---
title: "Small Venues Fund - Fund Administrator"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-06f3da"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06f3da"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f3da.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f3da.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Tender"
buyer: "North East Combined Authority"
published: "2026-09-07"
---

# Small Venues Fund - Fund Administrator

Buyer: North East Combined Authority  
Current stage: Tender  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-06f3da

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## Summary

North East Combined Authority is procuring a fully managed fund administration service for the North East Mayoral Strategic Authority’s Small Venues Fund. The service will support creative grassroots venues across North East England, helping them host events and provide space and platforms for artists and other creatives. The appointed administrator will manage the programme from initial enquiries through to project closure, including mobilisation, applicant support, expressions of interest, full applications, appraisal, due diligence, independent assessment panels, grant contracting, subsidy control compliance, monitoring, financial administration, payments, reporting, management information and evaluation support. This is a public-sector grant administration service within the creative and cultural sector, with related financial administration and loan brokerage classifications. Delivery covers North East England.

The procurement has reached tender: the buyer invited offers through an open procedure, with submissions uploaded to the OPEN portal. Enquiries close at 23:59:59 on 28 September 2026 and tenders must be submitted by 17:00 on 5 October 2026. The anticipated award date and contract start date are 14 November 2026. The contract runs to 31 August 2029, with an option for the authority to extend it by up to 12 months, to 31 August 2030. The administrator contract is valued at up to £250,000 excluding VAT, or £300,000 including VAT. The wider project is valued at £2.45 million, including £2.2 million for grant awards. Quality carries 80% of the evaluation and price 20%.

This opportunity suits organisations experienced in administering public-sector grants and knowledgeable about the creative and cultural sector. Strong candidates will be able to provide an end-to-end managed service covering programme mobilisation, applicant and enquiry handling, expressions of interest, full applications, appraisal, due diligence and independent panel support. They will also need capability in grant contracting, subsidy control compliance, grant monitoring, financial management, payment administration, reporting, management information and programme evaluation. The work is suited to a supplier with established processes, suitably skilled staff and the capacity to manage a phased programme from initial enquiry through to closure. Experience supporting grassroots creative venues, artists or cultural organisations would be directly relevant, alongside the ability to work across North East England and manage public funding compliantly.

## Notice

Following the North East Mayoral Strategic Authority (North East MSA) Cabinet meeting in March 2026, North East Mayor Kim McGuiness announced a package of PS104million to turbocharge the region's creative industries driving new jobs and opportunities for local people. As part of that package, a commitment was made to back small venues across North East England. Working alongside the sector, the North East MSA's Small Venues Fund (SVF) has been developed to support creative grassroots venues, providing them with the resources and capacity to host events and provide space and a platform for creatives to thrive. It has been shaped to ensure that this fund is fit for purpose and supports an array of artists from across the creative industries. The fund will support an increase in opportunities for both artists and venue operators supporting the exposure of such facilities both within the region and further afield. The fund will open more opportunities to touring artists, providing an increase in the visitor economy and a wider economic impact. The North East MSA is looking to appoint an external Fund Administrator with experience of public sector grant administration and knowledge of the creative and cultural sector to manage the programme from initial enquiry through to project closure. The fund will be delivered on a phased basis. The successful bidder will provide a fully managed grant administration service for the Small Venues Fund. Services will include: o Programme mobilisation. o Applicant support and enquiry management. o Expression of Interest management. o Full application management. o Application appraisal and due diligence. o Independent assessment panel administration. o Grant contracting and subsidy control compliance. o Grant monitoring and compliance activity. o Financial management and payment administration. o Reporting and management information. o Support for programme evaluation. The overall project value is PS2.45m million, of which PS2.2 million is set aside for grant awards. The value of the contract for the Fund Administrator is up to PS250,000 excluding VAT, for the duration of the contract.

### Lot Information

Lot 1

Renewal: The term of the contract will be from the date of contract award until completion of Phase 2 delivery and programme closure activities, anticipated to be August 2029. The contract will include an option to extend to be exercised by the North East MSA in line with reporting requirements for a period of up to 12 months.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/084573-2026 |
| Notice type | UK4 - Tender Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Open |
| Procurement method details | Open procedure |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Not specified |
| All stages | Tender |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 7 Sep 2026 |
| Submission deadline | 5 Oct 2026 |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | 14 Nov 2026 - 31 Aug 2029 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £250,000 |
| Lots value | £250,000 |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | North East Combined Authority |
| Locality | NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE |
| Postcode area | Newcastle upon Tyne |
| Postcode | NE4 5BZ |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLC North East (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLC4 Northumberland, Durham and Tyne & Wear |
| ITL 3 | TLC43 Tyneside |
| Local authority | Newcastle upon Tyne |
| Electoral ward | Arthur's Hill |
| Westminster constituency | Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West |
| Delivery location | TLC14 Durham, TLC2 Northumberland, and Tyne and Wear |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 66 - Financial and insurance services

### Codes

- 66150000 - Financial markets administration services
- 66190000 - Loan brokerage services

## Release History

- 7 Sep 2026 at 16:19 - Tender - UK4 - Tender Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/084573-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/084573-2026
  7th September 2026 - Tender notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.open-uk.org/
  The reference for this opportunity is OPEN20261919

## Notice URLs

- 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-06f3da. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f3da.json.