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Trees: Woodland Carbon Purchase Fund WCPF External Legal Advisory Services

DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD & RURAL AFFAIRS

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Award

27 Jul 2026 at 11:25

Award Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs procured external legal advisory services for the Woodland Carbon Purchase Fund, a trees and woodland carbon programme. The requirement is for legal services supporting the fund and its associated activities, rather than the supply of trees or direct woodland management. Delivery may be required across the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man, Europe, British Overseas Territories and other international locations. This is a services opportunity for a legal practice with the capability to advise a government department on a specialist environmental, land-use or carbon-related fund operating across multiple jurisdictions. The named buyer is the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

The procurement is complete and has been awarded following a selective call-off from a framework agreement. The tender deadline was 26 June 2026 at 12:00. The estimated value was between £60,000 and £500,000, and the contract was awarded at £500,000. The award date was 2 July 2026. Ashurst LLP was selected as the supplier. The contract runs from 2 July 2026 to 30 September 2028. The published information identifies the requirement as legal services and records the contract as a single procurement, with suitability indicated as unsuitable for small and medium-sized enterprises and voluntary, community or social enterprises. The award is active, with no cancellation or termination recorded.

For a competing supplier, this award demonstrates demand from Defra for substantial external legal support to a woodland carbon purchase fund. A credible future provider would need to offer a strong public-sector legal practice, relevant environmental and carbon-market expertise, and the ability to advise on a programme whose activities can extend across the UK, Crown dependencies, Europe and international jurisdictions. The scale and duration indicate a need for sustained delivery capacity rather than a one-off legal opinion. Experience of government clients, framework call-offs, complex commercial arrangements and cross-border issues would strengthen a supplier’s position. The requirement was not marked as suitable for SMEs or voluntary, community and social enterprises, indicating that a larger established practice or a consortium with comparable breadth would be better placed.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Trees: Woodland Carbon Purchase Fund WCPF External Legal Advisory Services

Notice Description

Trees: Woodland Carbon Purchase Fund WCPF External Legal Advisory Services

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-b5fd17-e22315d9-2817-4b38-9f2c-f4cc5f5ac9be
Publication Source
Contracts Finder
Latest Notice
https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/9b07415c-3cf3-4c69-b803-7d20d186ebf4
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
Award Notice
Procurement Type
Framework
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Selective
Procurement Method Details
Call-off from a framework agreement
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Not specified

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security

CPV Codes

79100000 - Legal services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£500,000 £500K-£1M
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
£500,000 £500K-£1M
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
27 Jul 20262 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
2 Jul 20263 months ago
Contract Period
2 Jul 2026 - 30 Sep 2028 2-3 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Not Specified
Awards Status
Active
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD & RURAL AFFAIRS
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
LONDON
Postcode
SW1P 4DF
Postcode Area
South West London
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLI London
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLI3 Inner London - West
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLI35 Westminster and City of London
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Westminster
Electoral Ward
St James's
Westminster Constituency
Cities of London and Westminster

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

Ashurst LLP

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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