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Payroll Bureau Services

The Arts Council of England

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

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26 Aug 2026 at 14:52

UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The Arts Council of England procured a payroll bureau managed service. The requirement is for payroll management carried out through a third-party payroll solution, providing the organisation with an externally managed payroll capability rather than a standalone software purchase. The service falls within payroll management services and is classified as a services procurement. Delivery covers the United Kingdom. The buyer is a central government public authority based in Manchester. The procurement covered one requirement rather than separate service packages, so relevant suppliers would need to support the payroll service as a whole. This opportunity is relevant to payroll bureaux, managed payroll providers and organisations able to operate payroll services using an established third-party payroll platform.

The procurement has been completed and awarded. It used a direct award below the applicable threshold, without competition. The contract was signed on 17 June 2026 and runs from 28 September 2026 to 28 September 2028. The contract is active. The Access Group was selected as the supplier for the payroll bureau managed service. The awarded contract value is £94,036 excluding VAT and £112,843 including VAT. The procurement was evaluated through a non-competitive direct-award route, so no competitive scoring basis is stated. The requirement was handled as a single lot. The contract is below the relevant threshold, and the service is being delivered across the United Kingdom.

This award is useful market evidence for payroll bureaux and managed service providers targeting the Arts Council of England. A credible competitor for a future requirement would need to provide end-to-end payroll management, operate a reliable third-party payroll solution and take responsibility for delivering the service across the United Kingdom. The selected supplier is a large organisation, indicating that the buyer accepted a provider with the operational capacity to manage the requirement at national scale. Providers should be able to demonstrate dependable payroll administration, strong service management and the ability to integrate or work effectively with an external payroll platform. Experience delivering outsourced payroll services to public authorities would help establish credibility when this requirement next reaches the market.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Payroll Bureau Services

Notice Description

Payroll Bureau managed service using third party payroll solution.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-06eccf
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/081402-2026
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
Large

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

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

CPV Codes

79211110 - Payroll management services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
£94,036 Under £100K

Notice Dates

Publication Date
26 Aug 2026Today
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
17 Jun 20262 months ago
Contract Period
28 Sep 2026 - 28 Sep 2028 2-3 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
The Arts Council of England
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
MANCHESTER
Postcode
M1 1FN
Postcode Area
Manchester
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLD North West (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLD3 Greater Manchester
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLD33 Manchester
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Manchester
Electoral Ward
Piccadilly
Westminster Constituency
Manchester Central

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

The Access Group

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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