AWARD OUTCOME
What happened
Bedford Borough Council awarded a direct, below-threshold contract for the 2026/27 Year 3 Trainee Educational Psychologist requirement to UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON. The published contract record states that it was signed on 1 September 2026 and runs to 31 August 2027.
Published outcomeOne active award (lot 1) is recorded for UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON. The contract value is £26,204 excluding VAT and £31,444 including VAT.
Market significanceThis is a small, single-supplier education-services procurement conducted without competition. It provides a defined annual training-related opportunity rather than evidence of a broader competed market.
AWARDED SUPPLIERS AND LOTS
1 supplier record analysed
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON
99% confidenceAward 1 · Lots 1 · £26,204 excluding VAT; £31,444 including VAT GBP · Verified supplier; active award and associated active contract
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Verified supplier identity: company number RC000668, exact-name match. Award 1 names University of Southampton as supplier and contract 1 is linked to award 1; the contract value is £26,204 net and £31,444 gross.
LIFECYCLE
Award or contract stage
Notice type
99% confidenceContract details notice on Find a Tender
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Process notice_type and contract document description both state this.
Procurement and award status
99% confidenceComplete procurement; active award and active contract record
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Tender status is "complete"; award 1 and contract 1 each have status "active".
Contract signature
99% confidenceSigned 1 September 2026
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Contract 1 dateSigned is 2026-09-01T00:00:00+01:00.
VALUES
Published values explained
Contract value excluding VAT
99% confidence£26,204
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Contract 1 value.amount is 26204 GBP.
Contract value including VAT
99% confidence£31,444
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Contract 1 value.amountGross is 31444 GBP.
Value allocation
96% confidenceContract-level value associated with the sole published award and supplier
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One contract is linked to award 1, which names one supplier; no separate lot value is published.
TIMELINE
Procurement timeline
Contract signed
99% confidence1 September 2026
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Contract 1 dateSigned is 2026-09-01.
Contract start
99% confidence1 September 2026
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Contract 1 period.startDate is 2026-09-01.
Contract end
99% confidence31 August 2027
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Contract 1 period.endDate is 2027-08-31T23:59:59+01:00.
Notice published
99% confidence14 October 2026
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Process published_at and contract document datePublished are 2026-10-14.
SCOPE
What was awarded
Requirement
99% confidenceYear 3 Trainee Educational Psychologist 2026/27
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Tender title and description state this requirement.
Procurement category
99% confidenceServices
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Award 1 mainProcurementCategory is services.
Classification
99% confidenceCPV 80400000 — Adult and other education services
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Award item additional classification.
Delivery location
98% confidenceUKH2, United Kingdom
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Award item deliveryAddresses specifies region UKH2.
PROCEDURE
Procedure and competition
Procurement method
99% confidenceDirect procurement
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Tender procurementMethod is "direct".
Competition approach
99% confidenceBelow threshold — without competition
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Tender procurementMethodDetails states this explicitly.
Above-threshold status
99% confidenceNo
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Contract 1 aboveThreshold is false.
Bidder count and evaluation
99% confidenceUnknown
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Information not supplied in the published notice.
CONTRACT TERMS
Published contract terms
Term
99% confidence1 September 2026 to 31 August 2027
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Contract 1 period start and end dates.
Published performance metrics
99% confidenceThree metrics are listed, each titled "NA" or "N/A"
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Contract 1 agreedMetrics entries.
Extension or renewal option
99% confidenceUnknown
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Information not supplied in the published notice.
COMMERCIAL VIEW
Commercial observations
Route-to-market signal
99% confidenceThe buyer used a below-threshold direct route, so this notice does not evidence an open competitive opportunity.
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Published procurementMethodDetails is "Below threshold - without competition".
Commercial scale
98% confidenceThe published net contract value is £26,204 for the stated 12-month term.
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Contract value.amount is £26,204 and the period runs from 1 September 2026 to 31 August 2027.
DATA QUALITY
Gaps and source limitations
Award date
99% confidenceNot published
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Award 1 has no award_date in the supplied award data.
Lot detail
99% confidenceLot 1 has no published title, description or separate value
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Lot 1 fields are null apart from status; contract-level value is published.
Competition and evaluation information
99% confidenceNot published beyond the stated direct, below-threshold route
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Information not supplied in the published notice.
Published contract metrics
99% confidenceMetrics contain placeholder titles rather than measurable indicators
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The three agreedMetrics titles are "NA" or "N/A".
SOURCE DATA LIMITATIONS
Information not supplied in the published notice
- The published record does not give an award decision date.
- Lot 1 has no published title, description or individual value; the reported value is contract-level.
- Bid counts, evaluation rationale, scoring and pricing detail are not supplied in the published notice.
- No extension or renewal option is published; the re-procurement timing is only an estimate based on the contract end date.
MARKET THEMES
Relevant award themes
Bedford Borough CouncilUNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTONtrainee educational psychologisteducation servicesdirect procurementFind a Tender
COMMON QUESTIONS
About this award
Who won Bedford Borough Council's Year 3 Trainee Educational Psychologist contract?
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON, verified against company number RC000668.
What is the published value of the contract?
£26,204 excluding VAT and £31,444 including VAT.
When does the contract run?
The published contract period is 1 September 2026 to 31 August 2027.
Was the procurement competed?
The notice states that it was a below-threshold direct 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.