---
title: "Provision of Support to an APHA Tier 2 National Exercise (ASPEN)"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-04e60d"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-04e60d"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04e60d.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04e60d.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "ANIMAL AND PLANT HEALTH AGENCY"
published: "2025-05-20"
---

# Provision of Support to an APHA Tier 2 National Exercise (ASPEN)

Buyer: ANIMAL AND PLANT HEALTH AGENCY  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-04e60d

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## Summary

The recent contracting process undertaken by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA), supported by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), sought a supplier for a Tier 2 National Exercise to address potential outbreaks of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD). This procurement falls under the services category, specifically targeting business, professional, and specialist organisations. The process reached the award stage with the contract being awarded to RAB Consultants Ltd., signed on 20 May 2025. The medium to large-scale exercise is planned to involve regions across the UK, including England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, and stems from an open procurement method as outlined by the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA). Noteworthy stages in the procurement included initiation, planning, and award, with the initial tender period closing on 25 March 2025.

This tender represents a significant opportunity for businesses specializing in contingency planning and operational responses for biological crises, as the involvement of multiple government bodies underscores the critical nature of the exercise. Companies, particularly SMEs with a proven track record of delivering complex, large-scale exercises, are well-suited to participate in such projects that demand thorough expertise in emergency preparedness and response frameworks. This tender not only facilitates businesses in aligning with essential public health initiatives but also enhances their portfolio by working alongside a prestigious buyer such as APHA, thereby boosting their visibility and reputation in the public sector consultancy space.

## Notice

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) is seeking to engage a supplier to support the production and delivery of a Tier 2 National Exercise and supporting agencies. Tier 2 National Exercises are a) led by a Lead Government Department with involvement from key stakeholders (including other departments), b) may take the form of Tabletop or Live Exercises or elements of both and c) include likely participation of COBR (Civil Contingencies Committee).

The primary purpose of the Tier 2 National Exercise will be to test the Government's Contingency Plans and established policy, for the control of an outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD). Its aim is not to provoke new policy developments but rather to explore current policy and the arrangements for its implementation. It will also test APHA's operational response arrangements and expose communications, resilience and capability to
scrutiny.

The supplier will have experience of managing and delivering exercises of a similar scale. They will be expected to create and deliver an Exercise Package capable of testing the preparedness and effectiveness of Defra framework response plans, Contingency Plans for Governmental administrations and APHA Operational response plans.

### Lot Information

Lot 1

APHA has a critical role in the control and eradication of endemic and exotic notifiable and reportable diseases including responding to Outbreaks of notifiable avian disease, Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) or swine fever.

APHA in conjunction with the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), Welsh Government (WG), Scottish Government (SG) & Northern Ireland (NI) and their operational partners are to work in partnership to plan, prepare and deliver a Tier 2 National Exercise. The exercise will be a medium to large scale FMD Outbreak originating in
the border regions of England and Wales spreading to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The primary purpose of the National Exercise is to test Defra's, WG's, SG's and NI governments current contingency plans and established policy, for the control of an outbreak of FMD. Its aim is not to provoke new policy developments but rather to explore current policy and the arrangements for its implementation. It will also test the APHA's operational response arrangements and expose communications, resilience and capability to
scrutiny.

A phased approach is required and summarised below. This is to ensure a level of professionalism and quality of delivery that APHA resource could not produce. It is necessary that the Contractor has experience of managing and delivering exercises of similar scale.

Phase 1 - Project Initiation & Contract Mobilisation
Phase 2 - Project Design & Exercise Planning
Phase 3 - Exercise Development & Pre-briefing
Phase 4 - Project and Exercise Delivery
Phase 5 - Project Debriefing
Phase 6 - Project Reporting & Closure

Options: The Authority may extend the Contract for a period of up to 6 months' by 
giving not less than 1 months' notice in writing to the Supplier prior to the 
Expiry Date. The terms and conditions of the Contract shall apply throughout 
any such extended period

Renewal: May be extended by a further six (6) months

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/023454-2025 |
| Notice type | Tender Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Open |
| Procurement method details | Open procedure |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | SME |
| All stages | Tender, Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 20 May 2025 |
| Submission deadline | 25 Mar 2025 |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 19 May 2025 |
| Contract period | 11 May 2025 - 11 May 2026 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £222,000 |
| Lots value | £222,000 |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £155,600 |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | ANIMAL AND PLANT HEALTH AGENCY |
| Additional buyers | DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS (DEFRA NETWORK ETENDERING PORTAL) |
| Locality | LONDON |
| Post town | South West London |
| Postcode | SW1P 4DF |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLI London |
| ITL 2 | TLI3 Inner London - West |
| ITL 3 | TLI35 Westminster and City of London |
| Local authority | Westminster |
| Electoral ward | St James's |
| Westminster constituency | Cities of London and Westminster |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | RAB CONSULTANTS |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 98 - Other community, social and personal services

### Codes

- 98110000 - Services furnished by business, professional and specialist organisations

## Release History

- 20 May 2025 at 15:36 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/023454-2025
- 21 Feb 2025 at 10:50 - Tender - Tender Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/006592-2025

## Notice URLs

- https://defra-family.force.com/s/Welcome
- https://rabconsultants.co.uk/
- https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-environment-food-rural-affairs
- https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/public-procurement-review-service-scope-and-remit

## 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-04e60d. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04e60d.json.