Award

Bridging the Gap project

ENVIRONMENT AGENCY

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Award

19 Mar 2026 at 13:48

UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The Environment Agency, operating under the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), has progressed to the award stage in its procurement process for the "Bridging the Gap" project. This initiative, categorised under environmental services and endangered species protection, aims to eradicate invasive American mink to support water voles' recovery across England. The procurement method was direct, conducted below threshold without competition. The project spans from 19th March 2026 to 31st March 2028 and has been awarded to Waterlife Recovery Trust, located in Horsham, United Kingdom. The contract, valued at £100,000, with a gross amount of £120,000, was signed on 19th March 2026, marking the beginning of an extensive conservation effort.

This tender represents a significant opportunity for Waterlife Recovery Trust to further establish its authoritative position in environmental conservation related to species recovery. Businesses specialising in ecological services, particularly those with expertise in invasive species management, can observe the successful practices of Waterlife Recovery Trust to implement similar projects. Organisations focusing on developing smart monitoring technology, creating partnerships, and training volunteer networks would find alignment with the goals set forth by this initiative. By demonstrating capability in strategic coordination and ecological impact, such entities can expand their operations and contribute significantly to similar environmental preservation efforts.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Bridging the Gap project

Notice Description

Water voles are an IUCN Red List Species, their threat status for the most part, is a result of predation my American mink, an invasive non-native species. The control and eradication of mink through effective regional partnerships t has been identified by Natural England through their Threatened Species Recovery Action (TSRA) project as the priority action to recover the species. This project is looking to shift the dial for recovery of water voles. It aims to fill the missing part of a puzzle to create a mink free corridor from the Thames Estuary in the south-east of England across to the Bristol Chanel on the west coast. This will create a mink free corridor across the country, enabling the recovery of water voles while also enabling the strategic control of mink into the South West of England. Mink eradication across this corridor, and England as a whole, is being led by Waterlife Recovery Trust (WRT). This charity has been in place since 2022, building on the very successful work to remove mink from East Anglia from 2019 onwards. The organisation's goal and sole purpose is to achieve the eradication of mink across Great Britain, using strict working protocols, strong scientific evidence and building partnerships in the areas that they operate in. WRT is uniquely placed to undertake county-scale mink eradication because it has already demonstrated that landscape-scale eradication is achievable, not just theoretical. Building on the success of Waterlife Recovery East, the Trust is the only organisation that has developed a proven, humane, and systematic trapping model using smart monitoring technology, supported by strong scientific oversight. It combines professional coordination with a large, well-trained volunteer network and works in partnership with landowners, conservation bodies, and local stakeholders. Crucially, it has delivered measurable ecological recovery across large areas and has an operational framework ready to scale, making it far more capable than other organisations starting from scratch. The objectives of the Project are to work in collaboration with Waterlife Recovery Trust to: (a) Establish a broad corridor of water vole friendly habitat from the Bristol Channel to the Thames by means of eradicating invasive American mink (hereafter 'mink'). (b) Establish a suitable project group to oversee the project for its duration (c) Ensure comprehensive smart mink trap coverage (d) Establish professional coordination of the trap network to ensure high standards of Health and Safety, animal welfare and operational efficacy.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-066ef8
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/025198-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Direct
Procurement Method Details
Below threshold - without competition
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Large

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

90 - Sewage, refuse, cleaning and environmental services

CPV Codes

90700000 - Environmental services

90721700 - Endangered species protection services

Notice Value(s)

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

Notice Dates

Publication Date
19 Mar 20262 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
19 Mar 20262 weeks ago
Contract Period
19 Mar 2026 - 31 Mar 2028 2-3 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Complete
Awards Status
Active
Contracts Status
Active

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
ENVIRONMENT AGENCY
Additional Buyers

DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND 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
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

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

WATERLIFE RECOVERY TRUST

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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