Official UK procurement notice
CPT_26_32 Audit and Accounting Information
Authority: National Audit Office (Central government)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThe National Audit Office (NAO) intends to procure an online subscription service that provides authoritative, current audit, accounting and financial-reporting information to support technical research, professional judgement and consistent audit delivery. The service is expected to support approximately 600 users across the Financial Audit Service Line.
The required service is expected to include:
- comprehensive access to relevant audit, accounting and financial-reporting standards, guidance, commentary and technical updates;
- coverage of UK GAAP, IFRS, international auditing standards, corporate reporting requirements and relevant sustainability reporting standards;
- prompt updates reflecting changes to standards, legislation, regulation and guidance;
- effective online research functionality, including search, filtering, linking and document access;
- an organisation-wide licensing model that supports the required user population without avoidable access barriers;
- secure online or SaaS delivery compatible with the NAO's technology environment;
- implementation support, user guidance, training and ongoing customer support; and
- clear information about any AI-enabled functionality, controls, limitations, data use, optionality and pricing.
The anticipated contract term is three years, with two optional one-year extensions. The estimated maximum value is £600,000 including VAT over the full potential five-year term. The final scope, commercial model, contract value and procurement documents will be informed by market engagement and the subsequent competitive procurement exercise. This notice does not constitute a call for competition or a commitment to procure.
CPV: Information systems · Subscription services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedPipeline intelligence · planning stage: how this market runs before the tender is published
How National Audit Office buys Information systems (CPV 4881), and who usually turns up
National Audit Office’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: Information systems (CPV 4881) →
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. The market figure counts awards delivered in Greater London.
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 100 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 bid9% / 14%
2–359% / 43%
4–632% / 43%
7+0% / 0%
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 estimate35% / 61%
Within ±2%30% / 15%
Above estimate35% / 24%
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 4881Published estimate£500k
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 54 past lots.
A forecast, not a list of bidders.
1 bid22%
2–320%
4–641%
7+17%
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
- 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
- 15 Sept 2026, 13:16 BST
- Last source update
- 15 Sept 2026, 13:16 BST
- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-087292- Latest notice
- Preliminary market engagement notice (UK2)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-06fa19Find a Tender
How it was run
Official notice- Submission deadline
- —
Timeline
15 Sept 2026 → 1 Mar 2027 · 3 dates- Planning notice published42 days ago15 Sept 2026, 13:16 BST
- Market engagement27 days ago1 Oct 2026, 00:59 BST
The NAO has undertaken initial market research and supplier engagement to understand available solutions, market capability and commercial models. The findings have informed the development of the proposed procurement approach. The Authority is now undertaking a further phase of preliminary market engagement to identify potential suppliers, validate the proposed requirements and obtain feedback on the planned procurement strategy prior to commencing a competitive procurement process.
The National Audit Office (NAO) is undertaking further preliminary market engagement in relation to its planned procurement for an Audit and Accounting Information Subscription Service.
The purpose of this engagement is to:
- identify suppliers interested in participating in a future procurement exercise;
- validate the NAO's draft requirements and procurement approach;
- understand any recent market developments, including emerging technologies and AI-enabled functionality; and
- support the development of a fair, transparent and competitive procurement process.
Suppliers wishing to participate are invited to submit an expression of interest by emailing NAO.Procurement@nao.org.uk by the 30th of September 2026.
Following receipt of expressions of interest, the NAO may:
- issue a supplier questionnaire;
- hold one-to-one supplier engagement meetings or demonstrations;
- seek written feedback on draft requirements;
Participation in this engagement exercise is voluntary. Information gathered will be used solely to inform the procurement strategy and tender documentation. This notice does not constitute a call for competition, and participation in this engagement will not provide any supplier with an advantage in any future procurement process.
- Today28 Oct 2026
- Contract startsin 123 days1 Mar 2027
Notice history
1 event · 1 release on Find a Tender- Preliminary market engagement notice published15 Sept 2026, 13:16 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