Official UK procurement notice
Minor Archaeological Services Call-Off Contract
Authority: Historic Environment Scotland
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionHistoric Environment Scotland (HES) requires a call off contract to be put in place for minor archaeological services.
- Recurrence: Six years from contract award
CPV: Archaeological services · Excavation work at archaeological sites · Geophysical surveys of archaeological sites
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1The proposed contract is for the provision of minor archaeological services on the HES…RenewalPublished value£480,000
The proposed contract is for the provision of minor archaeological services on the HES estate. The HES Estate comprises the Properties in Care, ancillary properties and depots managed by Historic Environment Scotland on behalf of Scottish Ministers. It is expected that the majority of the services required will be for small scale watching briefs and evaluations, along with the provision of requisite Written Schemes of Investigations and post-fieldwork analyses and reporting. However, larger scale excavation, community archaeology projects, archaeological survey, historic building recording, geophysical surveys or dendrochronology may be required as part of this contract.
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).
Published sub-criteria (2)
- Technical: 60%
- price: 40%
Published award criteria (2)
- Technical: 60
- Price: 40
- Economic & financial standing
HES use Scotbis, an independent provider of business credit reports, to assess the financial standing of tenderers. The overall aim of this assessment is to ensure, as far as possible, that any potential Supplier will not have financial difficulties that endanger their ability to perform the Contract. If financial information cannot be gained from that source Historic Environment Scotland will request that you provide full audited accounts for the last full financial year. If Suppliers cannot provide any of the assurances as detailed above, and it is determined by HES that your financial strength is not adequate, then your company may not pass the financial evaluation. If you can provide the assurances as detailed above, HES may explore these options with you before determining whether your company can be taken forward in this procurement exercise. Bank details may also be sought to support the above.
Minimum: With reference to SPD question 4B.5, it is a requirement of this contract that bidders hold, or can commit to obtain, prior to the commencement of any subsequently awarded contract, the types and levels of insurance indicated below: - Public Liability - minimum cover GBP 5 millio…
- Staff
- Names and qualifications of delivery staff must be submitted
- Price carries 40 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 4 points. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.
- Turnover usually expected at this size: about £960,000 (twice the annual value).
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula. Turnover is an indicative market norm (≈2× annual value), not a published condition.
Competition analysis · published record, not a forecast of who will bid
How Historic Environment Scotland buys Engineering-related scientific and technical services (CPV 7135), and who usually turns up
Historic Environment Scotland’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: Engineering-related scientific and technical services (CPV 7135) →
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 Scotland.
A local branch does not count if the registered address is elsewhere.
Most of this buyer’s recorded winners were registered 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 32 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.
Missing bid counts may hide more single-bid awards. This share is a minimum.
How many bids did past lots attract?
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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 bid17% / 20%
2–332% / 40%
4–627% / 30%
7+25% / 10%
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 estimate83% / 67%
Within ±2%0% / 17%
Above estimate17% / 17%
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 #1The proposed contract is for the provision of minor archaeological services on the HES…CPV 7135Published estimate£480k
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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.
A forecast, not a list of bidders.
1 bid4%
2–316%
4–670%
7+10%
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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.
Based on 8 comparable awards. Each lot reflects its own category; forecasts for different lots of the same notice are not comparative.
A statistical guide from past awards, not a price to bid.
Middle 50%£379k–£480k
Estimate£480k
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AOC ArchaeologyEarlier contract | Provision of Minor Archaeological Servicesnotice published Nov 2022 | — | £209k | Matched as the earlier contract |
| Zenith Property Conservation Ltd.Worked for this buyer | High Level Historic Fabric Survey & Associated Servicesnotice published May 2023 | — | — | Similar wording and category |
| SUERC (administered by Glasgow University)Worked for this buyer | RADIOCARBON DATING & BAYESIAN ANALYSISnotice published Aug 2021 | — | — | Similar wording and category |
| Go-Wright LtdWorked for this buyer | Provision of Masonry Services in Edinburgh Regionnotice published Oct 2025 | — | — | Similar wording and category |
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.
| Supplier | Won in this category | Live contracts | Award vs estimate |
|---|---|---|---|
| £225k2 awards in 36m · last 15 months ago | None on file | 7% below n=1 | |
| — | None on file | no comparable pairs | |
| £160k2 awards in 36m · last 2 months ago | 1 live · £160k iPublic contracts this supplier still holds. Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book. Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity. | at estimate n=1 | |
| £1.5m1 awards in 36m · last 2 months ago | None on file | no comparable pairs | |
| £230k2 awards in 36m · last 14 months ago | None on file | no comparable pairs |
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.
56% 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.
56% title match.
A past supplier may not bid again.
The prior contract this notice most likely re-tenders · matched by title and category (56% title match), the holder is not guaranteed to re-bid
Provision of Minor Archaeological Services — held by AOC Archaeology; no contract end date published.
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
- Services
- Notice status
- Open for tender
- Procurement threshold
- Unspecified in notice
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Yes (GPA)
- Recurring procurement
- Yes · Six years from contract award
- First published
- 25 Sept 2026, 12:13 BST
- Last source update
- 25 Sept 2026, 12:13 BST
- Award evaluation window
- 27 Oct 2026 – …
- Authority reference
HES/C/4362- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-090951- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-077a71Find a Tender
- Electronic trading
- e-invoicing allowed · electronic ordering · electronic payment
Publisher note: NOTE: To register your interest in this notice and obtain any additional information please visit the Public Contracts Scotland Web Site at https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/Search/Search_Switch.aspx?ID=843197. The buyer has indicated that it will accept electronic responses to this notice via the Postbox facility. A user guide is available at https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/sitehelp/help_guides.aspx. Suppliers are advised to allow adequate time for uploading documents and to dispatch the electronic response well in advance of the closing time to avoid any last minute problems. 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: A question on community benefits will form part of the scored quality evaluation for this tender. Please see the attached documentation for further details. (SC Ref:843197) Download the ESPD document here: https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/ESPD/ESPD_Download.aspx?id=843197
How to participate & submission route
Official notice Submit via Public Contracts Scotland- Requests to participate (first stage)
- —
- Tender submission deadline
- 27 Oct 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Clarification deadline
- —
- Submission channel
- {"electronicSubmission"}
- Accepted languages
- en
- Bid validity
- 150 days from the deadline
- Bids opened
- 27 Oct 2026, 12:00 GMT
Timeline
25 Sept 2026 → 27 Oct 2026 · 3 dates- Notice published31 days ago25 Sept 2026, 12:13 BST
- Today26 Oct 2026
- Submission deadlinein 1 day27 Oct 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Bids openedin 1 day27 Oct 2026, 12:00 GMT
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Nothing awarded yet- Awards (0)
- No award published
- Contracts (0)
- No contract published
- Bid statistics
- No aggregate bid statistics published
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Dispute resolution & review bodies
- Edinburgh Sheriff CourtReview body
Official documents & specifications
Official links; attachments are not copiedNo document links were published on the notice; the tender pack is on the portal.