---
title: "Defra Group General Courier Service"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-077c77"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-077c77"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-077c77.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-077c77.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD & RURAL AFFAIRS"
published: "2026-09-30"
---

# Defra Group General Courier Service

Buyer: DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD & RURAL AFFAIRS  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-077c77

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## Summary

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) bought a general courier service for its group of UK public bodies. The service covers domestic and international deliveries, with collections from offices, depots, operational sites and staff members’ homes. It supports Core Defra, the Environment Agency, Natural England, the Animal and Plant Health Agency, the Rural Payments Agency, the Marine Management Organisation, the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science, the Forestry Commission and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Occasional specialist courier services may also be needed. The work is courier and parcel delivery services across the United Kingdom, serving multiple departments and operational sites rather than a single location.

The procurement is complete and the contract has been awarded to CitySprint (UK) Limited. Defra used a competitive call-off under a framework, with a selective procedure, and awarded one lot. The award was made on 28 September 2026. The contract was signed on 30 September 2026 and runs from 1 October 2026 to 30 September 2028, with options to extend by two years and then a further year, up to 30 September 2030. The contract value is £1.7 million excluding VAT and £2.04 million including VAT. The published evaluation criteria and eligibility requirements are not described in the procurement data.

For courier operators, this award shows Defra’s demand for a service able to handle domestic and international consignments across a dispersed group of public bodies, including collections from remote staff addresses and operational sites. Credible competitors need the capacity and coverage to provide both same-day and overnight services, alongside occasional specialist deliveries. Performance expectations include prompt booking confirmation and query handling, reliable collection and delivery times, rapid escalation and resolution of complaints, and accurate monthly management information, reports and invoices. CitySprint’s contract includes monthly monitoring against service targets, including 98% performance for customer service, collection and delivery times, complaint management and invoicing, and 99% for reporting. Suppliers able to demonstrate dependable service at multi-department UK scale, with disciplined account management and reporting, are best placed to compete when this requirement next returns to market.

## Notice

The Defra Group requires a reliable and flexible courier service to support operations across the UK. The service will cover multiple agencies, including Core Defra, Environment Agency (EA), Natural England (NE), Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA), Rural Payments Agency (RPA), Marine Management Organisation (MMO) and Centre for Environment Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS), Forestry Commission (FC) and Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (RBG Kew). Requirements span domestic and international deliveries, with collections from offices, depots, operational sites, and residential addresses for staff working remotely. Occasional specialist services may also be required.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/092385-2026 |
| Notice type | UK7 - Contract Details Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Selective |
| Procurement method details | Award under framework |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 30 Sep 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 28 Sep 2026 |
| Contract period | 1 Oct 2026 - 30 Sep 2028 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £1,700,000 |
| Contracts value | £1,700,000 |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD & RURAL AFFAIRS |
| 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 | CitySprint (UK) Ltd |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 64 - Postal and telecommunications services

### Codes

- 64100000 - Post and courier services
- 64120000 - Courier services
- 64121000 - Multi-modal courier services

## Release History

- 30 Sep 2026 at 14:04 - Award - UK7 - Contract Details Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/092385-2026
- 29 Sep 2026 at 13:33 - Award - UK6 - Contract Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/091879-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/092385-2026
  30th September 2026 - Contract details notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/091879-2026
  29th September 2026 - Contract award notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- http://www.citysprint.co.uk
- https://defra-family.force.com/s/Welcome
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/api/1.0/ocdsReleasePackages/ocds-h6vhtk-0503cc
- 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-077c77. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-077c77.json.