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Provision of a Service Desk

OFSTED

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Planning

21 Jul 2026 at 13:25

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is currently in the planning stage of a procurement process, seeking suppliers for a fully managed Service Desk under the title "Provision of a Service Desk." This tender is directed towards the Technology Services 4 (RM6190) framework and focusses on IT services such as consulting, software development, and support. The primary activities cater to users across various regions of the United Kingdom, including UKC, UKD, UKE, UKF, UKG, UKH, UKI, UKJ, and UKK. Although the current status is planning with market engagement underway, the actual tender process is expected to start as soon as practicable in 2026. The contractual period will commence on 1st April 2027 and could potentially extend to 2032. This procurement activity, initiated by Ofsted, a central government public authority, aims to establish a reliable contact centre for reporting IT-related issues, engaging services through the GCA Framework for End User Services.

This tender offers lucrative opportunities for businesses specialising in IT services, particularly those experienced with system support, service desk solutions, and multichannel communication engagements. Companies well-suited to compete for this contract are those on the RM6190 Framework, as engagement for the project is currently limited to these suppliers. The project not only involves supporting a large and diverse user base but also requires a proactive approach to resolving issues at first contact wherever possible, necessitating a strong track record in efficient service delivery and customer support. With a focus on coordination across multiple support teams to meet service-level agreements, businesses with expertise in managing complex service desk operations and logistical solutions would find significant growth potential through this procurement endeavour.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Provision of a Service Desk

Notice Description

The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is issuing this notice to notify the market to that we are engaging with suppliers on the Technology Services 4 (RM6190) to help shape a pending tender process for the provision of a fully managed Servicedesk. The current contract that Ofsted has for providing this service is due to end in March 2027 and Ofsted are looking to start pre market engagement with suppliers in the market. Ofsted intends to appoint a supplier to deliver a fully managed Servicedesk that will be the single point of contact for circa 4000 individuals to report IT issues, raise queries, submit requests, and where possible have them resolved at first contact. Our Service Desk provider will be responsible for: * supporting a range of home, office, and remote based users, using the Ofsted-owned ServiceNow instance to log contacts via multiple communication channels, including telephone, service portal and webchat * logging, categorising, and prioritising all calls, carrying out initial investigations and resolving at first contact wherever possible, and providing clear and effective communications to Ofsted users and support teams * co-ordinating the delivery of services provided by multiple support teams to ensure response times and SLAs are met, escalating when necessary Ofsted is therefore looking at running a procurement exercise, starting as soon as is practicable in 2026, for a supplier to provide this service. Our chosen route to market will be via GCA (formerly CCS) Framework Technology Services 4 (RM6190) Lot 3a End User Services (lower value and complexity) and engagement is currently limited to suppliers on this Framework.

Planning Information

Ofsted issued an Expression of Interest to RM6190 Framework suppliers on 21st April 2026, with a deadline of 6th May 2026. Ofsted will now undertake some pre-market engagement sessions with suppliers who responded to the EOI. Ofsted do not guarantee that this exercise will result in a procurement exercise.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-06cff5
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/068746-2026
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
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Not specified

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

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

CPV Codes

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

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
21 Jul 2026Yesterday
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
31 Mar 2027 - 30 Mar 2030 3-4 years
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
OFSTED
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
CANARY WHARF, LONDON
Postcode
E14 4PU
Post Town
East London
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLI London
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLI4 Inner London - East
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLI42 Tower Hamlets
Delivery Location
TLC North East (England), TLD North West (England), TLE Yorkshire and The Humber, TLF East Midlands (England), TLG West Midlands (England), TLH East (England), TLI London, TLJ South East (England), TLK South West (England)
Local Authority
Tower Hamlets
Electoral Ward
Canary Wharf
Westminster Constituency
Poplar and Limehouse

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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