UK Public Sector Contracts & Tenders

Durham County Council (DCC) is establishing an Open Framework for the delivery of events, attractions, entertainment and community engagement activities across County Durham. Requirements may range from the provision of individual activities and performers to the planning and delivery of large-scale public events and festivals. Initially supporting the Pride in Place programme, the Framework may also be used for other Council-led events and activities, subject to funding availability.

Durham County Council require the following range of services: a) The secure collection of cash and cheques from various collection points as specified by the Council. b) The secure storage of all cash and cheques whilst in transit. c) The onward delivery/depositing of all cash and cheques collected, either to another collection point, or at a nominated cash receiving facility (subject to 'Approved Contractor Status'), or Bank. Based on the varying banking arrangements that Durham County Council may have in place throughout the contract period, the nominated cash receiving facilities or Bank may need to be amended. d) When necessary, the secure overnight storage of both cash and cheques collected will be required. e) The provision of a 'change float' service on either a scheduled or ad-hoc basis, to a specified Collection Point.

Durham County Council is seeking an experienced and innovative delivery partner to develop and deliver a new flagship cultural event for County Durham. The Council is looking for a bold, ambitious and distinctive proposition that represents a step change from traditional festival models and has the potential to become a recurring, nationally recognised event. The successful proposal should be original, participatory and rooted in County Durham's unique identity, bringing together culture, creativity, innovation, technology and community engagement. The event should create a defining cultural moment for the county, enhancing its reputation as a place of creativity and excellence, while delivering lasting cultural, social and economic benefits. Proposals must demonstrate strong opportunities for participation, skills development and talent progression, particularly for children and young people, ensuring local communities play an active role in shaping and delivering the event.

The Council requires a Security Provider to deliver manned security guard services across four Durham County Council depot sites: Chilton Depot, Hackworth Depot, Meadowfield Depot and Morrison Busty Depot. The service requirements and working hours vary between each site and may be subject to change during the term of the contract. The successful Contractor must therefore have the capacity and flexibility to provide appropriate cover at each depot as required. Full tender documents can be accessed free of charge by registering as a Supplier on the Open Portal at www.open-uk.org.

The Council requires a Security Provider to deliver manned security guard services at Aycliffe Secure Centre. Aycliffe Secure Centre is registered to provide care and education for up to 34 vulnerable and complex male and female young people, aged between 10-18. There is also a Transition Home attached to the secure building which can accommodate up to 4 young people moving from within the Secure Centre to community-based accommodation. Further details of the requirements are set out in Document 3a. Contract Specification which can be accessed free of charge at www.open-uk.org

The Council are inviting providers to participate in preliminary engagement to gain insight from the market with the purpose of making any potential future exercise, well framed, feasible, focused and of likely interest to the market. This preliminary market engagement purpose is to seek potential providers to join our framework of organisations and to provide their views regarding Community Based Services for people with a learning disability, mental health needs, and/or autism which is primarily supported living services. Supported Living services are community provisions where individuals have a tenancy with a housing provider and the Council commissions a care and support provider to meet the needs of the individuals living there.

Procurement of an AI-enabled redaction solution to support Subject Access Request (SAR) handling. The solution is intended to improve the efficiency, consistency, auditability and resilience of the redaction process, reducing manual effort and supporting the management of complex file types. Any implementation would operate alongside appropriate human oversight, quality assurance and governance controls. Market research indicates that a developing supplier market exists, providing the opportunity for a range of viable solutions. The next stage will involve market engagement to refine requirements, assess supplier capability, develop a detailed specification, and confirm costs, governance arrangements and implementation considerations.

In October 2025, Durham County Council issued a UK2 Preliminary Market Engagement Notice (2025/S 000-063329) and written PME questionnaire on the Open Portal (OPEN20251753) for Extended Detection and Response (XDR) Solution for Endpoint and Email Protection with 24/7 Security Operations Centre (SOC) Services. This engagement attracted 24 responses from the market, however the scope of our requirements has now changed, and we are re-engaging with the market regarding our refined requirements. Please note, Extended Detection and Response is no longer within the scope of this procurement process. Our annual budget is approximately £600,000 per annum and will be looking to procure a contract with an initial term of 3 years, with 2 x 24 month optional extensions. As part of this market engagement process, we are particularly interested in providers proposing what they feel is realistic without our stated budget and in line with our requirements and digital estate priorities. Following satisfactory completion of the below questionnaire, we will be inviting interested suppliers to participate in 1 hour Teams discussions in September 2026, to discuss your specific offering in line with our requirements. These technical discussions will still be part of Preliminary Market Engagement to help us refine our specification and tender documents further, prior to issuing competitive tender process documents.

Preliminary Market Engagement (PME) Delivery Partner for Development of Fifth Street as part of the Durham County Council Horden Master Plan Durham County Council are inviting suppliers to participate in this Preliminary Market Engagement (PME) to gain insight from the market with the purpose of making any potential future exercise, well framed, feasible, focused and of likely interest to the market in the context of the delivery of the Fifth Street development of the Horden Masterplan. This PME will shape the council's approach to securing delivery partner(s) to deliver upon the aims and objectives of the masterplan. The Council is aware in order to deliver the full scope of the masterplan and transform the area of Horden that involvement from a delivery partner will be required in order to maximise the delivery potential of the various sites within the masterplan phases. However, this PME is specifically focused on the development of Fifth Street, Horden which is part of Phase 1 of the Horden Masterplan. Further information can be found in the PME documents to be downloaded from www.open-org.uk and insert reference Open 20261579