AWARD OUTCOME
What happened
East Sussex County Council has published a contract award notice naming CITIZENS ADVICE 1066 as the intended supplier for welfare-benefits helpline and specialist-advice services in East Sussex. The award remains pending, so the notice does not evidence a signed or active contract.
Published outcomeOne pending award, covering lot 1, names CITIZENS ADVICE 1066. The published net award value is £2,567,462.
Market significanceThis is a regional public-service opportunity under the light-touch regime, with a stated initial period from April 2027 to April 2030 and a conditional extension option of up to three years.
AWARDED SUPPLIERS AND LOTS
1 supplier record analysed
CITIZENS ADVICE 1066
99% confidenceAward 1 · Lots 1 · 2567462 GBP · Pending award
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Award 1 identifies CITIZENS ADVICE 1066 as supplier. Its GB-COH identifier 02923647 was verified by company-number matching.
LIFECYCLE
Award or contract stage
Current award status
99% confidencePending
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Award 1 is recorded with status 'pending'; the tender and lot are marked complete.
Award notice published
99% confidence20 October 2026
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The UK6 contract award notice was published on 2026-10-20.
Contract signature status
99% confidenceNot evidenced as signed
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The award is pending and lists a future signature milestone due 1 November 2026.
Standstill period end
99% confidence29 October 2026, 23:59:59 UTC
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Award 1 specifies a standstill end date of 2026-10-29T23:59:59Z.
VALUES
Published values explained
Published award value (net)
99% confidence£2,567,462
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Award 1 value amount is 2,567,462 GBP.
Published award value (gross)
99% confidence£3,080,954
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The source award JSON gives amountGross as 3,080,954 GBP.
Value allocation
88% confidenceAward-level value for the sole published award and supplier
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The notice has one award, one supplier and related lot 1; no separate lot value is published.
TIMELINE
Procurement timeline
Preliminary market engagement notice
99% confidence29 April 2026
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Release history records a preliminary market engagement notice on 2026-04-29.
Pipeline notice
99% confidence20 May 2026
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Release history records a pipeline notice on 2026-05-20.
Tender notice published
99% confidence3 June 2026
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Release history records the tender notice on 2026-06-03.
Tender submission deadline
99% confidence10 July 2026, 12:00 BST
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Process data gives a submission deadline of 2026-07-10T12:00:00+01:00.
Award decision date
99% confidence20 October 2026
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Award 1 date is 2026-10-20.
Future signature milestone
99% confidence1 November 2026
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Award 1 contains a scheduled futureSignatureDate due 2026-11-01T23:59:59Z.
Planned contract start
99% confidence1 April 2027
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Award 1 contract period start date is 2027-04-01T00:00:00+01:00.
Planned initial contract end
99% confidence30 April 2030
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Award 1 contract period end date is 2030-04-30T23:59:59+01:00.
SCOPE
What was awarded
Requirement
99% confidenceWelfare Benefits Helpline and Specialist Benefits Advice Service in East Sussex
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This is the published process and award title.
Service classification
99% confidenceHealth and social work services (CPV 85000000)
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Award item 1 lists CPV 85000000.
Geographic delivery area
95% confidenceEast Sussex / UKJ22
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The award item delivery address is region UKJ22; the title specifies East Sussex.
Lot structure
99% confidenceOne published lot (lot 1)
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Tender data contains lot 1 only, and award 1 relates to lot 1.
PROCEDURE
Procedure and competition
Procedure
99% confidenceOpen procedure
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The process records procurementMethodDetails as 'Open procedure'.
Regime
99% confidenceLight-touch regime
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Tender data lists specialRegime as lightTouch.
Competition information
99% confidenceNumber of bids and evaluation results not published in the supplied notice data
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No bid count, tenderer list, scores or assessment detail is supplied.
Above-threshold status
99% confidenceYes
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Award 1 is marked aboveThreshold: true.
CONTRACT TERMS
Published contract terms
Planned initial term
99% confidence1 April 2027 to 30 April 2030
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Award 1 contractPeriod specifies these start and end dates.
Extension provision
99% confidenceConditional extension of up to 3 years if funding is available
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The renewal description states that, if funding is made available, the contract can be extended for 3 years; maxExtentDate is 31 March 2033.
Maximum stated end date
99% confidence31 March 2033
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Award 1 contractPeriod maxExtentDate is 2033-03-31T23:59:59+01:00.
Contract execution
99% confidenceNot yet evidenced
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The award is pending and a future signature date is scheduled.
COMMERCIAL VIEW
Commercial observations
Market engagement
99% confidencePreliminary market engagement preceded the tender notice
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Release history shows a planning notice on 29 April 2026 before the tender notice on 3 June 2026.
Award maturity
99% confidenceSuppliers should treat this as a pending award rather than a concluded contract
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The award status is pending, the standstill period runs to 29 October 2026, and signature is scheduled for 1 November 2026.
Funding dependency
99% confidenceThe possible three-year extension is expressly conditional on funding availability
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The renewal description makes funding availability a condition.
DATA QUALITY
Gaps and source limitations
Award status caution
99% confidenceThe published award is pending, not evidence of a signed or active contract.
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Award 1 status is pending and a future signature milestone is scheduled.
Lot detail
99% confidenceLot 1 has no published title, description or individual value in the supplied data.
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Lot 1 title, description and value fields are null.
Competition and evaluation detail
99% confidenceInformation not supplied in the published notice data.
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No bid numbers, bidder identities beyond the named supplier, scores, ranking or award rationale is provided.
Pricing detail
99% confidenceNo pricing breakdown or value basis is supplied.
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The process value basis is null; the source gives net and gross award amounts only.
SOURCE DATA LIMITATIONS
Information not supplied in the published notice
- The award is pending; the source does not establish that a contract has been signed, started or become active.
- Lot 1 does not have a published title, description or individual value in the supplied data.
- Information on bid numbers, unsuccessful tenderers, evaluation methodology, scores, ranking and award rationale is not supplied in the published notice data.
- No pricing breakdown, value basis, performance measures or detailed service specification is supplied.
- The extension is conditional on funding availability; there is no evidence that it will be exercised.
MARKET THEMES
Relevant award themes
East Sussex County CouncilCITIZENS ADVICE 1066welfare benefits helplinespecialist benefits advicepublic procurementFind a Tender
COMMON QUESTIONS
About this award
Who is named as the supplier?
CITIZENS ADVICE 1066, verified against company number 02923647, is the supplier named for award 1.
Has the contract been signed?
The supplied notice does not evidence signature. The award is pending and lists a future signature milestone of 1 November 2026.
What is the published award value?
The published net award value is £2,567,462. The source also reports a gross amount of £3,080,954.
When is the planned service period?
The stated initial period is 1 April 2027 to 30 April 2030, with a potential funding-dependent extension of up to three years.
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.