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ITEP1221 - Microsoft Unified Support Renewal 2026-2027

National Highways

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

Award

18 Aug 2026 at 09:40

UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Award

03 Aug 2026 at 11:00

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Award

31 Jul 2026 at 10:49

UK5 - Transparency Notice
Summary of the contracting process

National Highways Limited procured Microsoft Unified Support, a business-as-usual vendor support service for its business-critical Microsoft environment. The requirement covers vendor-level support for Microsoft 365, Teams, Exchange Online, Dynamics 365 and Azure, together with on-premises infrastructure and assistance with complex incidents. This is a continuation of an existing Microsoft support arrangement, rather than a new technology initiative, product build, service design or request for a digital, technology and communications solution. The work supports National Highways’ operations across its organisation and is supplied by Microsoft Ltd. The relevant service category is software support services (CPV 72261000). The procurement comprised one lot and covers support delivered by the Microsoft vendor.

The procurement is complete and was awarded through a direct award. National Highways awarded the contract to Microsoft Ltd on 3 August 2026. The stated basis was that Microsoft alone can provide the proprietary Microsoft content and services required for National Highways’ specific business needs. The award value was £616,005 excluding VAT, or £739,206 including VAT. The signed contract value was £614,425 excluding VAT, or £737,310 including VAT. The contract was signed on 13 August 2026 and runs from 14 August 2026 to 16 August 2027. The award is active and the contract is active. The opportunity was above the relevant threshold. Evaluation was not competitive: the direct-award rationale relied on exclusive intellectual-property rights and a single supplier.

This award demonstrates established demand from National Highways for specialist, vendor-level support across a complex Microsoft estate, including cloud services, collaboration tools, business applications, infrastructure and major incident resolution. A credible competitor for a future requirement would need substantial Microsoft platform capability, the capacity to support business-critical services across both cloud and on-premises environments, and experience handling complex incidents for a large public-sector organisation. The requirement is particularly relevant to Microsoft support specialists, managed service providers and firms with strong operational resilience, service management and escalation capabilities. However, the stated procurement route and rationale show that proprietary Microsoft content and services, together with Microsoft’s position as the vendor, were central to this award.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

ITEP1221 - Microsoft Unified Support Renewal 2026-2027

Notice Description

The Commercial & Procurement Strategy (CPS) sets out procurement for a Business As Usual (BAU) annual contract renewal for Microsoft Unified Support (MUS) for one year from August 2026. This is a continuation of an existing Microsoft vendor support arrangement. It is not a new technology initiative, new product build, new service design, or request for DTC solutioning. Requirement Overview National Highways relies on MUS to support business-critical Microsoft services and complex incidents across the organisation. MUS provides: * vendor-level support for Microsoft 365 * Teams * Exchange Online, Dynamics 365, Azure * On-premises infrastructure Without renewal National Highways would lose direct vendor support for complex incidents.

Procurement Information

MUS can only be offered by Microsoft Ltd, as it contains proprietary Microsoft content and services, and these services are required to meet NH's specific business needs. These services are further described above.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-06d881
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/078384-2026
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
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Large

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

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

CPV Codes

72261000 - Software support services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
£616,005 £500K-£1M
Contracts Value
£614,425 £500K-£1M

Notice Dates

Publication Date
18 Aug 20261 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
3 Aug 20262 months ago
Contract Period
14 Aug 2026 - 16 Aug 2027 1-2 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
National Highways
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
BIRMINGHAM
Postcode
B4 6GA
Postcode Area
Birmingham
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLG West Midlands (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLG3 West Midlands
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLG31 Birmingham
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Birmingham
Electoral Ward
Ladywood
Westminster Constituency
Birmingham Ladywood

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

Microsoft Limited

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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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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