AWARD OUTCOME
What happened
Durham County Council has published contract details for corporate advertising services, awarded directly below threshold without competition to STEVE DAVIDSON ADVERTISING LIMITED. The contract is explicitly recorded as signed and active.
Published outcomeOne active award and contract cover lot 1. The supplier is STEVE DAVIDSON ADVERTISING LIMITED (company number 06546608).
Market significanceThe contract has a stated net value of £150,000 and gross value of £180,000 for a range of advertising channels across council service areas.
AWARDED SUPPLIERS AND LOTS
1 supplier record analysed
STEVE DAVIDSON ADVERTISING LIMITED
99% confidenceAward 1 · Lots 1 · £150,000 net; £180,000 gross GBP · Verified supplier; active award and contract
View supporting evidence
Award 1 names supplier ID GB-COH-06546608 and relates to lot 1. Contract 1 is linked to award 1 and states GBP 150,000 net and GBP 180,000 gross. Supplier verification matched company number 06546608.
LIFECYCLE
Award or contract stage
Notice type
99% confidenceContract details notice on Find a Tender
View supporting evidence
Process notice type and contract document description.
Procurement status
98% confidenceComplete
View supporting evidence
Tender status is "complete"; lot 1 status is "complete".
Award status
99% confidenceActive
View supporting evidence
Award 1 status is "active".
Contract status
99% confidenceActive
View supporting evidence
Contract 1 status is "active".
Contract signature
99% confidenceSigned on 22 July 2026
View supporting evidence
Contract 1 dateSigned is 2026-07-22.
VALUES
Published values explained
Contract value, excluding VAT
99% confidence£150,000
View supporting evidence
Contract 1 value.amount is 150000 GBP.
Contract value, including VAT
99% confidence£180,000
View supporting evidence
Contract 1 value.amountGross is 180000 GBP.
Value allocation
96% confidenceContract-level value for the sole reported award and lot
View supporting evidence
Contract 1 is linked to award 1; award 1 relates to lot 1 and names one supplier.
TIMELINE
Procurement timeline
Contract signed
99% confidence22 July 2026
View supporting evidence
Contract 1 dateSigned is 2026-07-22.
Contract start
99% confidence23 July 2026
View supporting evidence
Contract 1 period.startDate is 2026-07-23.
Contract end
99% confidence31 March 2027
View supporting evidence
Contract 1 period.endDate is 2027-03-31.
Notice published
99% confidence12 October 2026
View supporting evidence
Contract details notice datePublished is 2026-10-12.
SCOPE
What was awarded
Requirement
99% confidenceCorporate advertising for council-wide service areas
View supporting evidence
Process description states this is a contract for corporate advertising relating to council-wide service areas.
Channels included
98% confidenceBus, digital outdoor, radio, TV, cinema, press, web, exhibition marketing, social media advertising and distribution
View supporting evidence
These channels are listed in the published description as included but not limited to.
Procurement category
99% confidenceServices; advertising services (CPV 79341000)
View supporting evidence
Award 1 mainProcurementCategory is services; its item has CPV 79341000, Advertising services.
Delivery area
95% confidenceUKC14
View supporting evidence
Award item delivery address specifies region UKC14.
PROCEDURE
Procedure and competition
Procurement method
99% confidenceDirect procurement
View supporting evidence
Tender procurementMethod is "direct".
Method detail
99% confidenceBelow threshold - without competition
View supporting evidence
Tender procurementMethodDetails states "Below threshold - without competition".
Above-threshold status
99% confidenceNo
View supporting evidence
Contract 1 aboveThreshold is false.
Competition information
97% confidenceNo competitive process was reported; bid count and evaluation information were not supplied
View supporting evidence
The published method detail says without competition; no bidder count, scores or evaluation rationale are provided.
CONTRACT TERMS
Published contract terms
Contract title
99% confidenceContract for Corporate Advertising Services
View supporting evidence
Contract 1 title.
Term
99% confidence23 July 2026 to 31 March 2027
View supporting evidence
Contract 1 period start and end dates.
Extension or renewal terms
99% confidenceUnknown
View supporting evidence
No extension or renewal provisions are supplied in the published contract data.
COMMERCIAL VIEW
Commercial observations
Channel breadth
97% confidenceThe stated scope spans offline, broadcast, out-of-home, digital and distribution activity.
View supporting evidence
Published description lists bus, digital outdoor, radio, TV, cinema, press, web, exhibition marketing, social media and distribution.
Route to market
99% confidenceThe buyer used a below-threshold direct procurement without competition.
View supporting evidence
Tender procurementMethodDetails states "Below threshold - without competition".
Published contract economics
98% confidenceThe stated £150,000 net contract value equates to £180,000 gross; no channel-level pricing or spend allocation is published.
View supporting evidence
Contract value fields state £150,000 net and £180,000 gross; no pricing breakdown appears in supplied data.
DATA QUALITY
Gaps and source limitations
Published notice timing
99% confidenceThe contract details notice was published after the stated signature and start dates.
View supporting evidence
Signature date is 22 July 2026, start date is 23 July 2026, and notice publication date is 12 October 2026.
Award date
99% confidenceNot supplied
View supporting evidence
Award 1 has no award_date in the supplied award record.
Lot detail
99% confidenceLot 1 has no published title, description or separate value
View supporting evidence
Lot 1 record contains no title, description or value amount.
Identity quality
99% confidenceSupplier identity verified by Companies House company-number match
View supporting evidence
Supplier verification status is verified, with verified company number 06546608 and match method "company_number".
SOURCE DATA LIMITATIONS
Information not supplied in the published notice
- No award decision date is supplied.
- Information not supplied in the published notice: bidder count, evaluation criteria, scores, award rationale, competing suppliers and savings.
- Information not supplied in the published notice: extension, renewal or variation provisions.
- Lot 1 has no published title, description, separate value or pricing breakdown.
- No channel-level spend allocation, performance measures or service-level terms are supplied.
MARKET THEMES
Relevant award themes
Durham County CouncilCorporate AdvertisingSTEVE DAVIDSON ADVERTISING LIMITEDadvertising servicespublic procurementFind a Tender
COMMON QUESTIONS
About this award
Who won Durham County Council's corporate advertising contract?
STEVE DAVIDSON ADVERTISING LIMITED, verified under company number 06546608.
What is the value of the corporate advertising contract?
The published contract value is £150,000 excluding VAT and £180,000 including VAT.
When does the contract run?
The published term runs from 23 July 2026 to 31 March 2027; it was signed on 22 July 2026.
How was the contract procured?
The notice records a direct, below-threshold procurement without competition.
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.