AWARD OUTCOME
What happened
Oxford Brookes University directly awarded a ProQuest database subscription contract to Clarivate Analytics (UK) Limited. The supplied contract record states that it was signed on 30 September 2026 and runs to 31 July 2029.
Published outcomeOne active award and one active contract are recorded for Clarivate Analytics (UK) Limited, covering lot 1.
Market significanceThis is an above-threshold GBP 328,699 direct award for academic and research database access, justified by exclusive rights and technical reasons.
AWARDED SUPPLIERS AND LOTS
1 supplier record analysed
CLARIVATE ANALYTICS (UK) LIMITED
99% confidenceAward 1 · Lots 1 · 328699 GBP · Active award and active contract
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Award 1 names CLARIVATE ANALYTICS (UK) LIMITED as its supplier. Contract 1, linked to award 1, has a gross value of GBP 328,699.
LIFECYCLE
Award or contract stage
Procurement status
99% confidenceComplete
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Tender status is "complete"; lot 1 status is "complete".
Award status
99% confidenceActive
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Award 1 has status "active".
Contract status
99% confidenceActive
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Contract 1 has status "active".
Contract signed
99% confidence30 September 2026
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Contract 1 gives dateSigned as 2026-09-30T00:00:00+01:00.
VALUES
Published values explained
Contract value
99% confidenceGBP 328,699 gross
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Contract 1 value states amountGross 328699, amount 328699 and currency GBP.
Threshold status
99% confidenceAbove threshold
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Contract 1 states aboveThreshold: true.
Lot value
99% confidenceUnknown
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Lot 1 has no value amount or currency in the supplied data.
TIMELINE
Procurement timeline
Transparency notice released
98% confidence15 September 2026
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Release history records transparency notice 087128-2026 released on 2026-09-15.
Award date
99% confidence15 September 2026
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Award 1 lists award_date as 2026-09-15.
Contract award notice released
98% confidence16 September 2026
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Release history records contract award notice 087547-2026 released on 2026-09-16.
Contract start
99% confidence30 September 2026
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Contract 1 period startDate is 2026-09-30T00:00:00+01:00.
Contract end
99% confidence31 July 2029
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Contract 1 period endDate is 2029-07-31T23:59:59+01:00.
Contract details notice published
99% confidence7 October 2026
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Contract document 094900-2026 gives datePublished as 2026-10-07T16:02:22+01:00.
SCOPE
What was awarded
Requirement
99% confidenceProQuest database subscriptions
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The title is "ProQuest Databases" and the description identifies ProQuest databases and individual products.
Named products
99% confidenceBritish Nursing Collection; Academic Complete: UKI Edition; Health Research Premium Collection; Historical Newspapers: The Guardian and The Observer - SUB; Performing Arts Periodicals Database; Sociological Abstracts; Factiva
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These products are listed in the procurement description.
Included at no charge
99% confidenceERIC; PTSDpubs (PILOTS)
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The description states these are "Included free of charge".
Classification
99% confidenceDatabase services (CPV 72320000); subscription services (CPV 79980000)
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Award item 1 lists these two CPV classifications.
Delivery geography
96% confidenceUnited Kingdom
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Award item 1 lists a delivery address in region UK, country GB.
PROCEDURE
Procedure and competition
Procedure
99% confidenceDirect award
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The tender procurementMethod is "direct" and procurementMethodDetails is "Direct award".
Stated rationale
99% confidenceAbsence of competition for technical reasons and protection of exclusive rights; no reasonable alternative or substitute exists
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The procurementMethodRationale states this justification.
Rationale classifications
99% confidenceSingle supplier: intellectual property/exclusive rights; single supplier: technical reasons
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The supplied rationale classifications list singleSuppliersIntellectualPropertyExclusiveRights and singleSuppliersTechnicalReasons.
Competition data
99% confidenceUnknown
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No bidder count, tender responses, evaluation results or scores are supplied.
CONTRACT TERMS
Published contract terms
Contract title
99% confidenceProQuest Databases
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Contract 1 title is "ProQuest Databases".
Term
99% confidence30 September 2026 to 31 July 2029
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Contract 1 period specifies these start and end dates.
Performance metrics
99% confidenceNo agreed metrics recorded
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Contract 1 states noAgreedMetricsRationale. The stated reason is that the contract is below GBP 5 million including VAT and provides database access only.
COMMERCIAL VIEW
Commercial observations
Commercial structure
98% confidenceSingle-supplier direct award for database and subscription access
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One supplier is named for award 1; the procedure is a direct award; CPV classifications cover database and subscription services.
Supplier market signal
97% confidenceThe stated rationale indicates the buyer considered the requirement unavailable through reasonable alternatives or substitutes because of technical and exclusive-rights grounds.
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This reflects the buyer's procurementMethodRationale and is not an independent assessment of the market.
Value attribution
98% confidenceThe GBP 328,699 contract value is linked to the single recorded award and supplier.
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Contract 1 links to award 1, and award 1 has one named supplier.
DATA QUALITY
Gaps and source limitations
Value basis
94% confidenceReported as gross; VAT treatment is not otherwise specified
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Contract value provides amountGross and amount, both GBP 328,699; no separate VAT amount or rate is supplied.
Lot detail
99% confidenceLot 1 has no title, description or separate value
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The supplied lot record contains null title, description, value amount and currency.
Tender dates
99% confidenceTender start and submission deadline are unknown
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Process fields tender_start_at and submission_deadline are null.
Conflict-of-interest document
99% confidenceNot published
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The documents list includes conflictOfInterest with description "Not published".
SOURCE DATA LIMITATIONS
Information not supplied in the published notice
- Lot 1 lacks a title, description and separately reported value.
- No tender response count, bidder list, evaluation results or award scoring are supplied.
- The conflict-of-interest document is identified as not published.
- No extension, renewal option or re-procurement details are supplied.
MARKET THEMES
Relevant award themes
Oxford Brookes UniversityClarivate Analytics UK LimitedProQuest Databasesdirect awarddatabase servicessubscription servicesFind a Tender
COMMON QUESTIONS
About this award
Who won the ProQuest Databases contract?
Clarivate Analytics (UK) Limited is the sole supplier named for award 1.
What is the contract value?
The contract record reports a gross value of GBP 328,699.
When does the contract run?
The supplied contract record states 30 September 2026 to 31 July 2029.
Why was a direct award used?
The buyer cited technical reasons and protection of exclusive rights, stating that no reasonable alternative or substitute existed.
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.