---
title: "Invitation to Tender - Red Team-Ethical-Hacking-services"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-077754"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-077754"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-077754.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-077754.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "West Suffolk Council"
published: "2026-09-22"
---

# Invitation to Tender - Red Team-Ethical-Hacking-services

Buyer: West Suffolk Council  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-077754

[View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-077754)  
[Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-077754.json)

## Summary

West Suffolk Council procured red team and ethical hacking services to test and assess the security of its systems, classified as computer audit services. The work is a professional cybersecurity service rather than a supply or construction requirement. The council is based at West Suffolk House in Bury St Edmunds, and the procurement relates to services for the council. The requirement was organised as one lot and covered the council’s need for specialist ethical-hacking activity and associated security assessment. The selected supplier, CovertSwarm, is a large cybersecurity business headquartered in London. Businesses operating in penetration testing, red-team operations, ethical hacking, cyber assurance or computer audit services would be the closest commercial comparators for this requirement.

The procurement is complete and has been awarded to CovertSwarm. West Suffolk Council used a below-threshold limited competition. Three bids reached the final stage, including three from SMEs, and the award was made on 17 September 2026. The award value is £56,289 excluding VAT, or £67,546 including VAT. The contract period runs from 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2028, with an option for a further year of the same annual services, extending the maximum period to 31 March 2029. The quotation deadline was 7 September 2026, and clarification questions were due by 3 September 2026. The procurement used one completed lot; the published data does not state a separate quality-price weighting or other evaluation formula.

For a competitor, this award demonstrates that West Suffolk Council buys recurring specialist cyber-testing services through a below-threshold limited competition. A credible future provider would need to deliver red-team and ethical-hacking work, conduct computer audit activity and sustain annual service delivery across the contract’s operating period. The award to CovertSwarm, a large specialist cybersecurity supplier, indicates that the buyer accepted a provider with established capability and capacity in this market. Smaller firms were also represented among all three final-stage bidders, so the requirement was not limited in practice to large businesses. Relevant suppliers should be able to evidence practical penetration-testing and security-assessment expertise, organise suitably capable personnel and deliver repeatable professional services for a local authority.

## Notice

West Suffolk Council is seeking quotations for the provision of Red Team Ethical Hacking services Further details can be found in the "My Tenders" area of this website, by selecting the "View Details" button for this project. The deadline for quotation submissions is non Monday 7th September 2026. Please note late returns will NOT be permitted. The deadline for clarification questions is Thursday 3rd September which must be generated via the correspondence option on the website

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/089549-2026 |
| Notice type | UK6 - Contract Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Limited |
| Procurement method details | Below threshold - limited competition |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 22 Sep 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 17 Sep 2026 |
| Contract period | 1 Oct 2026 - 31 Mar 2028 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £56,289 |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | West Suffolk Council |
| Locality | BURY ST EDMUNDS |
| Postcode area | Ipswich |
| Postcode | IP33 3YU |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLH East (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLH6 Suffolk |
| ITL 3 | TLH64 West Suffolk |
| Local authority | West Suffolk |
| Electoral ward | Minden |
| Westminster constituency | Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | CovertSwarm Limited |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 72 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support

### Codes

- 72810000 - Computer audit services

## Release History

- 22 Sep 2026 at 11:52 - Award - UK6 - Contract Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/089549-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/089549-2026
  22nd September 2026 - Contract award notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- https://www.covertswarm.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-077754. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-077754.json.