--- title: "Education Network for Northern Ireland - \"Education Network (NI)\"" ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-04ee94" canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-04ee94" markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04ee94.md" json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04ee94.json" source: "Find A Tender Service" current_stage: "Award" buyer: "THE EDUCATION AUTHORITY" published: "2025-03-18" --- # Education Network for Northern Ireland - "Education Network (NI)" Buyer: THE EDUCATION AUTHORITY Current stage: Award OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-04ee94 [View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-04ee94) [Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04ee94.json) ## Summary The Education Authority in Northern Ireland has completed the procurement process for the "Education Network (NI)" project under the industry category of software implementation services. This contract, initially started on 1 April 2012, has been extended multiple times and is now being modified to extend until 31 March 2027, with additional extension options spanning up to two more years. The modification, necessitated by unforeseen circumstances, includes an increase of up to £175,000,000 in value. The procurement method employed was a limited, negotiated approach without publication of a contract notice, and the modification is in accordance with Regulations 72(1)(b) and 72(1)(c). The contract covers a range of services including IT consultancy, computer hardware, software, and the provision of online services for educational establishments in Northern Ireland. This tender opens up significant opportunities for businesses in the IT services and software implementation sectors, particularly those with capabilities in managing large-scale, integrated IT systems tailored for educational institutions. Companies specialising in software development, IT consultancy, and hardware supply that can offer robust and adaptable solutions will find this procurement particularly advantageous. The ongoing and planned extensions ensure stable, long-term engagement, providing a substantial business growth avenue for the winning contractors, notably large-scale suppliers like Capita Managed IT Solutions who is already engaged in delivering these services. ## Notice The purpose of this VEAT notice is to inform and give prior notice to the market that The Education Authority intends to modify this contract in accordance with Regulation 72 (1) (b) of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 to (i) extend the contract for an additional 2 years until 31/03/2027 with a further 2 x 1 year additional extension options, and (ii) increase the value by up to PS175,000,000. Regulation 72 (1) (c) also permits this modification due to unforeseen circumstances which a diligent authority could not have foreseen. The overall nature of the contract is not altered and the modification value does not exceed 50% of the original contract value. ### Lot Information Lot 1 The continuation of the existing single contractor managed service arrangement which includes the supply of a broad range of computer and related services (including, without limitation, on-going management, operation and maintenance services), information technology consultancy services and the supply of computer hardware, software and associated products. The overall scope of the services can be summarised as follows: -- a fully integrated end to end service to meet the management/administration and learning/teaching needs of educational establishments, -- ICT infrastructure and associated services for post primary and special educational establishments, -- connectivity to, and provision of a range of online services for all educational establishments. The systems and services provided via the current contract have been uniquely configured to reflect the varying requirements of the Education Authority. Options: 2 x 1 year additional optional extensions. ### Procurement Information The contract commenced on 01/04/2012 for 5 years until 31/03/2017 and has been modified on several occasions as per the following VEATs - 2019/S 046-106361, 2022/S 000-006649 and 2024/S 000-006005. The contract is currently extended until 31/03/25. The transition to a new managed service contract was expected to have completed by 31/03/25 but due to unforeseen circumstances the new contract awarded in December 2023 was terminated in November 2024 by mutual consent. Accordingly it is necessary to extend the contract and increase the contract value to ensure the continuation of existing managed service arrangements and functionality changes to meet schools' requirements whilst permitting time to transition to a new managed service contract. The modification is permitted under Regulations 72(1)(b) and 72(1)(c). The modification is not a direct award under Regulation 32. Regulation 72(1)(b) permits a contract modification for additional works, services or supplies by the original contractor that have become necessary and were not included in the initial procurement, where a change of contractor - (i) cannot be made for economic or technical reasons such as requirements of interchangeability or interoperability with existing equipment, services or installations procured under the initial procurement; or (ii) would cause significant inconvenience or substantial duplication of costs for the contracting authority, provided that any increase in price does not exceed 50% of the value of the original contract. This modification is permitted under Regulation 72(1)(b) because the systems and services provided under the contract have been uniquely configured to reflect the EA's varying requirements. For technical reasons, it is not possible to quickly or easily transition the services provided under the contract to a new managed service contract with another contractor as they would need significant time to work with the EA to tailor their systems and services to meet the EA's specific requirements. It would also cause significant inconvenience and a duplication of costs to change contractor for an interim period whilst a new procurement is undertaken. It is expected to take at least 18-24 months to procure and transition to a suitable new contract. The additional 2 x 1 year extension options to be included in the modification are for contingency purposes, to allow time for any risk of material delays, transitioning the existing services and subsequent design and implementation phases of a new contract. Regulation 72(1)(b) is also met on the grounds that as the original contract value was PS350,000,000, the increase in value due to this modification does not exceed 50% of the original contract value. Regulation 72(1)(c) also permits this modification due to unforeseen circumstances which a diligent contracting authority could not have foreseen. Particularly, it could not have been foreseen that the new contract awarded in December 2023 would be terminated, thus delaying the transition to a new managed service contract. Also, the modification will not alter the overall nature of the contract as the scope of services will remain unaltered and any expenditure will not exceed 50% of the value of the original contract. ## Key Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication source | Find A Tender Service | | Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/009957-2025 | | Notice type | Award Notice | | Procurement type | Standard | | Procurement category | Services | | Procurement method | Limited | | Procurement method details | Negotiated without publication of a contract notice | | Tender suitability | Not specified | | Awardee scale | Large | | All stages | Award | ## Dates | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication date | 18 Mar 2025 | | Submission deadline | Not specified | | Future notice date | Not specified | | Award date | 28 Mar 2012 | | Contract period | Not specified | | Recurrence | Not specified | ## Values | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender value | Not specified | | Lots value | Not specified | | Awards value | Not specified | | Contracts value | £175,000,000 | ## Status | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender status | Complete | | Lots status | Not specified | | Awards status | Active | | Contracts status | Active | ## Buyer | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Main buyer | THE EDUCATION AUTHORITY | | Locality | BELFAST | | Post town | Northern Ireland | | Postcode | BT1 2NQ | | Country | Northern Ireland | | ITL 1 | TLN Northern Ireland | | ITL 2 | TLN0 Northern Ireland | | ITL 3 | TLN06 Belfast | | Local authority | Belfast | | Electoral ward | Duncairn | | Westminster constituency | Belfast North | | Delivery location | TLN Northern Ireland | ## Supplier | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Number of suppliers | 1 | | Supplier names | CAPITA MANAGED IT SOLUTIONS | ## CPV Codes ### Divisions - 72 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support ### Codes - 72263000 - Software implementation services ## Release History - 18 Mar 2025 at 15:23 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/009957-2025 ## Notice URLs - https://etendersni.gov.uk/epps - https://ted.europa.eu/udl?uri=TED:NOTICE:085884-2012:TEXT:EN:HTML - https://www.capita-mits.co.uk/ ## 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-04ee94. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04ee94.json.