Official UK procurement notice
Postal Services · UK public procurement notice
Authority: Sunderland City Council (Local council)
What is being bought2 lots · detail below
Published requirement descriptionPostal Services that includes hybrid mail, bulk mailings and revenues and benefits
- No preliminary market engagement: The Authority undertook limited market engagement solely for the purpose of obtaining indicative market capacity information. Given the specialist nature of the market and the proportionate scope of the engagement, the Authority determined that publication of a Preliminary Market Engagement Notice would not provide additional benefit. The Authority has taken appropriate measures to ensure that competition is not distorted and that all bidders have access to the same information.
CPV: Postal services
Lots and requirements (2)Procurement structure
2 lots · all with a published value (£3,816,000 together) · evaluation weights differ by lotLot #1Hybrid and Bulk MailRenewalPublished value£2,742,000
The Provider must be capable of supporting a full range of outbound customer communications, including (but not limited to) the printing and posting of hard copy documents, the generation and issuance of mail such as email and SMS, and the production of bulk documents from supplied data for delivery via either physical or digital channels.
The Council has operated a hybrid mail system for over seven years, during which time it has significantly transformed its outgoing mail processes to improve quality, flexibility, and digital capability. The Council is seeking opportunities to work collaboratively with Providers to further increase efficiency and reduce overall spend, potentially through greater consolidation of mail services and increased adoption of digital communication methods.
Jobs will be provided via upload to a hybrid mail system or via Secure File Transfer (SFTP) for bulk mailing.
The requirement for bulk mail is predominately from the Council's Revenues and Benefits services, which includes Council Tax, Non-Domestic Rates, Business Improvement District Levy, Periodic Income, Sundry Debts and Benefits Service
Lot #2Physical MailRenewalPublished value£1,074,000
The Council requires a postal services Provider to collect physical mail items from The Council's offices and post them on behalf of the Council and its Partners (The Council).
Volumes of post will not be evenly distributed across the year therefore the Provider must have flexibility to accommodate increased volumes during peak periods.
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.
| Lot | Quality | Price | Social value | Split |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 · Hybrid and Bulk Mail | 50% | 45% | 5% | |
| 2 · Physical Mail | 50% | 45% | 5% |
- Price carries 45 points on every lot: a 10% discount moves about 4.5 points.
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Open procedure
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Closed
- Procurement threshold
- Above threshold (FTS publication)
- Regulatory regime
- Light touch regime
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 22 May 2025, 17:46 BST
- Last source update
- 21 Sept 2026, 17:36 BST
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 3 Dec 2026
- Authority reference
Open Reference 20262082- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-089364- Latest notice
- Tender notice (UK4)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-051f61Find a Tender
How it was run
Official notice- Submission deadline
- 22 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
- Clarification deadline
- 16 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
Timeline
22 May 2025 → 1 Jul 2027 · 7 dates- Planning notice published22 May 2025, 17:46 BST
- Next notice expected269 days ago30 Jan 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Tender notice published35 days ago21 Sept 2026, 17:36 BST
- Clarification questions by11 days ago16 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
- Submission deadline5 days ago22 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
- Today27 Oct 2026
- Award decision expected byin 37 days3 Dec 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Contract startsin 246 days1 Jul 2027, 00:00 BST
Notice history
6 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 22 May 2025- Pipeline notice published22 May 2025, 17:46 BSTUK1
- Tender notice published21 Sept 2026, 17:36 BSTUK4
- Published value published: £3,816,00021 Sept 2026, 17:36 BST
- Status changed to active21 Sept 2026, 17:36 BST
- Procurement method changed21 Sept 2026, 17:36 BST
- Deadline published: 22 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST21 Sept 2026, 17:36 BST
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Official documents & specifications (2)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender
- Pipeline notice Pipeline notice on Find a Tender