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Stakeholder, Political Engagement & Reputations Comms PR

The City of Liverpool College

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

Award

03 Sep 2026 at 12:12

UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Award

24 Aug 2026 at 16:27

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Tender

14 Jul 2026 at 09:34

UK4 - Tender Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The City of Liverpool College procured stakeholder, political engagement and reputation communications public relations services. The work covers marketing and communications support, with a focus on understanding the further-education political and regulatory landscape, maintaining relationships across Whitehall, Parliament, trade press and national press, and responding quickly when issues arise. The service is delivered for the college in Liverpool, covering the UKD72 area. This is a public-sector communications and public affairs requirement rather than a general advertising, digital marketing or media-buying contract. The procurement also includes communications-network and marketing-services classifications, indicating a requirement centred on strategic stakeholder engagement, reputation management and public relations activity.

The procurement is complete and the contract has been awarded to SOCIAL COMMUNICATIONS GROUP LIMITED. It was run as a below-threshold open competition for one lot. Five bids were received, including five from SMEs. The award was made on 24 August 2026. The awarded value is £108,000 excluding VAT and £129,600 including VAT. The contract was signed on 3 September 2026 and runs from 3 September 2026 to 31 August 2027, with an option for two further one-year extensions, giving a maximum end date of 31 August 2029. Evaluation prioritised quality at 70%, followed by price at 15%, environmental, corporate responsibility and sustainability at 10%, and added value at 5%.

This award shows a college-level requirement for a specialist public affairs and reputation communications partner, with sufficient capacity to provide rapid support when political, regulatory or reputational issues arise. Credible competitors would need a strong understanding of further education, established relationships across Whitehall and Parliament, and access to trade and national press networks. They would also need to demonstrate high-quality strategic and practical communications delivery, rather than relying primarily on price. Environmental, corporate responsibility and sustainability performance, together with measurable added value, formed part of the assessment. The successful supplier was an SME, and all five final-stage bids came from SMEs, indicating that the requirement can be delivered by a suitably experienced smaller communications consultancy.

How relevant is this notice?

Notice Information

Notice Title

Stakeholder, Political Engagement & Reputations Comms PR

Notice Description

The successful bidder will understand the political and regulatory landscape of FE, have existing relationships across Whitehall, Parliament, and the trade and national press, and can move at pace when issues arise.

Lot Information

Lot 1

Renewal: Inclusive of 2 x 1 year optional extensions included

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-06ca59
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/083429-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Tender, Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Open
Procurement Method Details
Below threshold - open competition
Tender Suitability
SME
Awardee Scale
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

32 - Radio, television, communication, telecommunication and related equipment

79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security

CPV Codes

32412000 - Communications network

79342000 - Marketing services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£108,000 £100K-£500K
Lots Value
£108,000 £100K-£500K
Awards Value
£108,000 £100K-£500K
Contracts Value
£108,000 £100K-£500K

Notice Dates

Publication Date
3 Sep 20261 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
3 Aug 2026Expired
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
24 Aug 20263 weeks ago
Contract Period
3 Sep 2026 - 31 Aug 2027 6-12 months
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
The City of Liverpool College
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
THE LEARNING EXCHANGE, LIVERPOOL
Postcode
L1 9DW
Postcode Area
Liverpool
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLD North West (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLD7 Merseyside
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLD72 Liverpool
Delivery Location
TLD72 Liverpool
Local Authority
Liverpool
Electoral Ward
Canning
Westminster Constituency
Liverpool Riverside

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

Social Communications Group Ltd

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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