Official UK procurement notice
E-Books, E-Book Collections and E-Textbooks - APUC
Authority: APUC Ltd (Public body)
What is being bought5 lots · detail below
Published requirement descriptionThe Authority is acting on behalf of the HE and FE institutions in Scotland and oversea campuses, Members of the Scottish Confederation of University and Research Libraries (SCURL) which includes amongst its members, the National Library of Scotland, the National Museum of Scotland, the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and Scotland Excel and its members
Please refer to Appendix E - List of Institutions for more detail.
The Authority is seeking Contractors to supply a wide range of academic content in digital format and associated content and services from Aggregators and Publishers.
The scope will include:
E-Books
E-Book Collections (Publishers packages)
E-Textbooks
Associated digital content
- Recurrence: April 2029
CPV: Library books · Textbooks
How this framework works
From the published notice- Places
- up to 30 suppliers
Lots and requirements (5)Procurement structure
5 lots · all with a published value · a supplier may bid for at most 4 and win at most 4 of them · evaluation weights differ by lotEvery one of these 3 lots carries the same published figure, £8,000,000: it is the framework's maximum for the whole notice, not each lot's own budget, and no share per lot is published. The cards below say ceiling above rather than repeat it.
Lot #1Title by Title purchase and CollectionsRenewal Scotlandceiling above
This exercise is being undertaken on behalf of the HE/FE Institutions in Scotland and the members of Scottish Confederation of University and Research Libraries (SCURL), including the National Library of Scotland, National Museum of Scotland, the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh and Scotland Excel and its members.
The Authority intends to appoint a maximum of 8 Contractors to supply
Title-by-title purchasing of e-books via an aggregator platform for delivery via the aggregator’s own platform. Packages may be offered, such as DDA and EBA Programmes, and audiobooks. Contractors will offer perpetual access licences but may also offer alternatives (e.g. 365-day licences, including POA models) where perpetual licensing is not available. Additional information: Economic operators may be excluded from this competition if they are in any of the situations referred to in regulation 58 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015.
Lot #2Title by Title and Collections (Access on a Third Party Platform)Renewal Scotlandceiling above
This exercise is being undertaken on behalf of the HE/FE Institutions in Scotland and the members of Scottish Confederation of University and Research Libraries (SCURL), including the National Library of Scotland, National Museum of Scotland, the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh and Scotland Excel and its members.
The Authority intends to appoint a maximum of 8 Contractors to supply Title by Title and Collections, with access provided on a 3rd Party Platform)
The lot will enable the purchase of content via an aggregator with the content provided on a third-party’s platform. Additional information: Economic operators may be excluded from this competition if they are in any of the situations referred to in regulation 58 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015.
Lot #3Aggregated subscriptions packagesRenewal ScotlandPublished value£1,500,000
This exercise is being undertaken on behalf of the HE/FE Institutions in Scotland and the members of Scottish Confederation of University and Research Libraries (SCURL), including the National Library of Scotland, National Museum of Scotland, the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh and Scotland Excel and its members.
The Authority intends to appoint a maximum of 6 Contractors to provide Subscription e-book packages via an aggregator or a third-party platform. Packages may include wider digital content in addition to e-books. Package content is likely to be pre-defined in nature. Additional information: Economic operators may be excluded from this competition if they are in any of the situations referred to in regulation 58 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015.
Lot #4E-TextbooksRenewal UK, Scotlandceiling above
This exercise is being undertaken on behalf of the HE/FE Institutions in Scotland and the members of Scottish Confederation of University and Research Libraries (SCURL), including the National Library of Scotland, National Museum of Scotland, the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh and Scotland Excel and its members.
The Authority intends to appoint a maximum of 5 Contractors to supply E- Textbook content via an aggregator and hosted on the aggregators or publisher’s platform Additional information: Economic operators may be excluded from this competition if they are in any of the situations referred to in regulation 58 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015.
Lot #5E-Books and E-Textbooks (Title by Title & Collections)Renewal UK, ScotlandPublished value£9,000,000
- This exercise is being undertaken on behalf of the HE/FE Institutions in Scotland and the members of Scottish Confederation of University and Research Libraries (SCURL), including the National Library of Scotland, National Museum of Scotland, the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh and Scotland Excel and its members.
The Authority intends to appoint a maximum of 20 Contractors to supply E-Books and E-Textbooks (Title by Title & Collections) negotiated directly with the publisher and hosted on the publisher’s or an aggregator’s platform. Additional information: Economic operators may be excluded from this competition if they are in any of the situations referred to in regulation 58 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015.
What 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).
Lots publish different evaluation splits; there is no single procedure weighting.
- Condition of participationno text publishedMinimum: With reference to Q4B.5 of the SPD in the qualification questionnaire, bidders must confirm they can provide the following supporting evidence prior to award: Employer's (Compulsory) Liability Insurance* = GBP 5 Million Product and Public Liability Insurance = GBP 5 Million Cyber…
- Price carries 40–50 points depending on the lot; most lots put it at 50 points.
- “E-Books, E-Book Collections and E-Textbooks - APUC” is a framework: the contest is a place on its panel, up to 30 suppliers, not a single contract.
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record · publisher note attached- Procedure method
- Open procedure
- Legal basis
- CELEX · 32014L0024 Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (Directive 2014/24/EU)
- Procurement category
- Goods
- Notice status
- Closed
- Procurement threshold
- Unspecified in notice
- 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
- Yes (GPA)
- Recurring procurement
- Yes · April 2029
- First published
- 17 Apr 2025, 09:10 BST
- Last source update
- 15 Dec 2025, 16:16 GMT
- Award evaluation window
- 4 Feb 2026 – …
- Authority reference
LIB1024 AP- FTS notice number
2025/S 000-083039- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-050477Find a Tender
- Electronic trading
- e-invoicing allowed · electronic ordering · electronic payment
- Performance terms
Submission of Management Information
Following commencement of the Framework Agreement, the Contractor will provide a performance report to The Authority on a quarterly basis to include spend by institution under the Framework Agreement for the reporting period.
Contractors must provide the information on a quarterly basis, within 10 working days following the start of each quarter. Data must be uploaded to the website: ucsp.ac.uk ↗ using the template provided (template shall be provided during the lead-in period). The supplied template is the only format permissible and should contain
Contractor name, tender reference, total net spend by institution each month. If there has been no spend for the quarter, then this will still require you to log in and record a nil spend return.
Publisher note: Form of Tender Tenderers must sign Form of Tender - Appendix A prior to award to confirm that their Tender Response is a complete, true and accurate submission. Freedom of Information Appendix B - Freedom of Information(if applicable) in the This information should only be submitted if applicable at point of award. It is for information only and will not be scored. Sustain Supply Chain Code of Conduct The Authority has developed a Sustain Supply Chain Code of Conduct- Appendix D which sets out its expected standards for its supply chain in social, ethical and environmental compliance. List Of Institutions List of Institutions eligible to use any resulting framework agreement Prompt Payment Tenderers must confirm that payment of subcontractors at all stages of the supply chain will be made within a maximum of 30 days and that this will be managed. It is for information only and will not be scored but is a requirement of this tender and will be included in the contractual terms. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Please confirm that you will be in a position (prior to award) to complete “Appendix G(i) – GDPR Contractor Assessment Form” and Appendix G(ii) – GDPR Contractor Assessment Form (AI) in the Technical Questionnaire in PCS-Tender. Tenderers must complete the GDPR Contractor Assessment Forms. It is for information only and will not be scored but is a requirement of this tender and will be included in the contractual terms. Serious Organised Crime Please complete “Appendix H – Declaration of Non-Involvement in Serious Organised Crime” in the Technical Questionnaire. Tenderers must complete the Declaration of Non-Involvement in Serious Organised Crime. It is for information only and will not be scored but it is a requirement of this tender and will be included in the assessment of tender responses and in contractual terms. SCM RP Section 1 SCM RP is the Authority's designated tool for contracted suppliers to keep up-to-date essential information on their company, which allows the Authority to get an insight into their company’s general standing, commitment to preventing modern slavery and addressing climate change, as well as their pledge to fair and decent working practices for their staff. Tenderers must confirm that they will commit to completing SCM RP Section 1 on award. It is for information only and will not be scored but is a requirement of this tender and will be included in the contractual terms. Living Wage Status Please provide details on your position on the Real Living Wage. This information should be submitted in the Technical envelope in PSC-T. It is for information only and will not be scored. Library Management Platforms & Reading Lists List of Library Management Platforms used please refer to Appendix J in the Technical Questionnaire in PCS-Tender. Please complete at time of tender submission. Appendix K - Community Benefits and Value-Added Services Tenderers are required to complete the table listing Community Benefits and Value-Added Services that will be provided. Please refer to Appendix K in the Technical Questionnaire in PCS-Tender. Please complete at time of tender submission. The buyer is using PCS-Tender to conduct this ITT exercise. The Project code is 30712. For more information see: http://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/info/InfoCentre.aspx?ID=2343 The Contracting Authority does not intend to include a sub-contract clause as part of community benefits (as per Section 25 of the Procurement Reform (Scotland) Act 2014) in this contract for the following reason: It is anticipated that the required service will be provided the appointed Contractor(s) Community benefits are included in this requirement. For more information see: https://www.gov.scot/policies/public-sector-procurement/community-benefits-in-procurement/ A summary of the expected community benefits has been provided as follows: Training opportunities Work experience Charity contributions Support for community projects Engagement with supported businesses (SC Ref:817125)
How it was run
Official notice- Appointment period ends
- 4 Feb 2026, 16:00 GMT
- Submission channel
- {"electronicSubmission"}
- Accepted languages
- en
- Bid validity
- 1440 days from the deadline
- Bids opened
- 4 Feb 2026, 16:00 GMT
Timeline
1 Aug 2025 → 4 Feb 2026 · 4 dates- Next notice expected1 Aug 2025, 00:00 BST
- Notice published316 days ago15 Dec 2025, 16:16 GMT
- Admission / appointment period ends265 days ago · period end, not a bid countdown4 Feb 2026, 16:00 GMT
- Bids opened265 days ago4 Feb 2026, 16:00 GMT
Notice history
4 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 15 Dec 2025- Published value updated to £34,500,00015 Dec 2025, 16:16 GMTwas £20,000,000
- Status changed to active15 Dec 2025, 16:16 GMT
- Procurement method changed15 Dec 2025, 16:16 GMT
- Deadline published: 4 Feb 2026, 16:00 GMT15 Dec 2025, 16:16 GMT
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Dispute resolution & review bodies
- Stirling Sheriff Court and Justice of the Peace Court Sheriff CourtReview body
Official documents & specifications
Official links; attachments are not copiedNo document links were published on the notice.