Procurement of (Pan-Defra) Research and Development Evidence Portal

DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

This public procurement record has 4 releases in its history.

PlanningUpdate

18 May 2026 at 14:02

Planning

15 May 2026 at 16:19

PlanningUpdate

28 Apr 2026 at 09:25

Planning

27 Apr 2026 at 17:25

Summary of the contracting process

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) in the United Kingdom is engaging in a procurement process for a project titled "Procurement of a (Pan-Defra) Research and Development Evidence Portal". This initiative is in the planning stage and aims to modernise Defra's technology services for research dissemination and evidence synthesis across the Defra Group, which includes entities like Natural England and the Animal and Plant Health Agency. The procurement process is engaging the IT services and software development industry, with a focus on research and development services. Scheduled milestones include a pre-market engagement notice with a Request for Information (RFI) due by 3rd June 2026. The contract is set to begin on 2nd November 2026, with a duration until 1st November 2031, and may extend further.

This tender represents a significant opportunity for businesses specializing in IT consultancy, software development, and data management services, particularly those with offers that include modern research data management solutions. Companies that can provide interoperable technology services which significantly aid in the open access dissemination and exploitation of research and development outputs would find this tender particularly well-suited. The project's gross value is estimated at £600,000, and it places importance on accessibility and modernity, opening doors for competitive SMEs to showcase innovative solutions capable of supporting government and public sector objectives to foster growth in the green economy and enhance rural communities.

How relevant is this notice?

Notice Title

Procurement of (Pan-Defra) Research and Development Evidence Portal

Notice Description

Defra is the UK government department which is responsible for improving and protecting the environment. Defra aims to grow a green economy and sustain thriving rural communities, and also support the UK's world-leading food, farming and fishing industries. The Defra Research Evidence Portal project has been established to modernise the technology services that enable the delivery of the Defra organisations requirements to publish Defra's research and development information and capabilities for open access publication, to support integrated discovery and exploitation of Defra Group R&D (Research and Development), facilitating evidence synthesis and to also manage publications and knowledge curation activity where required for staff only. Defra also has a requirement to publicly release its Research and Development (R&D) reports to modern, accessibility and timeliness standards, for open access dissemination and exploitation and reuse. Currently there are multiple assurance, publication processes and document storage facilities in use across the Defra group, many reliant on legacy technologies. Modern Research Data Management technology services offer publication capabilities and interoperability with data and analytics services to maximise the dissemination and potential exploitation of R&D both by Government, industry and publicly to speed innovation for growth and societal benefits. The Defra Library provides scientists, researchers, and policy makers, in Defra, Natural England and APHA (Animal and Plant Health Agency) with specialist library services. It also provides services to customers in other Defra group organisations on a call-off basis. The Defra Library provides a wide range of print and digital assets to users. A range of technology services are used to deliver these, however currently, the technology used is fragmented and incudes several legacy technology services and has not been historically associated with the assurance and publication of Defra produced R&D outputs (historically positioned within the Central Science Division, under the Chief Scientific Adviser, (CSA)).

Planning Information

The purpose of this notice is for Defra to make known its requirement to explore future opportunities in the market and to commence the market engagement process to seek the expertise from market leaders and other experts on any potential future solution. Following the initial notice for the Market Engagement session, this is a Pre-Market Engagement notice for a Request for Information (RFI) for the Procurement of a (Pan-Defra) Research and Development Evidence Portal. Please contact both rajan.dey@defra.gov.uk and louise.redding@defra.gov.uk for further information and access to the RFI documents.

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-068c18
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/045405-2026
Current Stage
Planning
All Stages
Planning

Procurement Classification

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

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

48 - Software package and information systems

72 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support

73 - Research and development services and related consultancy services


CPV Codes

48000000 - Software package and information systems

48160000 - Library software package

48900000 - Miscellaneous software package and computer systems

48931000 - Training software package

72000000 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support

72320000 - Database services

73000000 - Research and development services and related consultancy services

73110000 - Research services

Notice Value(s)

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

Notice Dates

Publication Date
18 May 20261 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
1 Jul 20266 days to go
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
2 Nov 2026 - 1 Nov 2031 Over 5 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
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

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

JSON Markdown

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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