AWARD OUTCOME
What happened
Westminster City Council has announced a pending award to Sheffield Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust for toxicology services supporting the Inner West London Coroner’s Court.
Published outcomeAward 1 is pending, not a concluded or signed contract. The notice records a gross value of £1,570,800 and a value of £1,309,000, with no stated basis for the difference.
Market significanceThe requirement covers specialist coronial toxicology, including biological-sample analysis, hair analysis, reporting, expert-witness support and advisory services across the Inner West London Coroner jurisdiction.
AWARDED SUPPLIERS AND LOTS
1 supplier record analysed
Sheffield Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
99% confidenceAward 1 · Lots 1 · £1,309,000 net; £1,570,800 gross GBP · Pending awardee
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Award 1 names Sheffield Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust as supplier and records amount £1,309,000 and amountGross £1,570,800.
LIFECYCLE
Award or contract stage
Procurement status
99% confidenceTender complete; award pending
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Tender and lot 1 are marked "complete"; award 1 is marked "pending".
Award announcement
99% confidenceContract award notice published 15 October 2026
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Award notice document 097675-2026 has datePublished 2026-10-15T17:35:38+01:00.
Standstill status
98% confidenceExtended; stated to end at midnight on 21 October 2026
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Award amendment states: "Mandatory standstill period extended on 15.10.2026 and will now end at midnight on 21.10.2026."
Signature status
98% confidenceFuture signature date scheduled for 20 November 2026
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Award milestone type futureSignatureDate is scheduled for 2026-11-20T23:59:59+00:00.
Planned service start
97% confidence23 November 2026
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Award contractPeriod startDate is 2026-11-23.
VALUES
Published values explained
Award value
99% confidence£1,309,000
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Award 1 value.amount is 1309000 GBP.
Award gross value
99% confidence£1,570,800
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Award 1 value.amountGross is 1570800 GBP.
Value allocation
97% confidenceSingle award linked to lot 1; no separate lot value published
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Award 1 relates to lot 1; lot 1 has no value_amount.
TIMELINE
Procurement timeline
Tender deadline
99% confidence16 February 2026, 12:00 UTC
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Process submission_deadline is 2026-02-16T12:00:00+00:00.
Award decision date
99% confidence6 October 2026
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Award 1 date is 2026-10-06T00:00:00+01:00.
Assessment summaries sent
98% confidence6 October 2026
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Award assessmentSummariesDateSent is 2026-10-06T00:00:00+01:00.
Planned initial end date
98% confidence22 November 2031
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Award contractPeriod endDate is 2031-11-22T23:59:59+00:00.
Maximum possible end date
98% confidence22 November 2033
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Award contractPeriod maxExtentDate is 2033-11-22T23:59:59+00:00.
SCOPE
What was awarded
Service requirement
99% confidenceCoronial toxicology services
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Tender title and description specify toxicology services supporting investigation of deaths in the Inner West London Coroner jurisdiction.
Core activities
99% confidenceBiological-sample analysis; detection and quantification of drugs, alcohol, poisons and other substances; hair analysis; reporting; expert-witness support; consultation
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These activities are listed in the tender description.
Standards
98% confidenceServices required to follow guidelines agreed by the United Kingdom & Ireland Association of Forensic Toxicologists
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Tender description states this requirement and notes the guidelines are recognised by the Forensic Science Regulator and Chief Coroner.
Geographic coverage
99% confidenceInner West London Coroner’s Court jurisdiction: Westminster, Kensington and Chelsea, Wandsworth and Merton
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Tender description identifies the areas served by the court.
Classifications
99% confidencePathology, analysis, blood-analysis and medical-analysis services
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Award item lists CPV 85111800, 71620000, 85111810 and 85148000.
PROCEDURE
Procedure and competition
Procedure
99% confidenceOpen procedure
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Tender procurementMethodDetails is "Open procedure".
Above-threshold status
99% confidenceYes
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Award 1 aboveThreshold is true.
Competition information
99% confidenceNumber of tenders, bidder identities, scores and evaluation rationale not published in the supplied notice data
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Information not supplied in the published notice data.
CONTRACT TERMS
Published contract terms
Initial term
98% confidence23 November 2026 to 22 November 2031 (planned)
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Award contractPeriod startDate and endDate specify these dates.
Extension options
99% confidenceTwo optional 12-month extensions at the Council’s absolute discretion
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Award renewal description states "2 x option 12 month extensions at the Council's absolute discretion."
Maximum term
98% confidenceUp to 22 November 2033, if both options are used
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Award maxExtentDate is 2033-11-22 and the notice specifies two 12-month options.
COMMERCIAL VIEW
Commercial observations
Specialist service profile
96% confidenceThe requirement combines routine and case-tailored forensic toxicology with interpretive reporting and potential court evidence.
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Tender description requires individually tailored analysis, detailed reports and expert-witness services if necessary.
Hair-analysis requirement
99% confidenceIn-house hair analysis for drugs of abuse is expressly required; hair analysis is stated to be routinely offered for all Inner West London Coroner cases.
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Tender description includes both statements.
Award maturity
99% confidenceSuppliers should treat this as a pending award rather than an active concluded contract until a later notice or contract evidence confirms conclusion.
View supporting evidence
Award status is pending; the notice records an extended standstill period and a scheduled future signature date.
DATA QUALITY
Gaps and source limitations
Pending award
99% confidenceThe award is pending and the signature date is scheduled, so the supplied data does not evidence a signed or active contract.
View supporting evidence
Award status is pending; futureSignatureDate milestone is scheduled for 20 November 2026.
Standstill date inconsistency resolved by amendment
98% confidenceThe structured standstill end date says 15 October 2026, while the amendment states it was extended to midnight on 21 October 2026; the amendment is reported without altering the underlying field.
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Award standstillPeriod.endDate is 2026-10-15; amendment gives the later date.
Value basis
98% confidenceThe notice provides net and gross award amounts but does not explain the basis of the £261,800 difference.
View supporting evidence
Award value has amount £1,309,000 and amountGross £1,570,800; no value basis is supplied.
Supplier identity
97% confidenceSupplier identity is recorded against a GB-PPON identifier; Companies House verification is not applicable in the supplied verification data.
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Supplier verification status is not_applicable, with identifier GB-PPON-PYZV-3517-VQCJ.
Lot detail
99% confidenceLot 1 has no published title, description or individual value.
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Lot 1 title, description and value_amount are null.
SOURCE DATA LIMITATIONS
Information not supplied in the published notice
- The supplied notice records a pending award, not a signed or active contract.
- The original structured standstill date and later amendment differ; the amendment states the standstill was extended to 21 October 2026.
- No tender count, bidder list, scoring, evaluation rationale or pricing breakdown is supplied.
- Lot 1 has no published title, description or individual value.
- The notice does not explain the difference between the £1,309,000 amount and £1,570,800 gross amount.
- Companies House verification is not applicable in the supplied supplier-verification data.
MARKET THEMES
Relevant award themes
Westminster City Counciltoxicology servicesInner West London CoronerSheffield Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trustcoronial servicesforensic toxicologyFind a Tender
COMMON QUESTIONS
About this award
Who is the named supplier?
Sheffield Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is the supplier named on pending award 1.
Has the contract been signed?
No signed contract is evidenced in the supplied data. The award is pending and shows a future signature date scheduled for 20 November 2026.
What is the award value?
The notice records £1,309,000 and a gross amount of £1,570,800; it does not state the basis for the difference.
What services are covered?
The requirement includes coronial toxicology testing, hair analysis, reporting, expert-witness support and toxicology advice.
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.