---
title: "PS26231 - Capacity support for IUK Contracts team"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-06e1d0"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06e1d0"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06e1d0.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06e1d0.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "UK Research and Innovation"
published: "2026-08-11"
---

# PS26231 - Capacity support for IUK Contracts team

Buyer: UK Research and Innovation  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-06e1d0

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## Summary

UK Research and Innovation commissioned legal services to provide capacity support for its Innovate UK Contracts team and other Innovate UK areas. The requirement covers immediate assistance with legal matters that UKRI’s internal Legal team could not handle at the required pace or volume. The work supports contract-related legal activity rather than the supply of goods or construction works. UKRI is the buying organisation, with UK Shared Business Services Ltd acting as the procuring and shared-service provider. Delivery is across the United Kingdom. The procurement concerns legal services, classified under CPV 79100000. The selected supplier is Burges Salmon LLP, a large Bristol-based law firm. The requirement was arranged as a single completed lot and forms part of UKRI’s external legal support arrangements.

This procurement has been awarded and the tender is complete. Burges Salmon LLP received the award for the single lot. The award is active and was made on 29 July 2026; the contract was signed on that date. The contract runs from 11 August 2026 to 8 September 2026. Its value is £29,050.15 excluding VAT, or £34,860.18 including VAT. UKRI used a below-threshold direct award without competition, stating that competition was absent for technical reasons and that only a particular supplier could provide the required service. The contracting process was concluded without inviting competing bids. The published requirement describes a call-off contract for urgent legal assistance, with the choice based on the stated technical-reasons justification rather than a competitive price-and-quality evaluation.

This award indicates demand from UKRI for external legal capacity supporting Innovate UK contract work and related organisational activity. A credible future competitor would need a legal-services practice able to advise on public-sector and commercial contracts, absorb urgent instructions, and handle substantial volumes when the internal legal team lacks capacity. Responsiveness is central: the requirement was driven by the need for assistance at pace, so suppliers would need sufficient qualified lawyers, effective allocation of work and the ability to maintain service levels across multiple matters. Experience of supporting a public research and innovation organisation, or comparable public-sector contracting teams, would strengthen credibility. Firms should also be able to deliver legal support across the UK and operate effectively within an established call-off arrangement.

## Notice

***** THIS IS A CONTRACT DETAILS NOTICE, NOT A CALL FOR COMPETITION ***** This procurement is being concluded without competition due to an absence of competition for technical reasons, only a particular supplier can supply the goods, services or works required. Brief Description of Requirement We have a call off contract in place with Burgess Salmon as the Contracts team, and other areas of IUK, need immediate assistance with legal matters which UKRI Legal team do not have the capacity to assist with at pace or in the volume currently required.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/076422-2026 |
| Notice type | UK7 - Contract Details Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Direct |
| Procurement method details | Below threshold - without competition |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 11 Aug 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 29 Jul 2026 |
| Contract period | 11 Aug 2026 - 8 Sep 2026 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £29,050 |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | UK Research and Innovation |
| Locality | SWINDON |
| Postcode area | Swindon |
| Postcode | SN2 1FL |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLK South West (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLK7 Gloucestershire and Wiltshire |
| ITL 3 | TLK71 Swindon |
| Local authority | Swindon |
| Electoral ward | Rodbourne Cheney |
| Westminster constituency | Swindon North |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | BURGES SALMON LLP |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

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

### Codes

- 79100000 - Legal services

## Release History

- 11 Aug 2026 at 16:52 - Award - UK7 - Contract Details Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/076422-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/076422-2026
  11th August 2026 - Contract details notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- https://www.burges-salmon.com/
- 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-06e1d0. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06e1d0.json.