---
title: "Test Operations Services (TOpS)"
ocid: "ocds-b5fd17-eace29ea-adc8-11e6-9901-0019b9f3037b"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-eace29ea-adc8-11e6-9901-0019b9f3037b"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-eace29ea-adc8-11e6-9901-0019b9f3037b.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-eace29ea-adc8-11e6-9901-0019b9f3037b.json"
source: "Contracts Finder"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "DEPARTMENT FOR EDUCATION"
published: "2019-01-16"
---

# Test Operations Services (TOpS)

Buyer: DEPARTMENT FOR EDUCATION  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-b5fd17-eace29ea-adc8-11e6-9901-0019b9f3037b

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## Summary

The procurement process pertains to the provision of Test Operations Services (TOpS) by the Department for Education, an executive agency responsible for developing and administering National Curriculum Assessments in England. The contract was initiated via an open tender, published on 21st October 2015, with a total contract value of £225 million, and a minimum value of £95 million. The contract period commenced on 1st September 2017 and is set to conclude on 16th January 2024. The geographical reach includes delivery across the United Kingdom and several other territories. The tender period officially concluded on 23rd August 2016.

This tender represents significant opportunities for businesses aiming to expand in the education and training services sector. Businesses well-suited for this contract include those specialising in logistics, educational materials production, and onscreen marking services. The successful supplier will need to ensure efficient delivery and support systems for the National Curriculum Assessments, creating chances for SMEs and voluntary, community, and social enterprises (VCSEs) to engage in a lucrative public procurement project.

## Notice

The STA was set-up as an executive agency of the Department for Education (DfE) in October 2011. The purpose of the STA is to develop and administer National Curriculum Assessments (NCAs) and assessments in England as part of the government's agenda to raise educational standards through structural change, school improvement strategies, and a rigorous accountability framework where tests in the core subjects, currently at the end of Year 6 form an important measure of children's long-term education and life chances. The outcomes of the NCAs are published annually at an individual school level in the School Performance Tables by government and are an important factor in parental choice of schools. The current NCAs are Key Stage 1 ("KS1") and Key Stage 2 ("KS2") tests in the core subjects of English and Mathematics, and the KS1 Phonics Screening Check ("PSC"). The tests are sat by the full cohort of pupils, currently 580,593 in 15,500 state schools in England. The successful economic operator will be required to undertake activities required for the successful delivery of all NCAs. This will include: printing; the logistics associated with securely delivering test papers and other materials to participating schools; collecting and distributing tests scripts to markers; the successful completion of onscreen marking of the NCAs within a defined time frame; and to deliver all support required by participating schools for their successful administration of the NCAs. See 'Attachments' (links) for the full version of the original advert and also the recent corrigendum which includes all the changes to the procurement process published in Tenders Electronic Daily. Additional information: See Attachments for the Tenders Electronic Daily corrigendum for a summary of all the changes. See Links for the Tenders Electronic Daily original advert.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Contracts Finder |
| Latest notice | https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/98bf7547-a8d0-4c92-972c-2f5a861ab3da |
| Notice type | Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Open |
| Procurement method details | Open procedure (above threshold) |
| Tender suitability | SME, VCSE |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Tender, Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 16 Jan 2019 |
| Submission deadline | 23 Aug 2016 |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 1 Jul 2018 |
| Contract period | 10 Jul 2018 - 31 Jan 2025 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £225,000,000 |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £108,895,024 |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Not specified |
| Awards status | Active |
| Contracts status | Not specified |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | DEPARTMENT FOR EDUCATION |
| Locality | COVENTRY |
| Post town | Coventry |
| Postcode | CV1 3BH |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLG West Midlands (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLG3 West Midlands |
| ITL 3 | TLG33 Coventry |
| Local authority | Coventry |
| Electoral ward | Sherbourne |
| Westminster constituency | Coventry North West |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | CAPITA BUSINESS SERVICES |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 80 - Education and training services

### Codes

- 80000000 - Education and training services

## Release History

- 16 Jan 2019 at 12:10 - AwardUpdate - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/98bf7547-a8d0-4c92-972c-2f5a861ab3da
- 15 Jan 2019 at 09:23 - AwardUpdate - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/98bf7547-a8d0-4c92-972c-2f5a861ab3da
- 10 Jan 2019 at 18:53 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/98bf7547-a8d0-4c92-972c-2f5a861ab3da
- 18 Nov 2016 at 20:16 - Tender - Tender Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/44ecc117-cf9e-4c10-9364-a600920ea258
- 18 Nov 2016 at 20:15 - Tender - Tender Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/bedde309-c42d-42bb-a5fa-2ff7430ecf81

## Documents

- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/98bf7547-a8d0-4c92-972c-2f5a861ab3da
  16th January 2019 - Awarded contract notice on Contracts Finder
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/bedde309-c42d-42bb-a5fa-2ff7430ecf81
  18th November 2016 - Opportunity notice on Contracts Finder
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/44ecc117-cf9e-4c10-9364-a600920ea258
  21st October 2015 - Opportunity notice on Contracts Finder
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/288b8d52-4a70-457d-81a4-5eadd382f960
  Tenders Electronic Daily corrigendum
- http://ted.europa.eu/udl?uri=TED:NOTICE:370727-2015:TEXT:EN:HTML&ticket=ST-765360-CSK8lqVMlCHqX0lmFU3CreSbDwXlwHGiBQmsCoCAq8HAXFbrzYx7lzyMMFbI0x6htCQahvGmavzl3ZDH09tzgha-Jj71zxYb8yrp2PIAtcX2ii-Pe9FBwKhmjFsHearHfmlOIUPdGMTAWUBT56B2nAnvEq
  Tenders electronic daily
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/962887d9-1ebd-42c9-bf1f-6604c983df78
  Full version of the advert
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/e6abd8f8-ea49-4bd6-949d-a163b5a6462c
  Tenders Electronic Daily corrigendum
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/77d1946f-2722-4beb-bf80-130d506a1591
  Contract Introduction part 1
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/55d1ce16-38ac-447b-a98a-5ff5bb35b3ec
  Contract Introduction part 2
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/4c667364-74ca-48f0-9a2b-766d277aa2f3
  Schedules 1-3 part 1
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/b541cbd8-181e-49df-9488-174a924df57d
  Schedules 1-3 part 2
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/f2da93ef-accd-44ed-abeb-bc030617c5a7
  Schedules 4-6 part 1
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/3d3a4bb3-8545-45d0-8bf9-104e581dd7b0
  Schedules 4-6 part 2
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/0127ca11-1ac4-4bbb-a35b-261afcbb240e
  Schedules 7-10
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/026d1ac3-7358-486a-80b5-1a1f1dfc6723
  Schedule 11 part 1
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/62df4731-7257-41f5-9e67-bb7331cf6faf
  Schedule 11 part 2
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/9424cd1b-ddf3-4cf8-a260-f7e9b0e0002d
  Schedule 11 part 3
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/74ac406d-a072-467f-92dd-0a923dec68b9
  Schedules 12-18
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/6d401b60-3154-4e4f-adbd-bc47e0f8f35d
  Schedule 19 ks1 frameworks
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/77595395-5e22-4c2c-a8f5-47b6f2a7682d
  Schedule 19 ks 2 frameworks
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/52e96be1-9cf6-42c0-a067-debb3f941c27
  Schedule 19 Science
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/bcb45f8e-b56c-4c1e-b05b-258d23797d0b
  Schedule 19 Primary consultation
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/SupplierAttachment/23ff1c4a-706e-44f8-a51f-2868cd7f64d3
  Services Agreement for the Delivery of Test Operations Services (TOpS) extension letter
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/3469bb25-5e47-46a3-b688-195262cf4746
  Tenders Electronic Daily corrigendum
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/e16d8e6e-a6c8-4d35-9d88-04e13a612cc7
  Tenders Electronic Daily corrigendum
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/3cfba437-ead3-48d2-8877-a00cc30b9a66
  Contract introduction part 1
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/c3ba4d35-bb93-4281-8fab-1c72ac706983
  Contract introduction part 2
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/03801c2a-b8a1-445f-980f-92f6cccb06ca
  Schedules 1-3 part 1
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/bf9c63cd-f2e4-48e5-b57e-78fa00c545f0
  Schedules 1-3 part 2
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/48a2f57b-8728-4e37-bd78-0a3c748c682b
  Schedules 4-6 part 1
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/9d8d5def-1e61-4f49-a4a4-fdf6e364b030
  Schedules 4-6 part 2
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/d16d13bd-5266-47b4-84c5-8ea8f7de9d56
  Schedules 7-10
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/42277b28-f3b7-40fb-a332-efc7d91d2218
  Schedule 11 part 1
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/f3542fc9-c5d6-4201-80a3-9a051b9ce58b
  Schedule 11 part 2
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/f56ff5f2-aafc-4e34-9294-9d22fa0b3a66
  Schedule 11 part 3
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/2d0e001d-b634-4ff2-b4cb-251f2ba5698d
  Schedules 12-18
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/4e980e85-dd2e-4d28-8470-6f1a867c0ed5
  Schedule 19 KS1 frameworks
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/9a465b4e-b2a9-47d0-9634-f9b3994f54e7
  Schedule 19 KS2 frameworks
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/b140e12c-67aa-434f-a748-e45f0d676caa
  Schedule 19 primary consultation
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/fe2e2597-0bd5-48c1-921f-2f3929b09ad2
  Schedule 19 science
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/e6771dd2-85d7-434c-a1fd-22d3d92b4984
  Extension letter

## Provenance

This Markdown file is an alternate public rendering of the D3 Tenders contract record. The canonical page is https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-eace29ea-adc8-11e6-9901-0019b9f3037b. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-eace29ea-adc8-11e6-9901-0019b9f3037b.json.