contract will start on the 01 June 27 with a one (1) month handover period, from 01 June to 30 June, with full responsibility being transferred to the successful contractor on 01 July 2027. Where applicable, these handover periods are to allow a new Contractor time to get ready to take over the full operation of the contract requirement.
The contract will be let for an initial two-year term, with options to extend for two x 3 -12-month periods thereafter. (a total maximum of eight year’s).
We estimate the contract value to be between the range of £380,000 - £430,000 funded by Defra and the Scottish Government.
The contractor will be required to provide bycatch records and annual estimates of bycatch rates for sensitive marine species, produce information on bycatch trends using historical and newly collected data, and support reporting requirements including UK Marine Strategy assessments, OSPAR, ASCOBANS, ICES and US Marine Mammal Protection Act requirements. The contractor will also be expected to maintain accurate geo-referenced and time-referenced data on monitoring effort and bycatch incidence, produce annual reports for Defra, the Scottish Government and the project steering group, and provide information to support Parliamentary Questions and Ministerial correspondence when required.
The Authority strongly encourages a consortium approach, recognising the multi-disciplinary nature of the work and the benefits of bringing together relevant expertise and organisations. The successful contractor will be expected to provide dedicated programme management, maintain effective communication with Defra and the Scottish Government, manage any consortium members or subcontractors, and ensure delivery of the programme’s aims, objectives and reporting requirements.
CPV: Environmental monitoring other than for construction
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedPipeline intelligence · planning stage: how this market runs before the tender is published
How DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS buys Environmental management (CPV 9071), and who usually turns up
DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS’s published record next to the market for the same work. Frameworks and DPS are left out: they draw different bid counts. Whole-market view: Environmental management (CPV 9071) →
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.
No winner locations published for this authority. Local means a registered address in 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 26 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.
Both shares are minimums: some awards have no bid count.
Thin markets produce this too; it is not proof of a tailored specification.
Direct awards or one recorded bid are common here. Check the route before spending time on a bid.
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% / 26%
2–340% / 30%
4–620% / 21%
7+40% / 22%
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.
Past prices are a guide, not a bid price.
Below estimate0% / 51%
Within ±2%33% / 42%
Above estimate67% / 8%
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 9071No real estimate
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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 76 past lots.
A forecast, not a list of bidders.
1 bid26%
2–330%
4–621%
7+22%
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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.
| Supplier | This buyer’s earlier contract | Lot | Award value | Why listed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of St AndrewsLive contract | Bycatch Monitoring Programme (BMP) - 26-27runs to Jun 2027 | — | £493k | Matched as the earlier contract |
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.
What this replaces i
Who has done similar work for this buyer.
Past contracts are matched by buyer, title and type of work.
88% title match.
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.
88% title match.
A past supplier may not bid again.
The prior contract this notice most likely re-tenders · matched by title and category (88% title match), the holder is not guaranteed to re-bid
Bycatch Monitoring Programme (BMP) - 26-27 — held by University of St Andrews; the published contract ends 30 Jun 2027.
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
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 30 Sept 2026, 15:24 BST
- Last source update
- 30 Sept 2026, 15:24 BST
- Authority reference
P-38063- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-092489- Latest notice
- Preliminary market engagement notice (UK2)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-077dd8Find a Tender
How it was run
Official notice- Submission deadline
- —
Timeline
30 Sept 2026 → 1 Jun 2027 · 4 dates- Planning notice published27 days ago30 Sept 2026, 15:24 BST
- Today28 Oct 2026
- Market engagementin 40 days7 Dec 2026, 23:59 GMT
Supplier Engagement Event
We will be holding a Supplier Engagement Event as we prepare to commence the procurement for this requirement.
This session will provide interested suppliers with an opportunity to gain insight into the requirement, its objectives, and the proposed procurement approach. We are keen to engage with the market to better understand supplier capabilities, capacity, and innovative delivery approaches that could enhance the efficiency, resilience, and sustainability of the programme. The event will provide an opportunity to learn more about the requirement and explore how your organisation may be able to support its delivery. Please note that the purpose of the engagement is to inform delivery and procurement considerations rather than to redefine the programme's scope, objectives, or intended outcomes.
We are keen to engage with the market to better understand supplier capabilities and delivery approaches that could support the successful implementation of the requirement.
The engagement session will be held virtually via MS Teams on 9th December 2026 at 2:00pm.
Please be aware that this session may be recorded and/or transcribed.
Suppliers wishing to attend should email charlie.epps@defra.gov.uk no later than 2:00pm on 7th December 2026, providing the following details for attendees (maximum of two representatives per organisation):
- Contact name
- Job title
- Organisation name
- Email address
Please use the subject line: Bycatch Supplier Engagement Event – 9 December 2026 – 2pm
If you have any questions prior to the event, please email charlie.epps@defra.gov.uk using the subject line: Supplier Engagement Event – Question
There will be an opportunity during the session for suppliers to ask questions.
MS Teams invites will be sent out and should be received no later than 2pm on 8th December 2026.
It should be noted that this notice invites individuals and organisations to express an interest in this exercise only and participation in this engagement exercise does not guarantee participation in any future procurement process and does not constitute a call for competition or a commitment by the Authority to proceed with a procurement. Any subsequent procurement opportunity will be advertised separately in accordance with the Authority's procurement obligations.
- Tender notice expectedin 85 days21 Jan 2027, 23:59 GMT
- Contract startsin 215 days1 Jun 2027, 00:00 BST
Notice history
1 event · 1 release on Find a Tender- Preliminary market engagement notice published30 Sept 2026, 15:24 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