---
title: "Research Ethics Management System"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-051ff4"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-051ff4"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-051ff4.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-051ff4.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "ASTON UNIVERSITY"
published: "2025-09-24"
---

# Research Ethics Management System

Buyer: ASTON UNIVERSITY  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-051ff4

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## Summary

Aston University, a public authority in the United Kingdom, has undertaken the procurement process for a Research Ethics Management System aimed at enhancing the efficiency of ethics evaluations for research projects. The procurement was conducted using an open procedure under the legal framework of the UK Public Contracts Regulations 2023. The procurement process, which began in May 2025 during the planning stage, saw the issuance of a tender in June and culminated in a contract awarded in September 2025 to F1 Solutions Pty Ltd. The project's primary location is Birmingham, focusing on the software-related services category, with a contract period extending from 2026 to 2029, and potential extensions up to 2031.

This tender presents significant business opportunities, particularly for SMEs specialising in software and management systems. The awarded contract, valued at £117,755, with a possible extension for continued service, underscores the demand for innovative solutions in facilitating manual process reengineering. Companies that can offer efficient, compliant, and scalable ethical management solutions are well-suited to engage in such contracts. The requirement for ongoing hosting and maintenance further expands the potential for businesses to establish long-term relationships and demonstrate proficiency in meeting higher education sector needs.

## Notice

Aston University is seeking proposals from Suppliers who are able to provide a Research Ethics Management System suitable for use within a Higher Education Environment. The Research Integrity Office (RIO) are responsible for ethics evaluation of research projects across the following stakeholder groups: * Research active staff. * Postgraduate Researchers (PGRs). * UG/PG taught students. Ethics management consists of entirely manual processes involving email, MS Word, and MS Excel, delivered by three people. The RIO is a small team for the workload, smaller than equivalent teams at other institutions. Whilst the team has grown, so has the complexity and volume of their workload. With the workload demand of the current process, there are not enough reviewers in the Colleges. With this manual and unsustainable way of working, process reengineering is required with proactive and compliant solutions to allow staff to manage the ethics approval process, in an efficient environment where there is positive sentiment and an understanding of the consequences and the broader context of ethical approval. Proposals will also include ongoing hosting and maintenance provision. The full specification is available as part of the procurement documents available through Aston's e-tendering portal.

### Lot Information

Lot 1

Renewal: The inital contract period will be for 3 years with the option to extend for a further 2 years, based on 2 x12 month periods. Any subsequent extension to the contract will be agreed between Aston and the Supplier. It is likely that Aston will seek the Supplier to demonstrate improvements and/or price reductions before considering an extension. For any extension(s) to the contract, discussions with the Supplier shall be conducted sufficiently far in advance of the contract expiry date to arrive at an agreed position.

### Planning Information

As part of the Discovery Phase for this project, the Research Integrity Office (RIO) conducted a series of informal market engagement discussions with several prospective suppliers. These conversations were instrumental in shaping the project's scope, refining requirements, and informing the budget for the next stages of work.
This early engagement supported the development of the internal business case by:
Enhancing understanding of the supplier landscape;
Gaining insight into indicative pricing models; and
Identifying potential delivery approaches aligned with sector best practices.
In addition to supplier engagement, the RIO undertook desktop research and consulted with peer institutions in the Higher Education sector that currently use research ethics management systems. These activities provided valuable context on system capabilities, implementation challenges, and user experiences.
The primary objectives of this engagement were to:
Assess the feasibility of Aston University's requirements;
Identify potential constraints and opportunities in the market; and
Establish a realistic understanding of the investment required for a fit-for-purpose system that aligns with the University's strategic objectives.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/059303-2025 |
| Notice type | UK7 - Contract Details Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Open |
| Procurement method details | Open procedure |
| Tender suitability | SME |
| Awardee scale | SME |
| All stages | Planning, Tender, Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 24 Sep 2025 |
| Submission deadline | 17 Jun 2025 |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 30 Jul 2025 |
| Contract period | 30 Mar 2026 - 30 Mar 2029 |
| Recurrence | 2029-03-31 |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £215,000 |
| Lots value | £215,000 |
| Awards value | £142,000 |
| Contracts value | £117,755 |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | ASTON UNIVERSITY |
| Locality | BIRMINGHAM |
| Post town | Birmingham |
| Postcode | B4 7ET |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLG West Midlands (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLG3 West Midlands |
| ITL 3 | TLG31 Birmingham |
| Local authority | Birmingham |
| Electoral ward | Nechells |
| Westminster constituency | Birmingham Ladywood |
| Delivery location | TLG31 Birmingham |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | F1 SOLUTIONS |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 72 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support

### Codes

- 72260000 - Software-related services

## Release History

- 24 Sep 2025 at 13:32 - Award - UK7 - Contract Details Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/059303-2025
- 1 Aug 2025 at 13:09 - Award - UK6 - Contract Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/045258-2025
- 23 May 2025 at 11:04 - Tender - UK4 - Tender Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/026106-2025
- 23 May 2025 at 08:13 - Planning - UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/025538-2025

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/059303-2025
  24th September 2025 - Contract details notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/045258-2025
  1st August 2025 - Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/026106-2025
  23rd May 2025 - Tender notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/025538-2025
  23rd May 2025 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender
- https://procontract.due-north.com/Opportunities/Index?v=2
  Suppliers are required to submit their tender response on our e-tendering portal ProContract. Suppliers must first regiser on the ProContract portal to enable access to the tender documentation. Please use the following URL https://procontract.due-north.com/Opportunities/Index?v=2

## Notice URLs

- http://www.f1solutions.com.au
- https://www.aston.ac.uk/
- https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents

## 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-051ff4. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-051ff4.json.