Planning

OGH Beta Principal Contractor

NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Planning

18 Mar 2026 at 10:51

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The Natural History Museum is planning a tender process for the OGH Beta Principal Contractor position, aimed at refurbishing the Old General Herbarium Gallery in South Kensington, London. This project, under the planning stage, involves a light touch refurbishment to enable a pop-up exhibition as part of the Museum's 150th Anniversary celebrations. Procurement documents will be made available via the Tenderbox stage post NDA completion, with a target date of 30th April 2026. The refurbishment is valued at approximately £140,000 and will include temporary exhibition space open from September 2026 for 18 months. Interested parties must act swiftly, with the closing date for tender submissions set for 1st May 2026. The procurement falls under the 'works' category primarily involving construction for cultural buildings and museum services.

The OGH Beta Principal Contractor tender offers significant opportunities for businesses specialising in construction related to art and cultural buildings, exhibitions, and museum services. Firms with expertise in these sectors are well-suited to execute the refurbishment of a historically rich space like the Old General Herbarium Gallery. By participating, businesses can enhance their portfolio with a prestigious project linked to the NHM's landmark anniversary programme. Such an undertaking could bolster credibility and lead to future engagements in similar cultural construction projects across the UK. Furthermore, as an entry point to larger upcoming projects within the NHM 150 programme, successful contractors stand to benefit from enduring growth and new partnerships.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

OGH Beta Principal Contractor

Notice Description

The Old General Herbarium (OGH) Beta Project is a light touch refurbishment of a section of the OGH gallery to bring it back into public display for the first time since 1948. The project will install a temporary pop-up display opening in September 26. This is a light touch refurbishment of the front half of the gallery space allowing it to open up to visitors including the installation of the Pop-up exhibition offer lasting approximately 18-months. This offer is the first phase of a bigger project which is part of the NHM 150 programme. The Pop-up will act as a test bed for the planned permanent gallery which will involve full refurbishment and exhibition installation through the OGH gallery opening 2029 TBC. In order to access the tender documents for the OGH Beta Principal Contractor tender exercise, all tenderers must complete the NDA available in the SQ stage document library. The NDA must be signed by an appropriate representative of the tendering company and returned to the Museum for countersignature. Once the NDA has been completed by both parties, it will be sent to tenderers for record keeping. The tenderer will then be added to the Tenderbox stage, where the tender documents will be made available from the 30th April 2026.

Planning Information

11 suppliers have been contacted with information about the process to gauge interest. "I am contacting you as the Project Manager of a new exciting Pop-up Project at the Natural History Museum South Kensington. This email is part of our pre-tender market engagement ahead of Tender documents being posted via E-Dela on Monday 30th March 2026 with a closing date of Friday 1st May. The approximate value of the contract is £140k. The Natural History Museum is undertaking a programme of new gallery refurbishment and creation to mark its 150th Anniversary. The Pop-up exhibition ‘Human Nature’ will be based in our Old General Herbarium Gallery (OGH) on the second floor of the prestigious Hinze Hall. The OGH is a beautifully presented Grade 1 listed space (approx. 300sqm) which has been closed to the public for the last 80 years. Please see the gallery pictured below. The OGH Beta Project is a light touch refurbishment of the front half of the gallery space allowing it to open up to visitors including the installation of the Pop-up exhibition offer opening in September 2026 and lasting approximately 18-months. This offer is the first phase of a bigger project which is part of the NHM 150 programme. The Pop-up will act as a test bed for the planned permanent gallery which will involve full refurbishment and exhibition installation through the OGH gallery opening 2029 TBC." Interested suppliers must complete the NDA available in the SQ stage document library. The NDA must be signed by an appropriate representative of the tendering company and returned to the Museum for countersignature. Once the NDA has been completed by both parties, it will be sent to tenderers for record keeping. The tenderer will then be added to the Tenderbox stage, where the tender documents will be made available from the 30th April 2026.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-066d2b
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/024447-2026
Current Stage
Planning
All Stages
Planning

Procurement Classification

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

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

45 - Construction work

92 - Recreational, cultural and sporting services

CPV Codes

45212300 - Construction work for art and cultural buildings

45212310 - Construction work for buildings relating to exhibitions

45212313 - Museum construction work

92500000 - Library, archives, museums and other cultural services

92521000 - Museum services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£140,000 £100K-£500K
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
18 Mar 20264 days ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
17 Apr 20264 weeks to go
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
28 May 2026 - 31 Aug 2026 1-6 months
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
NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM
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
SW7 5BD
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)
TLI33 Kensington & Chelsea and Hammersmith & Fulham
Delivery Location
TLI London
Local Authority
Kensington and Chelsea
Electoral Ward
Brompton & Hans Town
Westminster Constituency
Kensington and Bayswater

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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