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Review of Higher Education

Llywodraeth Cymru / Welsh Government

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

Award

09 Oct 2026 at 10:44

UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Award

25 Aug 2026 at 15:51

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Award

25 Aug 2026 at 14:57

UK5 - Transparency Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The Welsh Government commissioned an independent chair to lead a review of higher education in Wales. The chair is responsible for the review’s overall success, bringing expertise and insight, leading the Review Panel and acting as its public face. This includes building relationships with stakeholders. The service averages two days a week, with travel throughout Wales as required. The work is higher education services, rather than the delivery of teaching or other university operations. The Welsh Government is the buyer, and the review’s activities and stakeholder engagement are centred on Wales.

The procurement is complete and the contract has been awarded to Dempsey Murphy and Associates. The Welsh Government used a direct award, citing technical reasons, the absence of competition and no reasonable alternative capable of meeting the deliverables. The contract was awarded on 25 August 2026 and signed on 4 September 2026. Its value is £155,400 excluding VAT (£186,480 including VAT). The contract runs from 4 September 2026 to 28 February 2028, with an option to extend by up to two months, to 1 May 2028. The requirement was divided into one lot, marked as suitable for small and medium-sized businesses. No separate evaluation criteria are stated.

For suppliers preparing for a comparable higher education review, this award indicates demand for senior independent leadership rather than routine education services. A credible competitor would need the expertise and insight to take overall responsibility for a complex policy review, lead a review panel and represent its work publicly. The role also calls for strong stakeholder engagement and relationship-building, with the capacity to provide an average of two days’ service each week and travel throughout Wales. The buyer identified the need for a suitable alternative as technically constrained, so a future competitor would need to demonstrate that its proposed chair can meet the review’s specific deliverables and manage the complexity of the policy issues under consideration.

How relevant is this notice?

Notice Information

Notice Title

Review of Higher Education

Notice Description

This is a Contract Details notice confirming the contract award for the provision of the services of an Independent Chair for the delivery of a review into Higher Education in Wales. This notice follows the publication of the Contract Award Notice which was preceded by the publication of an initial Transparency Notice on 25/08/2026 advising of Welsh Government's intention to award the contract. The purpose of the contract is to take overall responsibility for the success of the review, provide expertise and insight and to lead the work of the Review Panel. The contractor will lead the Panel established to undertake the Review; be the public face of the Review, including building relationships with stakeholders. The contractor will be expected to provide on average two days service per week and travel throughout Wales as required. As noted in the Transparency Notice and Contract Award Notice there is an absence of competition for technical reasons and no reasonable alternative exists that satisfies the deliverables of the contract. It is the opinion of Welsh Government that the contract therefore satisfies the requirements of paragraph 41 Direct award in special cases and Schedule 5 part (6) (a) (b) of the Procurement Act 2023.

Procurement Information

As noted in the Transparency Notice and Contract Award Notice, there is an absence of competition for technical reasons and no reasonable alternative exists that satisfies the deliverables of the contract. It is the opinion of Welsh Government that the contract therefore satisfies the requirements of paragraph 41 Direct award in special cases and Schedule 5 part (6) (a) (b) of the Procurement Act 2023.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-06ebb6
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/095525-2026
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
Awardee Scale
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

80 - Education and training services

CPV Codes

80300000 - Higher education services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
£155,400 £100K-£500K
Contracts Value
£155,400 £100K-£500K

Notice Dates

Publication Date
9 Oct 20262 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
25 Aug 20261 months ago
Contract Period
4 Sep 2026 - 28 Feb 2028 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
Llywodraeth Cymru / Welsh Government
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
CARDIFF
Postcode
CF10 3NQ
Postcode Area
Cardiff
Country
Wales
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLL Wales
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLL5 South East Wales
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLL52 Cardiff and Vale of Glamorgan
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Cardiff
Electoral Ward
Cathays
Westminster Constituency
Cardiff South and Penarth

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

Dempsey Murphy and Associates

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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