Official UK procurement notice
NWS Independent Assurance Service
Authority: Nuclear Waste Services Limited (Public body)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThe service shall provide confidence that all designs, construction activities, quality management processes and technical decisions are compliant with regulatory requirements, aligned with approved standards, and capable of delivering the required long-term environmental and operational performance of the Repository.
The proposed Independent Assurance Services may support Nuclear Waste Services (NWS) across its wider business and repository-related demand, including but not limited to focusing on the activities at the LLW Repository near Drigg and the lifecycle of the Vault Optimisation & Capping Delivery (VOCD) Framework, which scope includes repository capping, adherence to regulatory guidance on landfill design and construction, use of Best Available Techniques etc.
The Independent Assurance Services scope is not intended to be exclusive to the LLWR site and may extend to other NWS programmes, projects, assets or locations where independent construction quality assurance, technical design assurance or critical friend assurance services are required.
The service shall support the achievement of regulatory confidence, audit readiness and effective delivery of NWS programmes through independent challenge, review, verification and certification activities.
The services shall comprise of three primary functions:
- Independent Construction Quality Assurance (CQA):
- Review and development of Construction Quality Assurance Plans.
- Inspection, surveillance and audit activities.
- Verification of materials, workmanship and installation.
- Hold point and witness point inspections.
- Review of contractor quality records.
- Assessment of non-conformances and concessions.
- Verification of testing and validation activities.
- Compilation of assurance evidence and records.
- Preparation of Construction Quality Assurance Validation Reports.
The service shall provide confirmation that completed works have been delivered in accordance with approved design and regulatory requirements.
- Independent Technical Design Assurance (TDA):
- Independent review of design deliverables.
- Verification of technical assumptions and methodologies.
- Independent challenge of engineering decisions.
- Design compliance assessments.
- Constructability reviews.
- Long-term performance reviews.
- Participation in design reviews and technical governance processes.
- Verification of action close-out.
- Production of design assurance recommendations and reports.
The service shall support informed technical decision-making and confidence in design maturity prior to implementation.
- Critical Friend Assurance:
- Independent review of delivery strategies.
- Technical and programme challenge.
- Review of governance and assurance arrangements.
- Identification of emerging risks and opportunities.
- Benchmarking against industry good practice.
- Participation in workshops, assurance reviews and project boards.
- Independent assessment of key project decisions.
- Strategic technical advisory support.
The Critical Friend function shall provide objective and unbiased advice to support effective programme delivery.
CPV: Advisory and consultative engineering services · Architectural, construction, engineering and inspection services · Civil engineering support services · Construction consultancy services · Construction-related services · Consultative engineering and construction services · Engineering design services for the construction of civil engineering works · Engineering services · Engineering studies · Engineering support services · Engineering-related scientific and technical services · Integrated engineering services · +2 more
How this framework works
From the published notice- Framework period
- 11 yrs from 4 Jan 2028
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedLot #1Planned
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).
- “NWS Independent Assurance Service” is a framework: the contest is a place on its panel, not a single contract.
Pipeline intelligence · planning stage: how this market runs before the tender is published
How Nuclear Waste Services Limited buys Consultative engineering and construction services (CPV 7131), and who usually turns up
Nuclear Waste Services Limited’s published record next to the market for the same work. Compared with other frameworks and DPS only. Whole-market view: Consultative engineering and construction services (CPV 7131) →
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 North West England.
A local branch does not count if the registered address is elsewhere.
Most of this buyer’s recorded winners were registered outside 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 74 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% / 0%
2–310% / 8%
4–680% / 22%
7+10% / 70%
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.
On a framework or DPS, prices are agreed when work is called off.
Past prices are a guide, not a bid price.
Not comparable on a framework or DPS: the price is set later, on each call-off.
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 71Published estimate£35m
This lot lists more than one class in CPV 71. The comparison uses that group.
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 121 past lots.
A forecast, not a list of bidders.
1 bid2%
2–312%
4–621%
7+64%
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
- 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
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 22 Jul 2026, 09:22 BST
- Last source update
- 8 Sept 2026, 14:42 BST
- Authority reference
C27373- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-084960- Latest notice
- Preliminary market engagement notice (UK2)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-06d069Find a Tender
How it was run
Official notice- Appointment period ends
- —
Timeline
22 Jul 2026 → 4 Jan 2028 · 5 dates- Planning notice published97 days ago22 Jul 2026, 09:22 BST
- Latest notice published48 days ago8 Sept 2026, 14:42 BST
- Market engagement28 days ago28 Sept 2026, 23:59 BST
A virtual market engagement event is planned for Wednesday 30th September 2026 where we will discuss:
- Details on the scopes including Construction Quality Assurance and Technical Design Assurance, and Critical Friend Assurance.
- Options for contract vehicles.
- Contract duration and value.
- Other supporting information.
Suppliers are encouraged to express an interest in attending the event to the email address scott.sowerby@nuclearwasteservices.uk by COP Monday 28th September 2026.
- Today26 Oct 2026
- Tender notice expectedin 196 days10 May 2027, 23:59 BST
- Contract starts4 Jan 2028
Notice history
3 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 22 Jul 2026- Pipeline notice published22 Jul 2026, 09:22 BSTUK1
- Preliminary market engagement notice published8 Sept 2026, 14:42 BSTUK2
- Published value published: £35,000,0008 Sept 2026, 14:42 BST
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 (2)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender
- Pipeline notice Pipeline notice on Find a Tender