Scope
Reference
DN787666 / I-4133
Description
Thames Valley Fire Control Service (TVFCS) is initiating a Competitive Flexible Procedure procurement for the replacement of its Command & Control (C&C) system. TVFCS is a tri-service collaboration between Oxfordshire Fire & Rescue Service, Buckinghamshire Fire & Rescue Service, and Royal Berkshire Fire & Rescue Service. Oxfordshire County Council are undertaking this procurement on behalf of the other Fires Services. Since becoming operational in 2015, TVFCS has provided a critical shared emergency control room service, handling 999 calls and mobilising resources across the Thames Valley region, serving a population of approximately 2.5 million residents. The current C&C system (NEC Vision Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) and DS3000 Integrated Communication Control System (ICCS)) is approaching end-of-life, with key infrastructure components due to become unsupported by 2029. The replacement project seeks to ensure continuity of statutory emergency response services, enhance operational resilience, and support future innovation through a modern, modular solution.
Contract start date is targeted to be 19th October 2026 followed by a period of transition with a Service Commencement Date of no-later than 1/4/28
Pricing submitted must be for a 10year period commencing from a targeted contract start date of 19/10/26 and include the initial period of 7years + 3 optional extensions.
All Stage 2 questions shall be evaluated using a Price per Quality Point PQP methodology which is further described in the ITT.
For avoidance of doubt, Submitted Price means the total whole‑life price for the full Contract Term, including any optional extensions, implementation, licences/subscriptions, support, hosting and dual running as specified in the pricing template. PQP shall be calculated to two decimal places using standard rounding. In the event of a tie, ranking will be determined by: (1) higher Total Quality Score; then (2) higher Core Quality score; then (3) lower Submitted Price.
The Price per Quality Point (PQP) is calculated as:
Submitted Price ÷ Total Quality Score (TQS) = PQP
Total value (estimated)
- £11,000,000 excluding VAT
- £13,200,000 including VAT
Above the relevant threshold
Contract dates (estimated)
- 19 October 2026 to 18 October 2033
- Possible extension to 18 October 2036
- 10 years
Description of possible extension:
The new TVFCS Command & Control contract will include optional extension periods to ensure long term service continuity and alignment with the operational requirements of the three Fire & Rescue Services. The initial contract term 7 years will be followed by 1+1+1 years extension options, enabling TVFCS to retain the supplier's solution beyond the core term where performance, value for money, and operational stability justify continuation. These extensions provide flexibility while ensuring the Authority retains full commercial control throughout the contract lifecycle.
Main procurement category
Services
CPV classifications
- 72000000 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support
Contract locations
- UKJ1 - Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire
Participation
Legal and financial capacity conditions of participation
Tenderers must at Stage 1 - participation complete Appendix 4 - Procurement Specific questionnaire and provide responses to the questions, including those that will provide details of Legal Capacity
Appendix 7 - Financial Capacity contains details of the Financial Capacity tests that TVFCS will undertake at Stage 1 - participation,
Technical ability conditions of participation
Tenderers must demonstrate proven technical competence in delivering mission critical Command & Control (C&C) solutions for emergency services. TVFCS requires evidence that Tenderers have successfully deployed critical control systems using IT products and services suitable for blue light operations.
Stage 1 includes (a) conditions of participation checks (PSQ Parts 1-3) and (b) a separate minimum technical compliance gate (PSQ Section 4 / Appendix 1), assessed pass/fail.
Tenderers must demonstrate capability to deliver an output based, operationally critical solution that aligns with TVFCS's requirements gathering process. The solution must be technically robust, resilient, and capable of supporting operational scenarios that will be assessed in later evaluation stages
Tenderers must also demonstrate their ability to support blue light technical standards, including resilience, security, interoperability, and performance requirements essential to emergency control room environments. These capabilities must be evidenced through their technical submission and responses to the ITT.
Finally, Tenderers must comply with all technical submission instructions. Any alteration to technical documents or failure to follow ITT requirements may render a submission non compliant.
Submission
Enquiry deadline
25 March 2026, 10:00pm
Submission type
Requests to participate
Deadline for requests to participate
25 March 2026, 10:00pm
Submission address and any special instructions
The initiating authority uses an e-tendering portal called Proactis which is hosted on the South east business portal. The ITT documentation will be published on this platformSee https://sebp.due-north.com/ and associated reference DN787666The ITT which can be downloaded from the above url provides instructions regarding the documentation that is to be returned with the Tenderers submission at Stage 1 of this Competitive Flexible Procedure (CFP).Tenderers must complete Appendix 4- Procurement Specific Question; at Stage 1 of this tender. , Non-adherence with all ITT instructions and conditions. may deem a tender non compliant if instructions are not followed or documents are altered.. Tenderers may also complete Question 1 of Appendix 5 - Response Pack to offer updated an/or financial capacity data should they wish to do so.Appendix 2 - Information Management and Appendix - Conflict of interest should also be returned at Stage 1.The ITT document set will be updated and further instructions given to those Tenderers successful at Stage 1. Such instructions and updates will be issued via TVFCS e-tendering portalPrevious notices UK1 and UK2 related to this procurement can be found on the Central Digital Platform at https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/procurement/ocds-h6vhtk-058ae5
Tenders may be submitted electronically
Yes
Languages that may be used for submission
English
Award decision date (estimated)
14 September 2026
Award criteria
| Name | Description | Type |
|---|---|---|
| price | Given the mission critical nature of an emergency control room C&C system, TVFCS has adopted a Price per Quality Point approach to ensure quality is not diluted by low price alone. PQP provides a... |
Price |
| Quality | There are 13 specific requirements and 7 operational scenario which will be assessed at Stage 2.using the scoring methodology defined in the ITT pack. A minimum score is defined Tenderers identified as... |
Quality |
| Social Value | The ITT includes a set of questions pertaining to Social Value. This will be evaluated by reference to the scoring methodology in the ITT pack. A minimum scoring threshold applies |
Quality |
Weighting description
Stage 1
PSQ mandatory checks under PA2023.
Fail any → eliminated.
Financial Capacity Checks
Pass/Pass with Mitigation/Fail
Technical compliance
Pass/Fail
2. Scored Evaluation (Stage 2)
Quality (Total 100 points)
• Core Quality (65)
• Social Value (10)
Demonstration (Stage 3a )
• Demonstration (20)
Presentation (Stage 3b)
• Presentation (5)
Price: Price is not scored separately but evaluated via PQP (Price per quality point) = Submitted Price ÷ Total Quality Score.
Negotiation (Stage 4) (non-weighted)...
Other information
Applicable trade agreements
- Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
Conflicts assessment prepared/revised
Yes
Procedure
Procedure type
Competitive flexible procedure
Competitive flexible procedure description
Thames Valley Fire Control Service (TVFCS) is initiating a Competitive Flexible Procedure procurement for the replacement of its Command & Control (C&C) system. TVFCS is a tri-service collaboration between Oxfordshire Fire & Rescue Service, Buckinghamshire Fire & Rescue Service, and Royal Berkshire Fire & Rescue Service. Oxfordshire County Council are undertaking this procurement on behalf of the other Fires Services. Since becoming operational in 2015, TVFCS has provided a critical shared emergency control room service, handling 999 calls and mobilising resources across the Thames Valley region, serving a population of approximately 2.5 million residents. The current C&C system (NEC Vision Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) and DS3000 Integrated Communication Control System (ICCS)) is approaching end-of-life, with key infrastructure components due to become unsupported by 2029. The replacement project seeks to ensure continuity of statutory emergency response services, enhance operational resilience, and support future innovation through a modern, modular solution.
The Competitive Flexible Procedure being used for this initiative is a multi stage process. There are no restrictions on Tenderers applying other than they must satisfy the checks identified in Stage 1 of the procurement. The issuer of this Tender and related Fire Authorities who are contracting under this initiative undertook a series of market awareness events and also published notices required by the PA2023 Act on the Central Digital Platform (CDP) in advance of this UK4 notice
Full details of the various stages of this procurement, including stage 1 are including in the Tender documentation published on the e-tendering portal that is being used. See https://sebp.due-north.com/ and associated reference DN787666
Stage 1 - participation stage: as defined in the ITT
Pass/fail eligibility and compliance checks, including exclusion or debarment checks and any mandatory requirements.
For the avoidance of doubt, Appendix 4 Procurement Specific Questionnaire Section 4 of the ITT comprises minimum technical requirements (pass/fail) and is treated as a published Stage 1 requirement, distinct from supplier conditions of participation under Section 22.
Financial Capacity checks will also be undertaken in this Stage 1 and TVFCS may also Pass with Mitigation following clarification with Tenderers. Where a Tenderer is assessed as "Pass with Mitigation" at Stage 1, this shall be limited to clarification of existing information or confirmation of proportionate risk mitigations. This will not permit the Tenderer to materially alter its submission or improve its competitive position. These Financial Capacity checks shall be undertaken by reference to the contents of Appendix 7 - financial capacity checks within the ITT.
This Stage 1 will provide initial detail and criteria for subsequent stages. An optional question has been included in Appendix 5 - Response pack (Question 1) within the ITT in the event that the Tenderer wishes to provide additional and/or replacement financial information to that available in their latest and full set of published accounts.
Please note the initial ITT will include all documents required for Stage1. Appendix 3 - Contract will be issued at Stage 2. Existing instructions for Tenderers participating in Stage 3 may be updated to reflect changed logistics for undertaking the demonstration.
TVFCS will alert any remaining Tenderers if a Stage 4 is to be held
The contract is targeted to start 19/10/26 followed by a period of transition and a target Service Commencement date of 1/4/2028 or before as agreed by the parties. The 7 year period commences from 19/10/2026
For the avoidance of doubt the Contract has an initial period of 7 years followed by optional extensions of 3 further years giving a total contract length of 10years . Tenderers must submit pricing for the maximum 10yr period.
Contracting authority
Oxfordshire County Council
- Public Procurement Organisation Number: PZNW-8281-MHNM
County Hall, New Rd
Oxford
OX1 1ND
United Kingdom
Contact name: Mr Martin Hall
Telephone: +447889164706
Email: ProcurementandContractManagement.Enquiries@Oxfordshire.gov.uk
Website: http://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk
Region: UKJ14 - Oxfordshire
Organisation type: Public authority - sub-central government