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Economics for Foreign Policy

Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

Award

05 Oct 2026 at 16:13

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Tender

10 Aug 2026 at 17:29

UK4 - Tender Notice
Planning

22 Jan 2026 at 16:19

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) commissioned an online economics course for its staff. The course is intended to build practitioner-level knowledge relevant to foreign policy and strengthen staff analytical skills. Learners are to develop the ability to appraise data critically, scrutinise economic indicators, understand how evaluation supports the FCDO’s work, and use robust evidence in decision-making. This is an education and training service, with delivery in the United Kingdom. The requirement covers both course development and delivery, rather than training alone, and is aimed at the FCDO’s workforce. The procurement was organised as one lot.

The procurement is complete and the contract was awarded to UCL Consultants Ltd on 1 October 2026 through an open procedure. The award is valued at £2.1 million excluding VAT (£2.52 million including VAT). The contract period runs from 19 October 2026 to 11 September 2029, with an option to extend by up to four years, subject to performance and budget availability; the maximum period ends on 11 September 2033. Four bids were received. Evaluation weighted quality at 60%, social value at 10% and price at 30%; the social value assessment focused on fair wages and good working conditions. The tender deadline was 15 September 2026, and the deadline for questions was 6 September 2026.

For suppliers of economics education and professional learning, this award indicates demand for a complete online course service: designing learning for public-sector staff and delivering practical economics and analytical skills relevant to foreign policy. Credible competitors would need to show how their course content develops critical data appraisal, interpretation of economic indicators, understanding of evaluation and evidence-led decision-making. The evaluation placed most weight on quality, so clear evidence that the teaching approach meets user needs and produces these capabilities would matter more than competing on price alone. Suppliers would also need to demonstrate a credible commitment to fair wages and working conditions as part of their social value offer. The award went to a large supplier, while the opportunity was marked suitable for SMEs, suggesting smaller providers could be relevant if they can demonstrate the required course-development and delivery capability.

How relevant is this notice?

Notice Information

Notice Title

Economics for Foreign Policy

Notice Description

The contract is for the development and delivery of an online course designed to equip FCDO staff with role-relevant practitioner level economics knowledge and boost their analytical skills. Upon completion, learners will know how to critically appraise data, scrutinise relevant economic indicators, understand how evaluation can support FCDO's work, and use robust evidence to inform decision-making.

Lot Information

Lot 1

Renewal: Optional contract extension of up to 4 years, subject to budget availability and contract performance.

Planning Information

The FCDO intend to hold a market engagement call on Tuesday 10th February 2026 -10:00 -11:30 UK Time. Suppliers interested in participating in market engagement can do so by using the following link: https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=09Ci08h8Uk-7-YW9Q9lCecrVSZRgRcpDtJxVU1ZowUdUN0dJWlczWVY3SFdUWkRXRzFFRk82TDNNMyQlQCNjPTEu&route=shorturl NOTE: - No procurement documents are available at this stage. - This UK2 notice does NOT formally commence a procurement procedure. - Responding to this UK2 notice or participating in any engagement activity will not confer any advantage in any future procurement. - Participation is entirely voluntary and does NOT form part of any future selection process. - FCDO reserves the right NOT to commence a procurement, amend the approach, or change timelines based on internal or external factors.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-060cb3
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/093973-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Planning, Tender, Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Open
Procurement Method Details
Open procedure
Tender Suitability
SME
Awardee Scale
Large

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

80 - Education and training services

CPV Codes

80000000 - Education and training services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£2,100,000 £1M-£10M
Lots Value
£2,100,000 £1M-£10M
Awards Value
£2,100,000 £1M-£10M
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
5 Oct 2026Yesterday
Submission Deadline
15 Sep 2026Expired
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
1 Oct 20266 days ago
Contract Period
19 Oct 2026 - 11 Sep 2029 2-3 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office
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
SW1A 2AH
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

UCL Consultants Ltd

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

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The Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS) is a framework designed to increase transparency and access to public procurement data in the public sector. It is widely used by governments and organisations worldwide to report on procurement processes and contracts.

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