AWARD OUTCOME
What happened
London Borough of Croydon published an award notice for postal goods and services to ROYAL MAIL GROUP LIMITED under GCA Postal Services & Solutions Framework RM6280, Lot 2. The notice records an active award valued at £1,400,000 and a service period from 14 September 2026 to 13 September 2027, with a stated option to extend by six months.
Published outcomeAward notice published; one active award is recorded to ROYAL MAIL GROUP LIMITED.
Market significanceThis is a £1.4 million public-sector postal-services award made through a named framework route, covering UK letters, large letters and parcels, with stated delivery coverage also extending to several non-UK destinations.
AWARDED SUPPLIERS AND LOTS
1 supplier record analysed
ROYAL MAIL GROUP LIMITED
99% confidenceAward ocds-b5fd17-9a38410a-15d1-4e97-a71f-35e3fe5051b9-1 · Lots Framework RM6280 Lot 2: Collection and Delivery of Letters, Large Letters and Parcels within UK · 1400000 GBP · Active award
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The award names Royal Mail Group Ltd as supplier and has value £1,400,000. Supplier verification records an exact-name match to ROYAL MAIL GROUP LIMITED (company number 04138203). The procurement description identifies RM6280 Lot 2.
LIFECYCLE
Award or contract stage
Notice status
99% confidenceAwarded contract notice; source record complete
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Process stage is "award", display status is "awarded", source status is "complete", and the document is titled "Awarded contract notice on Contracts Finder".
Award status
99% confidenceActive
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Award ocds-b5fd17-9a38410a-15d1-4e97-a71f-35e3fe5051b9-1 has status "active".
Award decision date
98% confidence20 October 2026
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The award record gives date "2026-10-20T00:00:00+01:00".
Contract signature
99% confidenceUnknown
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No explicit signature or contract-execution field is supplied.
Service go-live / stated contract start
98% confidence14 September 2026
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The description states service go-live is scheduled for 14 September 2026; the tender and award contract periods also start on that date.
VALUES
Published values explained
Award value
99% confidence£1,400,000
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The sole award value is 1400000 GBP; the tender value is also 1400000 GBP.
Published minimum value
99% confidence£9.99
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The tender minValue is 9.99 GBP.
Value allocation
96% confidenceAllocated to the sole recorded award and supplier
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One award is supplied, with one supplier, and the award value is £1,400,000.
TIMELINE
Procurement timeline
Submission deadline
99% confidence11 September 2026, 17:00 BST
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Tender period endDate is "2026-09-11T17:00:00+01:00".
Stated contract period
99% confidence14 September 2026 to 13 September 2027
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Tender and award contract-period fields specify these dates.
Award notice publication
99% confidence20 October 2026, 13:16 BST
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Award notice datePublished is "2026-10-20T13:16:53+01:00".
SCOPE
What was awarded
Service category
99% confidencePostal services
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Primary CPV is 64110000, "Postal services".
Requirement
99% confidencePostal goods and services, including collection and delivery of letters, large letters and parcels
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The description identifies GCA framework RM6280 Lot 2 as "Collection and Delivery of Letters, Large Letters and Parcels within UK".
Delivery coverage published
96% confidenceUnited Kingdom, plus British Overseas Territories, Channel Islands, Europe, Isle of Man and Rest of the World
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Tender delivery addresses list these countries/areas; CR0 1EA is also listed.
PROCEDURE
Procedure and competition
Procurement route
99% confidenceDirect award under Government Commercial Agency Postal Services & Solutions Framework RM6280, Lot 2
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The description explicitly states that the Council approached Royal Mail through a direct award under this framework lot.
Published procedure classification
99% confidenceSelective; Restricted procedure
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The process and tender fields state procurement method "selective" and details "Restricted procedure".
Competition information
99% confidenceUnknown
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No bid count, competing suppliers, evaluation scores or selection rationale is supplied beyond the stated direct-award route.
CONTRACT TERMS
Published contract terms
Base term
99% confidence12 months
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The description states the contract is for 12 months.
Extension option
99% confidenceOne option to extend by 6 months
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The description states an option to extend for 6 months, bringing the aggregate period to 18 months.
Maximum stated aggregate term
99% confidence18 months
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The description explicitly states the aggregate contract period would be 18 months if extended.
Published priced period
91% confidenceNot expressly specified
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The £1,400,000 award value is published, but the notice does not state whether it covers only the base term or includes the extension option.
COMMERCIAL VIEW
Commercial observations
Framework access
99% confidenceThe award uses a named postal-services framework lot rather than an open standalone competition.
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The procurement description identifies a direct award under GCA Postal Services & Solutions Framework RM6280 Lot 2.
Value interpretation
99% confidenceThe published £1.4 million value is a single award value; the notice provides no unit rates, volume assumptions, pricing schedule or breakdown.
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Award value is £1,400,000, while no pricing or volume details are included in the supplied record.
Service geography
94% confidenceThe framework-lot description is UK-focused, but published delivery locations include international territories and regions.
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The description calls the lot "within UK", while delivery addresses also list British Overseas Territories, Channel Islands, Europe, Isle of Man and Rest of the World.
DATA QUALITY
Gaps and source limitations
Award and contract timing
99% confidenceThe stated contract start predates both the award date and award-notice publication date.
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Contract start is 14 September 2026; award date and publication are 20 October 2026. The notice does not explain this sequence.
Publication completeness
99% confidenceInformation not supplied in the published notice: signature/execution date, bid count, evaluation results, pricing breakdown, volumes, individual service levels and extension exercise conditions.
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No fields or documents containing these details are supplied.
Lot allocation
99% confidenceNo structured lot record or lot-specific value is supplied.
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The lots array is empty and the award lot_ids_json is null; RM6280 Lot 2 appears only in the description.
Supplier identity quality
99% confidenceSupplier identity is verified by exact-name match.
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Verification data records verified status, exact_name match, verified legal name ROYAL MAIL GROUP LIMITED and company number 04138203.
SOURCE DATA LIMITATIONS
Information not supplied in the published notice
- The notice does not explicitly confirm contract signature or execution, so the analysis does not describe the contract as signed.
- The award is published after the stated 14 September 2026 contract start; the source does not explain the chronology.
- No structured lot allocation is supplied; RM6280 Lot 2 is identified only in the notice description.
- The published value does not state whether it includes the optional six-month extension.
- Information not supplied in the published notice includes bid numbers, evaluation outcomes, pricing and volume details, service levels, and the terms or exercise status of the extension option.
MARKET THEMES
Relevant award themes
London Borough of CroydonROYAL MAIL GROUP LIMITEDRoyal Mail Grouppostal servicesRM6280postal goods and servicesContracts Finderpublic procurement
COMMON QUESTIONS
About this award
Who won Croydon’s postal goods and services award?
ROYAL MAIL GROUP LIMITED is the verified legal supplier named for the sole active award.
What is the published award value?
The award value is £1,400,000.
What is the stated service period?
The published contract period is 14 September 2026 to 13 September 2027, with a stated option to extend by six months.
Was the award made through a framework?
Yes. The notice describes a direct award under GCA Postal Services & Solutions Framework RM6280 Lot 2.
ProcuraAxis award analysis supplements, but does not replace, the official award notice, contract data or procurement documents. “Awarded” does not by itself prove that a contract has been signed.