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Education Partnership Programme

Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

Award

31 Aug 2026 at 11:26

UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Award

15 May 2026 at 15:09

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Award

15 May 2026 at 13:27

UK5 - Transparency Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) commissioned the Education Partnership Programme, centred on Food – a fact of life (FFL), an established education programme owned and managed by the British Nutrition Foundation. The service combines online classroom resources with teacher training and professional development for teachers of children aged 3 to 16. It covers where food comes from, nutrition and healthy eating, and cooking. The resources are curriculum-compliant across the UK and are intended to support education delivery throughout the UK. AHDB has worked with the British Nutrition Foundation on this programme since 2018. The procurement is for education and training services, with an associated agricultural-services classification.

The procurement is complete. AHDB used a direct award to appoint the British Nutrition Foundation, a voluntary, community and social enterprise classified as an SME. The award was dated 15 May 2026, followed by a standstill period ending 27 May 2026. The contract was signed on 9 July 2026 and is active. Its value is £530,000 excluding VAT and £636,000 including VAT. The contract runs from 9 July 2026 to 30 April 2027, with options for additional purchases and extensions in any increments for up to four further years, ending no later than 30 April 2031. AHDB’s stated basis was the supplier’s ownership of FFL and its associated intellectual property, with no reasonable alternative supplier for the integrated service.

This award indicates demand for an integrated national education service rather than a standalone training course, learning-resource package or agricultural information service. A credible future competitor would need to provide online classroom resources and teacher training for the full 3-to-16 age range, cover food origins, nutrition, healthy eating and cooking, and demonstrate curriculum compliance across the UK. Established user engagement and continuity with teachers are important because AHDB identified disruption and loss of engagement as risks in changing supplier. Ownership or authorised access to relevant intellectual property would be central to competing with the incumbent’s model. Suppliers should therefore combine education-content development, digital learning delivery, professional development expertise and the capacity to manage a broad UK-wide programme.

How relevant is this notice?

Notice Information

Notice Title

Education Partnership Programme

Notice Description

Food - Fact of Life (FFL) is owned and managed by BNF. The programme covering online resources and teacher training. It is the only progressive education programme for teachers of of children aged 3 to 16 years covering the key themes of where food comes. AHDB has worked in partnership with BNF since 2018 to jointly deliver this programme.

Procurement Information

Switching to direct award The authority intends to award a contract directly to the British Nutrition Foundation (BNF) for the delivery of the Food - a fact of life (FFL) programme in partnership. BNF owns and manages FFL, including associated intellectual property. The programme provides a unique and established service combining online classroom resources that curriculum compliant across the whole UK and professional development training, together with a strong user base. It covers the core themes of 1) where food comes from, 2) nutrition and healthy eating, and 3) cooking. There are no reasonable alternative suppliers capable of delivering the full scope of these integrated services. A change in supplier would result in incompatible services, disruption to delivery, and loss of continuity and teacher engagement.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-069a03
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/082406-2026
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
Direct award
Tender Suitability
SME, VCSE
Awardee Scale
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

77 - Agricultural, forestry, horticultural, aquacultural and apicultural services

80 - Education and training services

CPV Codes

77100000 - Agricultural services

80000000 - Education and training services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
£530,000 £500K-£1M
Contracts Value
£530,000 £500K-£1M

Notice Dates

Publication Date
31 Aug 20262 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
15 May 20264 months ago
Contract Period
9 Jul 2026 - 30 Apr 2027 6-12 months
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Complete
Awards Status
Active, Pending
Contracts Status
Active

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
COVENTRY
Postcode
CV3 4SU
Postcode Area
Coventry
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLG West Midlands (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLG1 Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLG13 Warwickshire CC
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Warwick
Electoral Ward
Cubbington & Leek Wootton
Westminster Constituency
Kenilworth and Southam

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

British Nutrition Foundation

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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