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Provision of Mortuary services to HM Coroner for the County of Staffordshire

Stoke-on-Trent City Council

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Award

14 Sep 2026 at 13:37

UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Stoke-on-Trent City Council procured mortuary and post-mortem services for HM Coroner for Staffordshire. The service supports coronial investigations by securely receiving, storing, caring for and releasing deceased people, and providing facilities and suitably qualified staff for routine, complex, bariatric, prison, custody and emergency-department post-mortem examinations. It also covers authorised viewing and identification, facilities for bereaved relatives and observers, digital post-mortem examinations, and urgent out-of-hours arrangements. Work supports hospital and community deaths referred by the Senior Coroner, including requirements from Bradwell Hospital, Leek Moorlands Hospital, Longton Cottage Hospital and Haywood Hospital. Delivery may take place at Royal Stoke University Hospital Mortuary or another suitable facility in the pathology network. The service involves coordination with coronial, police, funeral and healthcare organisations and compliance with professional, regulatory, health and safety, and infection-control requirements.

The procurement is complete and was awarded through a direct below-threshold procedure without competition. One lot was awarded to University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust. The award was made on 3 August 2026 and the contract was signed on the same date. The contract runs from 3 August 2026 to 31 March 2027. Its value is £36,000 excluding VAT, or £45,000 including VAT. The award covers pathology services. Evaluation was therefore based on a direct award route rather than a competitive tender. The contract is active, while the tender status is complete. The requirement covers a single service package for Staffordshire coronial mortuary provision, including the facilities, staffing, examinations, transfers, viewing arrangements and coordination described in the service scope.

This award indicates demand for a specialist mortuary and pathology provider able to support a county-wide coronial service rather than only routine hospital pathology. A credible competitor would need secure mortuary capacity, appropriately qualified and competent post-mortem staff, and the expertise and facilities to handle routine, complex, digital, bariatric, prison, custody and emergency-department cases. Capability should include secure receipt, storage, care, transfer and release of deceased people, authorised viewing and identification, observer access, and arrangements for urgent cases outside normal hours. Relevant operational strength includes coordination with coroners' officers, police, funeral directors and healthcare providers across multiple hospitals and community settings. Providers would also need robust compliance with applicable legislation, professional standards, health and safety, infection prevention and control, information handling and service-continuity requirements.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Provision of Mortuary services to HM Coroner for the County of Staffordshire

Notice Description

Service Description The service will provide mortuary and post-mortem facilities and associated services to support coronial investigations into deaths within Staffordshire. The service will provide appropriate mortuary facilities for the secure receipt, storage, care and release of deceased persons referred under the jurisdiction of the Senior Coroner for Staffordshire. The service will provide facilities and appropriately qualified and competent staff to undertake post-mortem examinations as required by the Senior Coroner. This will include support for routine, complex and other post-mortem examinations where appropriate facilities and expertise are required. The service will provide appropriate facilities to enable authorised viewing and identification of deceased persons, including facilities for bereaved relatives where required. Suitable facilities will also be available for authorised observers attending post-mortem examinations, including Coroners' Officers, Police representatives and relevant medical or nursing students. The service will operate during normal working hours, Monday to Friday, 08:00 to 16:00, excluding public and bank holidays, with appropriate out-of-hours/on-call arrangements to support urgent coronial requirements. The service will accommodate hospital and community deaths in Staffordshire requiring a post-mortem examination following referral by the Senior Coroner. Post-mortem examinations may be undertaken at Royal Stoke University Hospital Mortuary or another appropriate mortuary facility within the relevant pathology service network, as agreed with the Senior Coroner. The service will also support digital post-mortem examinations where required by the Senior Coroner. This will include appropriate arrangements for the secure holding and transfer of deceased persons to a designated facility for digital imaging and any subsequent examination required. The service may be required to accommodate additional or non-standard post-mortem examinations, including bariatric cases, prison or deaths in custody, complex cases that cannot be undertaken at the public mortuary, and deaths occurring within emergency departments where a post-mortem examination is required. The service will support mortuary requirements arising from Bradwell Hospital, Leek Moorlands Hospital, Longton Cottage Hospital and Haywood Hospital. The service will require effective liaison and coordination with Coroners' Officers, Staffordshire Police, funeral directors, healthcare providers and other relevant organisations involved in the coronial process. This will include communication regarding workload, urgent cases, anticipated delays, transfer arrangements and the release of deceased persons. The service will be delivered in accordance with all applicable legislation, regulatory requirements, professional standards and relevant health and safety, infection prevention and control requirements.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-06f92a
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/086876-2026
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

85 - Health and social work services

CPV Codes

85111800 - Pathology services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
£36,000 Under £100K

Notice Dates

Publication Date
14 Sep 2026Yesterday
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
3 Aug 2026 - 31 Mar 2027 6-12 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
Stoke-on-Trent City Council
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
STOKE-ON-TRENT
Postcode
ST4 1HH
Postcode Area
Stoke-on-Trent
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLG West Midlands (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLG2 Shropshire and Staffordshire
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLG23 Stoke-on-Trent
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Stoke-on-Trent
Electoral Ward
Hartshill Park & Stoke
Westminster Constituency
Stoke-on-Trent Central

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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