Official UK procurement notice
Security Operation Centre · Bournemouth University (Sept 2026)
Authority: Bournemouth University (Education)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionBournemouth University ("BU" or the "University") is exploring options for the provision of a co-managed Security Operations Centre (SOC) service to enhance and future-proof its cyber security operations capability. The University is seeking market feedback from experienced Managed Security Service Providers to better understand available service models, implementation approaches, commercial arrangements and indicative costs.
BU has invested significantly in its internal cyber security capability and Microsoft security technologies, including Microsoft Sentinel, Microsoft Defender XDR, Entra ID Protection, Security Copilot and related services. The University is now considering how external specialist support could complement its in-house team through a co-managed SOC operating model.
The key objectives of a future service are expected to include:
- Enhancing monitoring, detection and response capabilities through either 24/7 or out-of-hours SOC coverage.
- Improving threat detection, triage, false-positive reduction and incident response effectiveness.
- Providing additional specialist expertise, operational resilience and surge capacity during major incidents or periods of heightened risk.
- Maintaining and continuously improving detection rules, playbooks, automation and security monitoring capabilities.
- Leveraging threat intelligence, sector insight, automation and AI-enabled capabilities to strengthen cyber resilience and operational effectiveness.
- Establishing a robust governance, reporting and service management framework with clear responsibilities between BU and the supplier.
- Maximising the value of the University's existing Microsoft security investments while minimising the need for additional tooling wherever appropriate.
The University wishes to understand how the market can support these objectives, together with the costs, benefits, risks and implementation considerations associated with different service models. Supplier feedback received through this Preliminary Market Engagement exercise will help inform the University's future requirements, budget planning and procurement strategy.
CPV: System and support services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedPipeline intelligence · planning stage: how this market runs before the tender is published
How Bournemouth University buys System and support services (CPV 7225), and who usually turns up
Bournemouth University’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: System and support services (CPV 7225) →
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.
No small-firm winners recorded among this authority’s published awards in this sample.
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 South 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 47 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 bid22%
2–344%
4–617%
7+17%
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 estimate50%
Within ±2%20%
Above estimate30%
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 7225Estimate not published
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 80 past lots.
A forecast, not a list of bidders.
1 bid10%
2–323%
4–628%
7+40%
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
- 17 Sept 2026, 22:41 BST
- Last source update
- 24 Sept 2026, 11:14 BST
- Authority reference
IT/JH/707- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-090479- Latest notice
- Preliminary market engagement notice (UK2)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-0774e7Find a Tender
How it was run
Official notice- Submission deadline
- —
Timeline
17 Sept 2026 → 1 Dec 2027 · 5 dates- Planning notice published39 days ago17 Sept 2026, 22:41 BST
- Latest notice published32 days ago24 Sept 2026, 11:14 BST
- Market engagement20 days ago6 Oct 2026, 23:59 BST
The purpose of this Preliminary Market Engagement (PME) exercise is to engage with the market and gather supplier insight to help Bournemouth University develop its future Security Operations Centre requirements, understand available service models and technologies, and inform its procurement strategy and budget planning.
Objectives
- Gain a better understanding of the current market for co-managed Security Operations Centre services and Managed Security Service Providers.
- Understand the range of operating models available, including 24/7 and out-of-hours service provision.
- Gather feedback on implementation approaches, governance models, service levels, automation and AI capabilities, and commercial arrangements.
- Obtain indicative pricing information and identify the key factors that influence service cost.
- Better understand the resources, technologies and organisational commitments required to successfully implement and operate a future service.
- Use supplier feedback to refine requirements, inform budget planning and determine the most appropriate route to market and procurement approach.
Bournemouth University invites interested organisations to review the PME documentation and submit a written response. Suppliers are encouraged to provide detailed feedback, market insight and indicative pricing information to assist the University in understanding available options and the likely costs associated with a future Security Operations Centre service.
Responses should be submitted in accordance with the instructions contained within the PME documentation and emailed to procurement@bournemouth.ac.uk by the published deadline.
Please note that this PME is an information-gathering exercise only. It is not a request for quotation, invitation to tender or other competitive procurement process. The information obtained through this exercise will be used solely to help inform the University's future requirements, budget considerations and procurement strategy.
There is no obligation for suppliers to respond to this PME. Supplier responses (or lack of responses) will not be used to determine participation in, or evaluation of, any future procurement exercise. Participation in this PME will not provide any supplier with an advantage or guarantee inclusion in any subsequent tender process.
The University's current intention is that any future procurement opportunity arising from this requirement will be advertised separately at a later date.
- Today27 Oct 2026
- Tender notice expectedin 248 days2 Jul 2027, 23:59 BST
- Contract startsin 399 days1 Dec 2027
Notice history
2 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 17 Sept 2026- Preliminary market engagement notice published17 Sept 2026, 22:41 BSTUK2
- Preliminary market engagement notice published24 Sept 2026, 11:14 BSTUK2
Published amendments (1)
The Engagement deadline has been extended for period of 1 week. The updated Engagement deadline is 06 October 2026.
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
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender