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PROCUREMENT OPPORTUNITY

Executive and Senior Specialist Search and Associated Recruitment Services

APUC Limited · tender

Tender information last checkedLast checked 4 Oct 2026, 01:42.

Opportunity overview

The Authority is seeking Contractor(s) for the provision of Executive and Senior Specialist Search and Associated Recruitment Services to the higher education (HE) institutions and further education (FE) institutions (and affiliated bodies) in Scotland. A list of the Institutions can be found in Appendix E. In addition, the following purchasing consortia and their respective members have agreed in principle to participate in the Framework Agreement: London Universities Purchasing Consortium and its members (LUPC) – Lots 3, 5 and 6 only North Western Universities Purchasing Consortium and its members (NWUPC) Southern Universities Purchasing Consortium its members (SUPC) – Lot 6 only NHS National Procurement and its members Healthcare Improvement Scotland NHS Education for Scotland NHS Golden Jubilee NHS24 Scotland Excel and its members Scottish Ambulance Service Scottish Government The State Hospitals Board for Scotland The framework agreement will be available for use by the Scottish Ministers (including Agencies), Scottish Non-Departmental Public Bodies, offices in the Scottish Administration which are not ministerial offices, cross-border public authorities within the meaning of section 88(5) of the Scotland Act 1998, The Office for the Secretary of State for Scotland, the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body, councils constituted under section 2 of the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994, , bodies registered as social landlords under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001, Scottish health boards or special health boards, Student Loans Company Limited, the Commissioner of Northern Lighthouse operating as the Northern Lighthouse Board, Scottish Futures Trust, Equality and Human Rights Commission, Business Stream Ltd, the Business Gateway National Unit at the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, further or higher education institutions being fundable bodies within the meaning of section 6 of the further and Higher Education (Scotland) Act 2005, any public body established by or under the Scotland Act 1998 or any Act of the Scottish Parliament, any association of or formed by one or more of the foregoing, bodies financed wholly or mainly by one or more of the foregoing, bodies subject to management supervision by one or more of the foregoing and bodies more than half of the board of directors or members of which, or, in the case of a group of individuals, more than half of those individuals, being appointed by one or more of the foregoing. In addition to the contracting authorities listed, the framework agreement will be available to charities entered on the Scottish Charity Register and voluntary organisations entered on the Membership Database of the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations. Information about agencies of the Scottish Ministers, Scottish Non-Departmental Public Bodies and offices in the Scottish Administration which are not ministerial offices are listed at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Government/public-bodies/about/Bodies Overview of the governance structure of public procurement for Scotland, including the Public Procurement Group. https://www.gov.scot/publications/public-procurement-governance/

Classification

  • CPV79600000 — Recruitment services

Lots

  • Recruitment related servicesValue not stated
  • Executive Search – NorthValue not stated
  • Executive Search - SouthValue not stated
  • Senior Specialist Search – NorthValue not stated
  • Senior Specialist Search – SouthValue not stated
  • Chairs of Court and members of governing committees and boardsValue not stated

Published notice details

Additional information from the published procurement release. Fields appear only when supplied by the source; check the original notice and tender documents before acting.

Scope, procedure and submissions

Id
PFB1048 AP
Status
active
Main Procurement Category
services
Procurement Method
open
Procurement Method Details
Open procedure
Has Recurrence
Yes

Legal basis

Id
32014L0024
Scheme
CELEX

Classification

Scheme
CPV
Id
79600000
Description
Recruitment services

Lot Details

Submission Method

electronicSubmission

Selection criteria

Criteria

Criterion 1
Minimum
Please refer to Question 4B.5 of the SPD and Economic and Financial Standing section of the Contract Notice. Tenderers must confirm that they can provide the following supporting evidence prior to award: Employers Liability: 5,000,000 GBP Public Liability: 5,000,000.00 GBP Professional Indemnity: 5,000,000.00 GBP To demonstrate and evidence suitable economic standing, successful Contractors will be required to provide 2 years audited accounts, or equivalent if awarded to the Framework Agreement. Alternatively, if the Contractor is unable to provide the required accounting information, e.g. due to being a new business, then they will be required to provide a banker's letter demonstrating their willingness to the support the Contractor's organisation over the term of the framework agreement. Please refer to 4B.6 of the SPD

Contract terms

Performance Terms
Submission of Management Information following commencement of the Framework Agreement, the Contractor will provide a performance report to the Authority on a quarterly basis to include spend by Institution under the Framework Agreement for the reporting period. Contractors must provide the information on a quarterly basis, within 10 working days following the start of each quarter. Data must be uploaded to the website: http://ucsp.ac.uk.
Has Electronic Ordering
Yes
Electronic Invoicing Policy
allowed
Has Electronic Payment
Yes

Techniques

Has Framework Agreement
Yes

Framework Agreement

Maximum Participants
36

Covered By

GPA

Tender Period

Ends
13 Apr 2026, 14:00

Submission terms

Languages

en

Bid Validity Period

Duration In Days
180

Expected award period

Starts
13 Apr 2026, 15:00

Bid Opening

Date
13 Apr 2026, 15:00

Recurrence

Description
June 2030

Lots and requirements

Entry 1
Id
1
Title
Recruitment related services
Description
This lot is for recruitment related services to support the recruitment activities of the institutions. The activities that may be included would be: Succession planning Board reviews Salary and remuneration benchmarking Skills audit Candidate market scoping Panel training Unconscious bias training Access to Recruitment Technology. The pricing for this would be on an hourly, half day and day rate basis however fixed fees may be agreed on call off for a prescribed piece of work before this work is conducted. The Authority is seeking to appoint a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 6 Contractors to service this lot. Additional information: Economic operators may be excluded from this competition if they are in any of the situations referred to in regulation 58 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015
Has Renewal
Yes
Has Options
No
Status
active

Award criteria

Criteria

Criterion 1
Name
Technical
Type
quality
Description
60%
Criterion 2
Type
price
Description
40%

Contract period

Duration In Days
1,080

Renewal

Description
The Authority reserves the right to extend the Framework Agreement for a period of up to 12 months subject to satisfactory performance and continued Institutions requirements

Submission terms

Variant Policy
notAllowed
Entry 2
Id
2
Title
Executive Search – North
Description
This Lot relates to the provision of search and selection services for executive roles based in Scotland and the areas represented by NWUPC, including Northern Ireland. The Contractor shall be responsible for identifying, assessing, and presenting suitably qualified candidates in accordance with the Authority’s requirements. The Authority is seeking to appoint a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 6 Contractors to service this Lot. Additional information: Economic operators may be excluded from this competition if they are in any of the situations referred to in regulation 58 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015.
Has Renewal
Yes
Has Options
No
Status
active

Award criteria

Criteria

Criterion 1
Name
Technical
Type
quality
Description
60%
Criterion 2
Type
price
Description
40%

Contract period

Duration In Days
1,080

Renewal

Description
The Authority reserves the right to extend the Framework Agreement for a period of up to 12 months subject to satisfactory performance and continued Institutions requirements

Submission terms

Variant Policy
notAllowed
Entry 3
Id
3
Title
Executive Search - South
Description
This Lot relates to the provision of search and selection services for executive roles based in England and the areas represented by LUPC. The Contractor shall be responsible for identifying, assessing, and presenting suitably qualified candidates in accordance with the Authority’s requirements. The Authority is seeking to appoint a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 6 Contractors to service this Lot. Additional information: Economic operators may be excluded from this competition if they are in any of the situations referred to in regulation 58 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015
Has Renewal
Yes
Has Options
No
Status
active

Award criteria

Criteria

Criterion 1
Name
Technical
Type
quality
Description
60%
Criterion 2
Type
price
Description
40%

Contract period

Duration In Days
1,080

Renewal

Description
The Authority reserves the right to extend the Framework Agreement for a period of up to 12 months subject to satisfactory performance and continued Institutions requirements

Submission terms

Variant Policy
notAllowed
Entry 4
Id
4
Title
Senior Specialist Search – North
Description
This lot is for the search and selection of highly qualified candidates for senior specialist level roles based in Scotland and the areas represented by NWUPC, including Northern Ireland. The Contractor shall be responsible for identifying, assessing, and presenting suitably qualified candidates in accordance with the Authority’s requirements. The Authority is seeking to appoint a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 6 Contractors to service each of these lots. Additional information: Economic operators may be excluded from this competition if they are in any of the situations referred to in regulation 58 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015
Has Renewal
Yes
Has Options
No
Status
active

Award criteria

Criteria

Criterion 1
Name
Technical
Type
quality
Description
60%
Criterion 2
Type
price
Description
40%

Contract period

Duration In Days
1,080

Renewal

Description
The Authority reserves the right to extend the Framework Agreement for a period of up to 12 months subject to satisfactory performance and continued Institutions requirements

Submission terms

Variant Policy
notAllowed
Entry 5
Id
5
Title
Senior Specialist Search – South
Description
This lot is for the search and selection of highly qualified candidates for senior specialist level roles based in England and the areas represented by LUPC. The Contractor shall be responsible for identifying, assessing, and presenting suitably qualified candidates in accordance with the Authority’s requirements. The Authority is seeking to appoint a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 6 Contractors to service each of these lots. Additional information: Economic operators may be excluded from this competition if they are in any of the situations referred to in regulation 58 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015
Has Renewal
Yes
Has Options
No
Status
active

Award criteria

Criteria

Criterion 1
Name
Technical
Type
quality
Description
60%
Criterion 2
Type
price
Description
40%

Contract period

Duration In Days
1,080

Renewal

Description
The Authority reserves the right to extend the Framework Agreement for a period of up to 12 months subject to satisfactory performance and continued Institutions requirements

Submission terms

Variant Policy
notAllowed
Entry 6
Id
6
Title
Chairs of Court and members of governing committees and boards
Description
This lot is for the search and selection of highly qualified candidates for Chairs and members of governing committees and board roles based in the UK. The Authority is seeking to appoint a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 6 Contractors to service each of these lots. Additional information: Economic operators may be excluded from this competition if they are in any of the situations referred to in regulation 58 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015
Has Renewal
Yes
Has Options
No
Status
active

Award criteria

Criteria

Criterion 1
Name
Technical
Type
quality
Description
60%
Criterion 2
Type
price
Description
40%

Contract period

Duration In Days
1,080

Renewal

Description
The Authority reserves the right to extend the Framework Agreement for a period of up to 12 months subject to satisfactory performance and continued Institutions requirements

Submission terms

Variant Policy
notAllowed

Items and delivery

Item 1
Id
1
Related Lot
1

Additional Classifications

Entry 1
Scheme
CPV
Id
79600000
Description
Recruitment services

Delivery locations

Entry 1
Region
UK

Delivery Location

Description
UK
Item 2
Id
2
Related Lot
2

Additional Classifications

Entry 1
Scheme
CPV
Id
79600000
Description
Recruitment services

Delivery locations

Entry 1
Region
UK

Delivery Location

Description
UK North
Item 3
Id
3
Related Lot
3

Additional Classifications

Entry 1
Scheme
CPV
Id
79600000
Description
Recruitment services

Delivery locations

Entry 1
Region
UK

Delivery Location

Description
UK South
Item 4
Id
4
Related Lot
4

Additional Classifications

Entry 1
Scheme
CPV
Id
79600000
Description
Recruitment services

Delivery locations

Entry 1
Region
UK

Delivery Location

Description
UK North
Item 5
Id
5
Related Lot
5

Additional Classifications

Entry 1
Scheme
CPV
Id
79600000
Description
Recruitment services

Delivery locations

Entry 1
Region
UK

Delivery Location

Description
UK South
Item 6
Id
6
Related Lot
6

Additional Classifications

Entry 1
Scheme
CPV
Id
79600000
Description
Recruitment services

Delivery locations

Entry 1
Region
UK

Delivery Location

Description
UK

Buyer, suppliers and contacts

Organisation 1
Name
APUC Limited
Id
GB-FTS-2420

Identifier

Legal Name
APUC Limited

Address

Street Address
Unit 27, Stirling Business Centre, Wellgreen
Locality
Stirling
Region
UKM
Postal Code
FK8 2DZ
Country Name
United Kingdom

Contact

Name
Graeme Kerr
Telephone
+44 1314428930

Roles

buyer
centralPurchasingBody

Details

Classifications

Entry 1
Scheme
TED_CA_TYPE
Id
BODY_PUBLIC
Description
Body governed by public law
Entry 2
Scheme
COFOG
Id
09
Description
Education
Organisation 2
Name
Sheriff Court House
Id
GB-FTS-14563

Identifier

Legal Name
Sheriff Court House

Address

Street Address
Viewfield Place
Locality
Stirling
Postal Code
FK8 1NH
Country Name
United Kingdom

Roles

reviewBody

Recorded locations

  • Buyer location · Stirling · UKM · FK8 2DZ · United Kingdom
  • Delivery location · UK

Notice and amendment history

1 published notice version reviewed by ProcuraAxis.

1 VERSION
  1. 020525-2026tender ·