---
title: "Award of Contract to manage Ash Dieback"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-04aff2"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-04aff2"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04aff2.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04aff2.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "LEEDS CITY COUNCIL - PACS"
published: "2025-02-10"
---

# Award of Contract to manage Ash Dieback

Buyer: LEEDS CITY COUNCIL - PACS  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-04aff2

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## Summary

Leeds City Council has awarded a contract to Tilhill Forestry Limited to manage Ash Dieback, focusing on tree-cutting services. This contract requires ground truthing surveys on 529 ash trees, safe removal, traffic management processes, and the replanting of five trees for every one removed. Phase 1 will focus on the 539 council-owned trees within falling distance of Leeds' A and B roads. The procurement falls under the category of services and is relevant to the tree-cutting industry. The contract was awarded without prior publication due to extreme urgency, and the project commenced on 10 February 2025, with the contract value set at £440,000.

This tender provides an excellent opportunity for businesses specialising in tree-cutting and traffic management services. Given the urgency and scale of the project, experienced companies capable of rapid deployment and efficient execution are well-suited to compete. The project not only offers substantial financial gains but also enhances the operational portfolio of the winning bidder, positioning them favourably for future public contracts. Large-scale businesses with the necessary equipment and workforce will find this tender particularly advantageous, contributing to their growth and expertise in handling emergency environmental conservation projects.

## Notice

This contract is to carry out ground truthing surveys on 529 Ash Trees, carry out safe removal of the trees with relevant traffic management processes put in place. Once trees removed and disposed off, carry out the replanting of 5 trees per one cut down. Phase 1 will focus on the removal of 539 Council owned trees that are most seriously affected by the disease (Class 4 trees) and that are within falling distance of Leeds' A and B Roads. Sampling survey undertaken in June 2024 (see paragraph 10 above) allowed the LCC team to estimate that 90% of the ash trees wehad a diameter at breast height (dbh - measured at 1.3 m above ground) of less than 45 cms and the remaining 10% had a dbh of greater than 45 cms. This allowed the team to estimate removal costs based on Tilhill's schedule of rates.

### Lot Information

Lot 1

A potential total of 539 trees will be removed under this phase of works, with replanting of 5 trees for every one removed. This will also include the ground truthing of a further 14,000 plus trees across the A and B Road network.

### Procurement Information

The Council believes that the decision to award new contracts for the Phase 1 'Pilot Project' of the City's Ash Dieback Programme is permitted pursuant Regulation 32(2)(c) of the PCR which states: "32(1) In the specific cases and circumstances laid down in this regulation, contracting authorities may award public contracts by a negotiated procedure without prior publication. (2) The negotiated procedure without prior publication may be used for public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts in any of the following cases: (c) in so far as is strictly necessary where, for reasons of extreme urgency brought about by events unforeseeable by the contracting authority, the time limits for the open or restricted procedures or competitive procedures with negotiation cannot be complied with." The late start to beginning the procurement process was dependent on having the funds in place and the evidence to support release of funds needed to be accurate. The time taken to provide this evidence was unforeseeable and the requirement to mitigate the risks to people and property within a short time frame is extremely urgent. The increase in the number and severity of autumn/winter 'Named Storms' adds to this urgency. It is further important to note that the extreme urgency brought on to make this direct award to Tilhill pursuant to Regulation 32(2)(c) PCR 2015 is also compounded by the increasing public health and safety issue due to the proximity of the trees requiring felling and management to the roadways. If this direct award is not made there is a danger that the trees will fall onto the roadways. Notwithstanding the above, there is the potential risk of challenge because the Council has used Regulation 32(2)(c) PCR 2015. This risk can be mitigated by the publication of a voluntary transparency notice on Find a Tender Service immediately after the decision to award the contract has been taken and then waiting 10 days to see if any challenges are made. If no challenges are made, the chances of a claim for ineffectiveness being brought are significantly reduced and would only be successful if the Council had used the negotiated procedure without publication of a notice incorrectly. Furthermore, publishing such a notice will also start time running for any other potential claim for breach of the PCR, which must be brought within 30 days of the date that an aggrieved party knew or ought to have known that a breach had occurred.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/004285-2025 |
| Notice type | 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 |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 10 Feb 2025 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 21 Oct 2024 |
| Contract period | Not specified |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £440,000 |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Cancelled |
| Awards status | Active |
| Contracts status | Active |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | LEEDS CITY COUNCIL - PACS |
| Locality | LEEDS |
| Post town | Leeds |
| Postcode | LS1 1UR |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLE Yorkshire and The Humber |
| ITL 2 | TLE4 West Yorkshire |
| ITL 3 | TLE42 Leeds |
| Local authority | Leeds |
| Electoral ward | Little London & Woodhouse |
| Westminster constituency | Leeds Central and Headingley |
| Delivery location | TLE42 Leeds |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | TILHILL FORESTRY |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 77 - Agricultural, forestry, horticultural, aquacultural and apicultural services

### Codes

- 77211300 - Tree-clearing services
- 77211400 - Tree-cutting services

## Release History

- 10 Feb 2025 at 09:26 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/004285-2025
- 22 Oct 2024 at 08:57 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/034071-2024

## Notice URLs

- https://www.leeds.gov.uk/
- https://yortender.eu-supply.com/login

## 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-h6vhtk-04aff2. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04aff2.json.