AWARD OUTCOME
What happened
Armagh, Banbridge & Craigavon Borough Council has awarded and signed a contract for an artist/design-team commission to create a permanent Great Famine monument and interpretive panel in Lurgan. The published contract names Sara Cunningham-Bell, with Bell Architects Ltd as supplier; this name remains unverified against Companies House data.
Published outcomeOne active award and one active contract are reported for lot 1. The contract value is £80,808 gross, with a stated term from 1 October 2026 to 31 October 2027 and a stated signing date of 15 September 2026.
Market significanceThis is a below-threshold public-art commission for a permanent town-centre memorial and interpretive installation in Lurgan.
AWARDED SUPPLIERS AND LOTS
1 supplier record analysed
Sara Cunningham-Bell, with Bell Architects Ltd
94% confidenceAward 1 · Lots 1 · Shared or supplier-specific allocation not published; contract 1 is valued at £80,808 gross. GBP · active
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Award 1 names 'Sara Cunningham-Bell, with Bell Architects Ltd' as its supplier. Contract 1, linked to award 1, has status active and value amountGross GBP 80,808.
LIFECYCLE
Award or contract stage
Published notice
99% confidenceContract details notice published 9 October 2026
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Document 095665-2026 is described as a Contract details notice on Find a Tender and dated 2026-10-09.
Award status
98% confidenceActive
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Award 1 has status 'active'.
Contract status
98% confidenceActive
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Contract 1 has status 'active'.
Contract signed
99% confidence15 September 2026
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Contract 1 states dateSigned: 2026-09-15.
Contract period
99% confidence1 October 2026 to 31 October 2027
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Contract 1 period states startDate 2026-10-01 and endDate 2027-10-31.
VALUES
Published values explained
Published contract value
99% confidence£80,808 gross
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Contract 1 value states amountGross 80808 and currency GBP.
Value allocation
95% confidenceNo lot-level or supplier-level value allocation published
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Award and lot records contain no value, while the contract record reports one overall contract value.
TIMELINE
Procurement timeline
Contract signed
99% confidence15 September 2026
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Contract 1 dateSigned is 2026-09-15.
Contract start
99% confidence1 October 2026
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Contract 1 period startDate is 2026-10-01.
Contract end
99% confidence31 October 2027
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Contract 1 period endDate is 2027-10-31.
Notice publication
99% confidence9 October 2026
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The contract details notice datePublished is 2026-10-09.
SCOPE
What was awarded
Commission requirement
98% confidenceProduce a permanent monument and interpretive panel recognising the impact of the Great Famine in Lurgan.
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Tender description states the council seeks an artist or design team to produce a high-quality permanent monument and interpretive panel.
Location
98% confidenceThe Plaza, Lurgan town centre, BT66 6AR
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Tender description identifies The Plaza, Lurgan town centre as the monument location.
Design development
97% confidenceOptions, size, scale and materials are to be considered within the commission; the preferred option and final design require Steering Group agreement and sign-off.
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Tender description states these design matters will be considered as part of the commission and agreed and signed off by the Steering Group.
Service category
99% confidenceArtistic services
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Award item classifications include CPV 92312000 Artistic services, 92312200 services provided by authors, composers, sculptors, entertainers and other individual artists, and 92312250 services provided by individual artists.
PROCEDURE
Procedure and competition
Procedure detail
99% confidenceBelow threshold - unknown
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Tender procurementMethodDetails is 'Below threshold - unknown'.
Competition information
99% confidenceInformation not supplied in the published notice.
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No bid count, tenderer list, evaluation scores or ranking is provided in the supplied data.
Lot structure
99% confidenceOne lot (lot 1)
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Tender lists lot 1; award 1 and contract 1 are linked to award/lot 1.
CONTRACT TERMS
Published contract terms
Contract title
99% confidencePre-Qualification (Expression of Interest) for Commissioning of an Artist for the monument to The Great Famine (1845-1852), Lurgan, Co. Armagh
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Contract 1 title is stated in the published contract data.
Above-threshold status
99% confidenceNo — stated as below threshold
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Contract 1 states aboveThreshold: false; tender procedure detail is below threshold - unknown.
Extension or renewal terms
99% confidenceInformation not supplied in the published notice.
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No extension or renewal provision is included in the supplied contract data.
COMMERCIAL VIEW
Commercial observations
Commission model
95% confidenceThe requirement combines creative design development with delivery of a permanent public monument and interpretive panel.
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The description requires an artist/design team, considers options, scale and materials within the commission, and requires monument and interpretive-panel delivery.
Governance dependency
97% confidenceFinal design selection is subject to Steering Group agreement and sign-off.
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Tender description says the preferred option and final designs will be agreed and signed off by the Steering Group.
DATA QUALITY
Gaps and source limitations
Supplier identity limitation
99% confidenceThe published supplier name is unverified. The Companies House workflow completed without finding a safe match; no verified legal company name or company number is supplied.
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supplier_identity_status is 'checked_unmatched'; verified_company_name and verified_company_number are null.
Supplier naming ambiguity
98% confidenceThe source presents a person and Bell Architects Ltd together in one supplier name. The published data does not specify the legal contracting entity.
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Supplier name is 'Sara Cunningham-Bell, with Bell Architects Ltd'; no supplier identifier, legal name or company number is supplied.
Unpublished competition detail
99% confidenceInformation not supplied in the published notice: bid count, evaluation method, scores, ranking and reasons for award.
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No such fields appear in the supplied tender, award or contract data.
Unpublished allocation detail
98% confidenceInformation not supplied in the published notice: a lot-level or supplier-level allocation of the overall contract value.
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Lot and award value fields are null; only contract 1 reports a value.
SOURCE DATA LIMITATIONS
Information not supplied in the published notice
- The supplier identity is unresolved: the published name 'Sara Cunningham-Bell, with Bell Architects Ltd' was checked but could not be safely matched to a Companies House company record. The legal contracting entity is therefore unverified.
- The published data gives one overall contract value but does not publish a supplier-level or lot-level value allocation.
- Information not supplied in the published notice includes tender dates, bid count, evaluation criteria, scores, ranking, award rationale, pricing breakdown and extension or renewal terms.
- Lot 1 has no published title or description beyond the overall procurement description.
MARKET THEMES
Relevant award themes
Great Famine monument LurganLurgan public art commissionArmagh Banbridge Craigavon contract awardartist commission Northern Irelandinterpretive panel commissionBell Architects Ltd
COMMON QUESTIONS
About this award
Who was named as supplier for the Great Famine monument commission in Lurgan?
The published award names Sara Cunningham-Bell, with Bell Architects Ltd. This published name remains unverified because no safe Companies House match was found in the supplied verification workflow.
What is the published value and term?
The contract value is £80,808 gross. Its published period runs from 1 October 2026 to 31 October 2027, and the contract data states it was signed on 15 September 2026.
What will the commission deliver?
A permanent monument and interpretive panel recognising the impact of the Great Famine in Lurgan, located at The Plaza in the town centre.
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.