Award

Ayrshire College Finance System

AYRSHIRE COLLEGE

This public procurement record has 2 releases in its history.

Summary of the contracting process

Ayrshire College, located in Kilmarnock, has awarded a contract for its finance system, concluding the tender process. The procurement is categorised under the education industry and has been conducted using a limited procurement method, specifically an award procedure without prior publication of a call for competition. The awarded contract, valued at £410,000, is for a duration of four years and was officially signed on 13th August 2025. This procurement stage, now complete, was conducted under a voluntary ex ante transparency notice, considering the current financial constraints and technical requirements of the institution.

This tender presents significant business growth opportunities, particularly for large-scale businesses specialising in financial software systems. Symmetry Ltd, a large business from Bristol, was awarded the contract, highlighting a demand for firms with proven capability in delivering technically robust and economically advantageous finance systems. Companies with expertise in similar projects and those that can offer competitive value for money would be well-suited for such contracts, especially in educational institutions managing financial system upgrades or replacements.

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Notice Title

Ayrshire College Finance System

Notice Description

This is a voluntary ex ante transparency notice (VEAT). Ayrshire College intends to award a contract for it's finance system for 4 years.

Lot Information

Lot 1

This is a voluntary ex ante transparency notice (VEAT). Ayrshire College intends to award a contract for it's financial software system for 4 years.

Procurement Information

The College requires to replace its current finance system. The College established a Finance System Implementation Group with the remit to review the various procurement options open to it, noting that there is a balance to be struck between value for money (overall cost of new system) and the technical capacity of the replacement system. Whilst the various procurement options open to the College do provide a route to market, the Group considered that the indicative costs of the proposed suppliers were cost prohibitive given the current financial challenges facing the organisation. The Group also undertook a market testing exercise considering other potential suppliers and their ability to deliver on similar projects. The Group has concluded that when taking into account both value for money, technical specification and ability to deliver on similar projects that Symmetry Ltd will provide the most economically advantageous outcome for the College. The College therefore proposes to award the contract for the supply of the new finance system to Symmetry.

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-r6ebe6-0000803587
Publication Source
Public Contracts Scotland
Latest Notice
https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=SEP538289
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
OJEU - F25 - Concession Award Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Limited
Procurement Method Details
Award procedure without prior publication of a call for 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

72261000 - Software support services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£410,000 £100K-£500K
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
£714,000 £500K-£1M

Notice Dates

Publication Date
2 Sep 20255 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
3 Jun 20258 months ago
Contract Period
Not specified - Not specified
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
AYRSHIRE COLLEGE
Contact Name
Alan Ritchie
Contact Email
alan.ritchie@ayrshire.ac.uk
Contact Phone
+44 1563523501

Buyer Location

Locality
KILMARNOCK
Postcode
KA1 3HY
Post Town
Kilmarnock
Country
Scotland

Major Region (ITL 1)
TLM Scotland
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLM9 Southern Scotland
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLM93 North Ayrshire and East Ayrshire
Delivery Location
TLM93 North Ayrshire and East Ayrshire

Local Authority
East Ayrshire
Electoral Ward
Kilmarnock West and Crosshouse
Westminster Constituency
Kilmarnock and Loudoun

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

SYMMETRY

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

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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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