Planning

National Supply of Sandbags

ENVIRONMENT AGENCY

This public procurement record has 2 releases in its history.

PlanningUpdate

17 Mar 2026 at 11:04

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Planning

16 Mar 2026 at 15:38

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The Environment Agency, on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) Commercial Group, is organising the procurement of sandbags for national supply, with the current contract scheduled to conclude in October 2026. This tender falls under the industry category of goods, specifically sand, and is above the procurement threshold, offering substantial business potential. The procurement process is currently in the planning stage, with a planned tender publication date in May 2026, and requires participation by 27th March 2026 for pre-market engagement. This initiative aims to enhance the Environment Agency's incident response capabilities across multiple UK locations, including Cheshire, West Midlands, Somerset, Middlesex, East Sussex, Cumbria, Buckinghamshire, and Stoke-on-Trent. The crucial contract execution will commence on 18th October 2026 and extend until 17th October 2031, with the possibility of renewal until 2036.

This procurement represents a promising opportunity for businesses specialising in flood protection equipment, particularly those capable of supplying sandbags and auxiliary items that meet the rigorous specifications outlined. Companies with expertise in rapid distribution logistics can leverage this opportunity to catch the attention of the Environment Agency, as timely delivery is critical, especially during incident responses. The contract is suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), offering a projected gross contract value of £1,200,000. Businesses capable of providing various sandbag specifications, including hessian, polypropylene, and those with military-grade rot-proof features, as well as transport solutions to multiple locations, are best suited for this tender, suggesting growth potential through a long-term governmental partnership.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

National Supply of Sandbags

Notice Description

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) Commercial Group (DGC), on behalf of the Environment Agency (EA), is planning to publish a tender in May 2026 for the National Supply of Sandbags. The current contract is scheduled to end in October 2026. The existing contract award notice can be viewed here: National Supply of Sand Bags (empty & filled) - Contracts Finder https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/notice/1e760905-6001-4a93-809a-8879e770cdd4 This UK2 Notice contains a draft set of requirements and a supplier feedback survey to register interest.

Planning Information

Sandbag Pre-market engagement overview The Defra Group Commercial (DGC) premarket engagement provides a draft outline of the anticipated requirements for the upcoming procurement. It also includes a link to a short survey that DGC encourages suppliers to complete to register their interest and provide feedback. All survey responses are anonymous. Please copy and paste this link into your browser: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=UCQKdycCYkyQx044U38RAp3NmshgqEFMnrDV-BVa6NxUQU0ySU5NRjRGTUlNN1dFM0pITkZQMDI4Vi4u The deadline for responses is 27th March 2026. ________________________________________ Important Notice Defra Group Commercial (DGC) and/or the Environment Agency reserve the right to amend or cancel all or any part of this set of requirements, as well as any associated procurement activities, at any time. Publication of this UK2 Notice does not guarantee that a procurement will proceed. Draft Requirements 1.1 The supplier will provide the Environment Agency (EA) the provision of • Empty and filled Sandbags and various additional items as part of their Incident response capability. 2.0 Contract and Major Incident Response Management 2.1 The contract will require the delivery of flood protection equipment 2.2 Delivery in a timely manner will be key during incident response – 48 Delivery hr distribution to multiple locations as described below. Outside of incident response- delivery times should be within 5 working days. 3.0 Sandbags and auxiliary items EA Equipment services and requirements 3.1 Empty Sandbags – both Hessian and Polypropylene: The contractor will provide a sandbag that complies with the following: Hessian • Rot Proof Military Specification Sandbag • Approx. sizing: Width: 30-40cm x Length: 75cm -85cm • Heavy duty rot proofed hessian • Extra heavy 9oz jute fabric • Made to BS Standard 1214: 1977 • Rot proof that extends the life of the sandbag • Fully biodegradable Polypropylene • Made from recyclable material • Approx. sizing: Width: 30-40cm x Length: 75cm-85cm • Treated fabric with maximum UV protection to prevent damage from sunlight exposure • Supplied empty or filled • When filled should hold approx. 12kg-20kg of sand, with 15kg being optimum 3.2 Filled sandbags The contractor will provide a sandbag that complies with the following: • Rot Proof Military Specification Sandbag • Approx. sizing: Width: 30-40cm x Length: 75cm -85cm • Heavy duty rot proofed hessian • Extra heavy 9oz jute fabric • Made to BS Standard 1214: 1977 • Rot proof that extends the life of the sandbag • Fully biodegradable • Filled with kiln dried sand 3.3 Unfilled Flight bags dumpy bags • European Flexible Intermediate Bulk Container Association (EFIBCA) test standard or equivalent • We are advised that presently a bulk bag will hold 40-50 sandbags the assumes a combined weight of a maximum per bulk bag of 720-900 kg the bulk bag have a Safe Working Load (SWL) of 1 tonne. • Black woven PP uncoated 170 gsm, 1.5-2% UV inhibitor, unprinted IAW with specification certificate. TOP: Open hemmed BASE: Flat LIFTING LOOPS: 4 standard 4x100cm free height black STITICHING: Heracled + safety stitch, black PP Safe working load : 6:1 multi trip 1000 kg capacity LABELS, W&C safety label with "airlift bulk bag" written at the top WEIGHT: 1376 gr TOLERANCE 0% + 6% weight -0cm + 2 cm dimensions TEST STANDARD Conform to EFIBCA test standard or equivalent 3.3 Heavy duty waterproof boxes -two sizes These boxes are used to keep equipment dry. There is flexibility in dimensions, but they must come with lids, be waterproof, and liftable with a forklift or telehandler. 3.3.1 Shallow pallet box with lid and a <500 litre capacity – Approx sizing: • External dimensions: LxWxH 1200 x 1000 x 580mm • Internal dimensions: LxWxH 1120 x 920 x 430mm • Capacity: 450 Litres • Dynamic load capacity: 700 kg • Static load capacity: 4000 kg • Weight: 31 kg • Material: HDPE 3.3.2 Large pallet box with lid and a > 500 litre capacity – Approx sizing: • External dimensions: LxWxH 1200 x 1000 x 760mm • Internal dimensions: LxWxH 1112 x 912 x 570mm • Capacity: 625 Litres • Dynamic load capacity: 600 kg • Static load capacity: 4500 kg • Racking load capacity: 500 kg • Weight: 41.56 kg • Material: HDPE 4.0 Transport 4.1 Provide all transport requirements to deliver sandbags to multiple EA locations or incident site locations. The depots are: Principal Depot Sale Carrington Lane, Sale, Cheshire M33 5NL Principal Depot Lea Marston Coton Road, Sutton Coldfield B76 0DN Principal Depot Selby Unit 1C, A19 Riccall Business Park, Selby YO19 6QR Principal Depot Bradney Bradney Lane, Bawdrip, Bridgwater, Somerset TA7 8PZ Principal Depot Ely Kiln Lane, Ely, Cambridgeshire CB7 4TT Principal Depot Sunbury Fordbridge Road, Sunbury on Thames, Middlesex TW16 6AP Principal Depot Rye Military Road, Playden, Rye, East Sussex TN31 7PH Principal Depot Bridgend Bridge End Depot Levens Kendal Cumbria LA8 8EP EA Resilience centre – Moat Farm Moat Farm Moat Farm Resilience Centre, Unit 1, Moat Farm, Newton Purcell, Buckingham MK18 4AX EA Resilience centre – Land Recovery Chemical Lane Chemical Lane, Tunstall, Stoke-on-Trent ST6 4NU 5.0 Indicative volumes 5.1 The number of items ordered varies considerably from year to year. This is due to our needs during incident response. During peacetime, we maintain a substantial stock of equipment at our principal depots. During a major flooding incident, we can deploy thousands of sandbags to none, depending on the site and situation. Over the last five years we have procured on average 10,000-100,000 unfilled sandbags plus 1000 flight bags and 300 waterproof boxes.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-066b5c
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/023925-2026
Current Stage
Planning
All Stages
Planning

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Goods
Procurement Method
Not Specified
Procurement Method Details
Not specified
Tender Suitability
SME
Awardee Scale
Not specified

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

14 - Mining, basic metals and related products

CPV Codes

14211000 - Sand

Notice Value(s)

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

Notice Dates

Publication Date
17 Mar 20265 days ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
4 May 20262 months to go
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
17 Oct 2026 - 17 Oct 2031 Over 5 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Planning
Lots Status
Planning
Awards Status
Not Specified
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
ENVIRONMENT AGENCY
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
Post Town
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

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

Download

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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