---
title: "002465 - Preliminary Market Engagement (PME) for Workforce Management System"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-05e1ee"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-05e1ee"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-05e1ee.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-05e1ee.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Planning"
buyer: "DURHAM COUNTY COUNCIL"
published: "2025-11-14"
---

# 002465 - Preliminary Market Engagement (PME) for Workforce Management System

Buyer: DURHAM COUNTY COUNCIL  
Current stage: Planning  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-05e1ee

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## Summary

Durham County Council is conducting a Preliminary Market Engagement (PME) for a Workforce Management System (WFM), aimed at improving its Corporate Customer Services operation. This planning stage involves engaging with the market to explore available options for a modern, cloud-based WFM solution. The procurement falls under the industry category of Software Package and Information Systems and is located in the UKC14 region of Durham, United Kingdom. Interested parties should note a milestone due date of 28th November 2025, by which completed questionnaires must be submitted. Although currently in the planning stage, this initiative presents an opportunity to supply goods with a potential contract period starting 21st June 2026, with a possible extension up to 20th June 2029.

This tender represents a significant opportunity for businesses specialising in software solutions, particularly those with products centred on workforce planning, scheduling, and performance management. Companies that can offer a versatile and robust WFM that integrates with existing systems and provides support for both office-based and remote operations will be well-positioned to compete. The annual budget for this initiative is approximately £18,000, suggesting that a cost-effective yet comprehensive solution will be highly valued. This engagement offers potential for growth and establishes a collaborative relationship with a key public sector entity, contributing to long-term business development, especially for those experienced in cloud-based software deployments.

## Notice

Durham County Council is seeking to engage with the market to explore options for the provision of a Workforce Management System (WFM) capable of delivering the full range of requirements outlined below. The purpose of this engagement is to understand the market's capability to provide a modern, cloud-based solution that supports efficient workforce planning, scheduling, and performance management across the Councils Corporate Customer Services operation. The Council's Customer Services Department currently utilises a specialist hosted contact centre workforce management system which provides skill-based forecasting and scheduling across multiple communication channels for both office-based and remote agents. This system supports intraday forecasting using real-time data such as calls offered, average handling time (AHT), and agent/skill availability. It enables the monitoring of actual performance against forecast performance and provides real-time adherence tracking against schedules. An integral component of the current system is the agent interface, which includes schedule visibility and a vacation planner module. Please note, our estimated budget is approximately PS18,000 per annum

### Planning Information

This is a Preliminary Market Engagement opportunity. The written response questionnaire can be accessed free of charge at open-uk.org
Completed questionnaires must be submitted via the Open Portal by 12 noon on Friday 28th November.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/074163-2025 |
| Notice type | UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Goods |
| Procurement method | Not Specified |
| Procurement method details | Not specified |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Not specified |
| All stages | Planning |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 14 Nov 2025 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | 28 Nov 2025 |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | 20 Jun 2026 - 20 Jun 2028 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £54,000 |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Planning |
| Lots status | Planning |
| Awards status | Not specified |
| Contracts status | Not specified |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | DURHAM COUNTY COUNCIL |
| Locality | DURHAM |
| Post town | Durham |
| Postcode | DH1 5WB |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLC North East (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLC4 Northumberland, Durham and Tyne & Wear |
| ITL 3 | TLC41 Durham |
| Local authority | County Durham |
| Electoral ward | Framwellgate and Newton Hall |
| Westminster constituency | City of Durham |
| Delivery location | TLC14 Durham |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 48 - Software package and information systems

### Codes

- 48000000 - Software package and information systems

## Release History

- 14 Nov 2025 at 16:47 - Planning - UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/074163-2025

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/074163-2025
  14th November 2025 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- http://www.durham.gov.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-05e1ee. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-05e1ee.json.