---
title: "Lower Aire SSSI project"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-077bef"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-077bef"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-077bef.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-077bef.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "Environment Agency"
published: "2026-09-29"
---

# Lower Aire SSSI project

Buyer: Environment Agency  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-077bef

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## Summary

The Environment Agency commissioned environmental services for the Lower Aire Site of Special Scientific Interest project at the RSPB’s Fairburn Ings Reserve in Castleford. The work is to create 0.88 hectares of reed habitat and move the excavated material to higher ground in an area of the site known as Big Hole. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs’ commercial team managed the procurement on the Agency’s behalf. The requirement combines habitat creation with excavation and movement of material within the reserve, supporting environmental improvement at this specific site.

The procurement is complete and the contract was awarded directly to the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds without competition, using a below-threshold procedure. The contract was signed on 28 September 2026 and runs from 29 September 2026 to 15 March 2027. Its value is £60,000 excluding VAT (£72,000 including VAT). There was one lot, covering the entire project. The award is active and the contract is active. The published information gives no separate award date or evaluation criteria; the direct award means the work was not assessed through a competitive tender.

For suppliers considering similar future work for the Environment Agency, this award indicates demand for targeted habitat creation on a nature reserve, including establishing reed habitat and managing excavated material on site. Credible providers would need practical capability in ecological restoration and site-based earthmoving, with the ability to coordinate the excavation, relocation and habitat work as one small, defined project. Experience working in protected or conservation sites and delivering habitat outcomes would be relevant to competing for this requirement if it returns to market. The selected supplier was a large conservation organisation, showing that an established environmental body delivered the work; the project’s focused footprint and scope may also suit specialist ecological contractors able to undertake comparable work.

## Notice

Creation of 0.88 hectares of reed at the RSPB's Fairburn Ings Reserve; the excavated material will be moved to higher ground on part of the site known as Big Hole.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/091623-2026 |
| 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 | 29 Sep 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | 29 Sep 2026 - 15 Mar 2027 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £60,000 |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | Environment Agency |
| Locality | LONDON |
| Postcode area | South West London |
| Postcode | SW1P 4DF |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLI London |
| ITL 2 | TLI3 Inner London - West |
| ITL 3 | TLI35 Westminster and City of London |
| Local authority | Westminster |
| Electoral ward | St James's |
| Westminster constituency | Cities of London and Westminster |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | RSPB |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 90 - Sewage, refuse, cleaning and environmental services

### Codes

- 90700000 - Environmental services

## Release History

- 29 Sep 2026 at 07:47 - Award - UK7 - Contract Details Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/091623-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/091623-2026
  29th September 2026 - Contract details notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- https://defra-family.force.com/s/Welcome
- 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-077bef. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-077bef.json.