---
title: "003174 - Preliminary Market Engagement (PME) for Education Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) Processing System"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-0666e3"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-0666e3"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0666e3.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0666e3.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Planning"
buyer: "DURHAM COUNTY COUNCIL"
published: "2026-03-11"
---

# 003174 - Preliminary Market Engagement (PME) for Education Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) Processing System

Buyer: DURHAM COUNTY COUNCIL  
Current stage: Planning  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-0666e3

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[Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0666e3.json)

## Summary

Durham County Council is initiating a preliminary market engagement process for an Education Fixed Penalty Notice Processing System. The procurement process, currently in the planning stage, is classified under the "industry specific software package" category and located in the United Kingdom, region UKC14. Interested parties are invited to access a written questionnaire via the Open Portal by 18 March 2026 to participate. The procurement exercise aims to deploy a comprehensive digital system to manage school attendance FPNs, with a projected contract period starting from 1 June 2026 and potentially extending until 31 May 2030.

This tender offers significant opportunities for businesses specialising in software development and system integration, particularly those capable of delivering high-volume processing systems with automation capabilities. Companies with expertise in digital workflow management and system integration would be well-suited to compete. The procurement seeks to replace manual processes and create efficiencies, presenting an attractive opportunity for service providers looking to expand their influence within the educational sector. Business growth can be catalysed by demonstrating the ability to develop systems that meet Durham County Council's requirements regarding intelligent validation and infrastructure compatibility.

## Notice

The council are inviting suppliers to participate in preliminary engagement to gain insight from the market with the purpose of making any potential future exercise, well framed, feasible, focused and of likely interest to the market. Durham County Council requires a secure, end to end digital system to manage the full lifecycle of Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) relating to school attendance. The system must support high volume processing (2,500-3,000 notices per term; peaks of >7,500 referrals annually) and reduce manual workload through automation, intelligent validation, and workflow management. The system must integrate with existing infrastructure and replace current manual processes involving Microsoft Forms, spreadsheets, Word mail merges, SharePoint/Extranet uploads, and manual cross-checks.

### Planning Information

Interested providers are invited to respond via a written questionnaire. This can be accessed free of charge by registering on the Open Portal at www.open-uk.org.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/021606-2026 |
| 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 | 11 Mar 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | 2 Apr 2026 |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | 31 May 2026 - 31 May 2028 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £90,000 |
| 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

- 48100000 - Industry specific software package

## Release History

- 11 Mar 2026 at 09:01 - Planning - UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/021606-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/021606-2026
  11th March 2026 - 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-0666e3. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0666e3.json.