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Legal Services

THE OPEN UNIVERSITY

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

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27 Jul 2026 at 10:51

UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The Open University bought legal services for its activities, with delivery in the Milton Keynes area. The buyer is The Open University, a public authority based at Walton Hall in Milton Keynes. The requirement was treated as a services procurement and covered one completed lot. The stated scope is broad: the provision of legal services, without a more detailed description of the legal specialism or workstreams. The recorded delivery area is represented by the buyer’s location in Milton Keynes. The appointed provider is Anderson Law LLP, a law firm based in Wallingford. This is therefore relevant to legal practices able to provide services to a UK public authority, particularly firms that can support a higher education institution and work with a buyer located in Milton Keynes.

The procurement has been awarded and the tender is complete. It used a direct award below the applicable threshold, without competition. Anderson Law LLP was awarded the single lot, with an active award and an active contract. The award value is £29,000 excluding VAT, or £34,800 including VAT. The contract was signed on 22 May 2026 and runs from 22 May 2026 to 31 July 2026. The procurement is classified under CPV 79100000 for legal services. The buyer used a direct route rather than inviting competing tenders, so the recorded process does not set out a competitive evaluation basis. The contract is below threshold and the selected supplier is Anderson Law LLP.

This procurement indicates that The Open University has a requirement for externally provided legal services that can be fulfilled through a short, focused public-sector engagement. A credible future competitor would need to be a law practice capable of delivering legal advice and related services to a public authority, with the organisational capacity to work to the requirements of a higher education institution. Anderson Law LLP is recorded as an SME, showing that the requirement was supplied by a smaller legal practice rather than only a large national firm. Firms considering similar work should therefore assess their ability to provide responsive legal support, understand public-sector governance and procurement expectations, and serve a buyer based in Milton Keynes. The requirement is broad enough to be relevant to practices with an appropriate legal-services portfolio.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Legal Services

Notice Description

For the provision of legal services

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-06d407
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/070658-2026
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
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

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

CPV Codes

79100000 - Legal services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
£29,000 Under £100K

Notice Dates

Publication Date
27 Jul 20262 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
22 May 2026 - 31 Jul 2026 1-6 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 OPEN UNIVERSITY
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
MILTON KEYNES
Postcode
MK7 6AA
Postcode Area
Milton Keynes
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLJ South East (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLJ1 Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLJ12 Milton Keynes
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Milton Keynes
Electoral Ward
Monkston
Westminster Constituency
Milton Keynes Central

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

Anderson Law LLP

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

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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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