---
title: "Procurement of Criminal Defence Direct Services from 4 May 2026"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-052132"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-052132"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-052132.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-052132.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "LEGAL AID AGENCY"
published: "2026-01-06"
---

# Procurement of Criminal Defence Direct Services from 4 May 2026

Buyer: LEGAL AID AGENCY  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-052132

[View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-052132)  
[Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-052132.json)

## Summary

The Legal Aid Agency (LAA), acting on behalf of the Lord Chancellor, is the buying organisation for the procurement of the 2026 Criminal Defence Direct (CDD) Contracts, set to provide 24/7 telephone-based legal advice across England and Wales. The contracts will commence on 4 May 2026, following a dual operation phase, and will run until 31 May 2031. This procurement falls under the services category within the legal industry and is designated as light-touch. The process has reached the award stage as of 6 January 2026, with The Johnson Partnership and Watson Woodhouse Ltd being named as suppliers. The procurement method was open, allowing for an open procedure to accommodate a broad range of interested bidders.

This tender represents an opportunity for firms specialising in legal services to expand their market presence and business scope by securing a contract for providing critical legal assistance to detained individuals. Businesses that can offer flexibility in service delivery, alongside enhanced client engagement and timely advice, are positioned well to compete. The removal of specific office requirements and supervisory ratios offers further room for innovative practices, especially benefiting smaller enterprises with unique delivery models or those interested in servicing niche geographical locations, such as the UKF14 and UKC12 regions.

## Notice

The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) has launched the procurement process for the 2026 Criminal Defence Direct (CDD) Contracts. These contracts will provide 24/7 telephone-based legal advice to individuals detained at police stations across England and Wales for non-indictable offences. Two contracts will be awarded, with services commencing on 4 May 2026, following an implementation period and a 28-day dual operation phase.

### Lot Information

Criminal Defence Direct (CDD) Service Procurement Exercise - Contract 1

Criminal Defence Direct (CDD) Service Procurement Exercise - Contract 1 The Legal Aid Agency (LAA), on behalf of the Lord Chancellor, will run a procurement exercise to award contracts for two providers to deliver the CDD Service from on or around 1 March 2026. Key Details: * Service: 24/7 non means tested telephone-based legal advice for individuals detained at police stations for non-indictable offences. * Contract Award: Two providers will each manage 50% of the caseload (with possible variations). * Duration: 1 March 2026 - 31 May 2031. Procurement Process Updates: From 24 February 2025, all suppliers must use the Cabinet Office Central Digital Platform to share their organisation's information with Contracting Authorities by providing a share code during the procurement process. If suppliers are still unable to create a share code after getting assistance from the Cabinet Office, please email contact: Crime.Contracts@justice.gov.uk. Key Service Changes: The LAA, as part of this procurement, will introduce the following key changes to the CDD Service that align with the move to enhanced flexibility and reducing barriers to support providers in successfully delivering the CDD contract and ensure consistency across similar services. For the new CDD Contract the LAA are: * allowing Applicants to choose the arrangements most suitable for their delivery models and are not specifying the office requirements; * removing supervisor-to-advisor ratios; * removing the requirement for supervisors to be on-site 35 hours/week; and * introducing a new KPI to track client engagement and timeliness of advice

Criminal Defence Direct (CDD) Service Procurement Exercise - Contract 2

Criminal Defence Direct (CDD) Service Procurement Exercise - Contract 2 The Legal Aid Agency (LAA), on behalf of the Lord Chancellor, will run a procurement exercise to award contracts for two providers to deliver the CDD Service from on or around 1 March 2026. Key Details: * Service: 24/7 non means tested telephone-based legal advice for individuals detained at police stations for non-indictable offences. * Contract Award: Two providers will each manage 50% of the caseload (with possible variations). * Duration: 1 March 2026 - 31 May 2031. Procurement Process Updates: From 24 February 2025, all suppliers must use the Cabinet Office Central Digital Platform to share their organisation's information with Contracting Authorities by providing a share code during the procurement process. If suppliers are still unable to create a share code after getting assistance from the Cabinet Office, please email contact: Crime.Contracts@justice.gov.uk. Key Service Changes: The LAA, as part of this procurement, will introduce the following key changes to the CDD Service that align with the move to enhanced flexibility and reducing barriers to support providers in successfully delivering the CDD contract and ensure consistency across similar services. For the new CDD Contract the LAA are: * allowing Applicants to choose the arrangements most suitable for their delivery models and are not specifying the office requirements; * removing supervisor-to-advisor ratios; * removing the requirement for supervisors to be on-site 35 hours/week; and * introducing a new KPI to track client engagement and timeliness of advice

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/000737-2026 |
| Notice type | UK6 - Contract Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Open |
| Procurement method details | Open procedure |
| Tender suitability | SME, VCSE |
| Awardee scale | SME |
| All stages | Planning, Tender, Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 6 Jan 2026 |
| Submission deadline | 28 Aug 2025 |
| Future notice date | 16 Jul 2025 |
| Award date | 6 Jan 2026 |
| Contract period | 3 May 2026 - 31 May 2031 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £2,360,000 |
| Lots value | £2,360,000 |
| Awards value | £2,360,000 |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | LEGAL AID AGENCY |
| Locality | LONDON |
| Post town | South West London |
| Postcode | SW1H 9AJ |
| 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 | 2 |
| Supplier names | THE JOHNSON PARTNERSHIP; WATSON WOODHOUSE |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security

### Codes

- 79100000 - Legal services

## Release History

- 6 Jan 2026 at 15:00 - Award - UK6 - Contract Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/000737-2026
- 16 Jul 2025 at 10:24 - Tender - UK4 - Tender Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/040454-2025
- 23 May 2025 at 09:45 - Planning - UK3 - Planned Procurement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/025889-2025

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/000737-2026
  6th January 2026 - Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/040454-2025
  16th July 2025 - Tender notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/025889-2025
  23rd May 2025 - Planned procurement notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- https://legalaid.bravosolution.co.uk/web/login.shtml
- https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/legal-aid-agency
- 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-052132. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-052132.json.