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Invitation to Tender - Red Team-Ethical-Hacking-services

West Suffolk Council

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Award

22 Sep 2026 at 11:52

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Summary of the contracting process

West Suffolk Council procured red team and ethical hacking services to test and assess the security of its systems, classified as computer audit services. The work is a professional cybersecurity service rather than a supply or construction requirement. The council is based at West Suffolk House in Bury St Edmunds, and the procurement relates to services for the council. The requirement was organised as one lot and covered the council’s need for specialist ethical-hacking activity and associated security assessment. The selected supplier, CovertSwarm, is a large cybersecurity business headquartered in London. Businesses operating in penetration testing, red-team operations, ethical hacking, cyber assurance or computer audit services would be the closest commercial comparators for this requirement.

The procurement is complete and has been awarded to CovertSwarm. West Suffolk Council used a below-threshold limited competition. Three bids reached the final stage, including three from SMEs, and the award was made on 17 September 2026. The award value is £56,289 excluding VAT, or £67,546 including VAT. The contract period runs from 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2028, with an option for a further year of the same annual services, extending the maximum period to 31 March 2029. The quotation deadline was 7 September 2026, and clarification questions were due by 3 September 2026. The procurement used one completed lot; the published data does not state a separate quality-price weighting or other evaluation formula.

For a competitor, this award demonstrates that West Suffolk Council buys recurring specialist cyber-testing services through a below-threshold limited competition. A credible future provider would need to deliver red-team and ethical-hacking work, conduct computer audit activity and sustain annual service delivery across the contract’s operating period. The award to CovertSwarm, a large specialist cybersecurity supplier, indicates that the buyer accepted a provider with established capability and capacity in this market. Smaller firms were also represented among all three final-stage bidders, so the requirement was not limited in practice to large businesses. Relevant suppliers should be able to evidence practical penetration-testing and security-assessment expertise, organise suitably capable personnel and deliver repeatable professional services for a local authority.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Invitation to Tender - Red Team-Ethical-Hacking-services

Notice Description

West Suffolk Council is seeking quotations for the provision of Red Team Ethical Hacking services Further details can be found in the "My Tenders" area of this website, by selecting the "View Details" button for this project. The deadline for quotation submissions is non Monday 7th September 2026. Please note late returns will NOT be permitted. The deadline for clarification questions is Thursday 3rd September which must be generated via the correspondence option on the website

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-077754
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/089549-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Limited
Procurement Method Details
Below threshold - limited competition
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Large

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

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

CPV Codes

72810000 - Computer audit services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
£56,289 Under £100K
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
22 Sep 20262 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
17 Sep 20262 weeks ago
Contract Period
1 Oct 2026 - 31 Mar 2028 1-2 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Complete
Awards Status
Active
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
West Suffolk 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
BURY ST EDMUNDS
Postcode
IP33 3YU
Postcode Area
Ipswich
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLH East (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLH6 Suffolk
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLH64 West Suffolk
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
West Suffolk
Electoral Ward
Minden
Westminster Constituency
Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

CovertSwarm 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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