---
title: "ES RDE 074 - Evidence of equine large strongyles in the UK: pilot prevalence an"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-0782f2"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-0782f2"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0782f2.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0782f2.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "The Veterinary Medicines Directorate"
published: "2026-10-07"
---

# ES RDE 074 - Evidence of equine large strongyles in the UK: pilot prevalence an

Buyer: The Veterinary Medicines Directorate  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-0782f2

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## Summary

The Veterinary Medicines Directorate commissioned research and development services to investigate the prevalence of equine large strongyles in the UK. The work addresses a lack of UK-specific evidence about how commonly these parasites occur, and uncertainty in interpreting diagnostic results. Its purpose is to help the equine sector assess the parasite’s significance and inform evidence-based parasite-control guidance, including the use and optimisation of diagnostic testing. The procurement covers a pilot prevalence study; the published description does not give further detail on the study’s methods or deliverables. The buyer is the Veterinary Medicines Directorate, a central government body responsible for veterinary medicines. The research is UK-focused, but no specific delivery site is identified.

The procurement is complete and the contract has been awarded to the University of Bristol. It was a below-threshold award through a framework, using a selective route and a self-service direct award; the process was non-competitive. The award was made on 4 September 2026, and the contract runs from 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027. Its value is £114,999 excluding VAT (£137,998.80 including VAT). There was one lot, covering the research requirement. No evaluation criteria or eligibility requirements are recorded in the contracting information. The contract is active.

This award shows demand from the Veterinary Medicines Directorate for specialist equine parasite research that can address evidence gaps relevant to veterinary practice and parasite-control guidance. A credible competitor when this requirement next reaches the market would need the research expertise and capacity to investigate prevalence in the UK equine population, alongside the ability to handle diagnostic interpretation and produce findings useful to evidence-based guidance. Experience in equine health, parasitology, epidemiological or prevalence studies, and diagnostic testing would be relevant to the work described. The selected supplier was a large university, indicating that research capability at institutional scale was able to fulfil the requirement. The procurement was placed through a framework as a non-competitive direct award, so suppliers seeking similar work should consider whether they can qualify for relevant purchasing frameworks.

## Notice

VMD Self-Service Direct Award. The VMD seeks to address a critical evidence gap relating to the potential re-emergence of equine large strongyles in the UK equine population. The lack of UK-specific data on equine large strongyle occurrence, alongside uncertainty in diagnostic interpretation, limits the sector's ability to assess the current significance of this parasite and determine how it should be considered within evidence-based parasite control guidance, including the role and optimisation of diagnostic testing.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/094843-2026 |
| Notice type | UK7 - Contract Details Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Selective |
| Procurement method details | Below threshold - award under framework |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 7 Oct 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | 1 Oct 2026 - 31 Mar 2027 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £114,999 |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | The Veterinary Medicines Directorate |
| Locality | ADDLESTONE |
| Postcode area | Kingston upon Thames |
| Postcode | KT15 3LS |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLJ South East (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLJ2 Surrey, East and West Sussex |
| ITL 3 | TLJ25 West Surrey |
| Local authority | Runnymede |
| Electoral ward | New Haw |
| Westminster constituency | Runnymede and Weybridge |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | University of Bristol |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 73 - Research and development services and related consultancy services

### Codes

- 73000000 - Research and development services and related consultancy services

## Release History

- 7 Oct 2026 at 15:03 - Award - UK7 - Contract Details Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/094843-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/094843-2026
  7th October 2026 - Contract details notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- https://defra-family.force.com/s/Welcome
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/api/1.0/ocdsReleasePackages/ocds-h6vhtk-04ef64
- 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-0782f2. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0782f2.json.