Scope
Reference
CS-26-082
Description
About the Office for National Statistics (ONS)
ONS is the UK's largest independent producer of official statistics and is the National Statistical Institute for the UK. Formally, it is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-Ministerial Department established by the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007. It is responsible for collecting and publishing statistics related to the economy, population, and society at national, regional, and local levels. ONS plays a leading role in national and international good practice in the production of official statistics.
Introduction
Prices Division is responsible for the production and quality assurance of two of the Office for National Statistics (ONS) most high profile statistics, the Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers' housing costs (CPIH), and the Consumer Prices Index (CPI). The consumer price indices are used widely by, among others, Her Majesty's Treasury for monitoring financial policy, the Department of Work and Pensions for setting social security benefits, the Bank of England for monetary policy decisions, financial institutions for analysis, Trade Unions for wage bargaining and the wider public for a 'sense' of inflation.
Core Requirements
To compile the consumer price indices, information is required on the annual expenditure on of different groups of products at multiple and independent stores. This enables the ONS to give each type of shop and product its correct weight or market share in the list of goods and services used to produce the indices. Much of the information is sourced from internal ONS surveys but some additional detailed expenditure information is needed. The consumer price indices are compiled by weighting together product or item level price data in a way that reflects UK consumer spending patterns. To achieve this, detailed consumer spending figures are required at a suitably disaggregated level for lower-level item weights to be constructed without the need for arbitrary decisions.
Below is a list of headings against which detailed consumer expenditure and market share information is required.
DIVISION 1 - FOOD AND NON-ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES
Bread & Cereals
Meat
Fish
Milk, Cheese & Eggs
Oils & Fats
Fruit
Vegetables Including Potatoes and Other Tubers
Sugar, Jam, Honey, Syrups, Chocolate and Confectionery
Food Products
Coffee, Tea, Cocoa
Mineral Waters, Soft Drinks and Juices
DIVISION 2 - ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES AND TOBACCO
Spirits
Wine (Inc Perry)
Beer
Tobacco
DIVISION 3 - CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR
Garments
Other Articles Of Clothing & Clothing Accessories
Dry Cleaning, Repair and Hire of Clothing
Footwear Including Repairs
DIVISION 4 - HOUSING, WATER, ELECTRICITY, GAS AND OTHER FUELS
Actual Rents for Housing
Products for the Regular Maintenance and Repair of Dwelling
Services for the Regular Maintenance and Repair of Dwelling
Water Supply
Sewerage Collection
Electricity
Gas
Liquid Fuels
Solid Fuels
DIVISION 5 - FURNITURE, HOUSEHOLD EQUIPMENT AND MAINTENANCE
Furniture, Furnishings
Carpets & Other Floor Coverings
Household Textiles
Major Household Whether Electric or Not & Small Electrical Appliances
Repair of Household Appliances
Glassware, Tableware and Household Utensils
Tools and Equipment for House and Garden
Non-Durable Household Goods
Domestic Services and Home Care Services
DIVISION 6 - HEALTH
Pharmaceutical Products
Other Medical Products & Therapeutic Equipment
Medical Services and Paramedical Services
Dental Services
In-Patient Services
DIVISION 7 - TRANSPORT
New Cars
Second-Hand Cars
Motor Cycles and Bicycles
Spare Parts & Accessories
Fuels & Lubricants
Maintenance & Repairs
Other Services In Respect Of Personal Transport Equipment
Passenger Transport by Railway
Passenger Transport by Road
Passenger Transport by Air
Passenger Transport by Sea and Inland Waterway
DIVISION 8 - COMMUNICATION
Postal Services
Telephone & Telefax Equipment and Services
DIVISION 9 - RECREATION AND CULTURE
Equip. For Receiving & Reproducing Sound & Picture
Photographic, Cinematographic Equipment & Optical Instruments
Data Processing Equipment
Recording Media
Repair of Audio-Visual, Photographic and Data Processing Equipment
Major Durables for In/Outdoor Recreation
Games, Toys and Hobbies
Equipment for Sport, Camping & Open-Air Recreation
Garden Plants and Flowers
Pets and Related Products
Recreational and Sporting Services
Cultural Services
Books
Newspapers and Periodicals
Misc. Printed Matter, Stationery & Drawing Materials
Package Holidays
DIVISION 10 - EDUCATION
Education
DIVISION 11 - RESTAURANTS AND HOTELS
Restaurants & Cafes
Canteens
Accommodation Services
DIVISION 12 - MISCELLANEOUS GOODS AND SERVICES
Hairdressing Salons & Personal Grooming Establishments
Appliances, Articles & Products for Personal Care
Jewellery, Clocks and Watches
Other Personal Effects
Social Protection Services
Insurance Connected with the Dwelling - Contents Insurance
Insurance Connected with Health
Insurance Connected with Transport
Banking Services. Not Elsewhere Covered.
Other Services N.E.C
Questions for potential data providers
1. What is your experience of providing annual consumer expenditure segmentation and market share information for the areas above?
2. Can you provide information about how data would be accessed and the quality assurance process that you will use?
3. Can you confirm how would we access your data and how many licenses would be available?
4. How frequently is your information updated? Can you provide details of forthcoming research?
Other Information
It is anticipated that any resultant contract will be for 3 yrs with the option to extend for a further 2 years. The budget will be a maximum of £52000 per year.
How to register
Please email commercialteam@ons.gov.uk with an outline of your services. Please use the reference FAO C Jones CS-26-082 on the email.
We will be scheduling follow-up one-to-one sessions to discuss your responses to the above questions once the notice has expired.
Additional Information
This Exercise is NOT a pre-qualification or selection exercise and is NOT part of any pre-qualification or selection process that may apply to any future potential procurement. It is intended to act as an awareness and information gathering exercise offering an opportunity for suppliers to advise the extent to which they can potentially provide some or all the services that ONS may require, in order to help ONS with its future intentions.
Total value (estimated)
- £260,000 excluding VAT
- £312,000 including VAT
Contract dates (estimated)
- 31 October 2025 to 30 October 2028
- Possible extension to 30 October 2030
- 5 years
Main procurement category
Services
CPV classifications
- 72300000 - Data services
Contract locations
- UK - United Kingdom
Engagement
Engagement deadline
7 October 2025
Engagement process description
Please email commercialteam@ons.gov.uk with an outline of your services. Please use the reference FAO C Jones CS-26-082 on the email.
We will be scheduling follow-up one-to-one sessions to discuss your responses to the above questions once the notice has expired.
Participation
Particular suitability
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SME)
Contracting authority
Office for National Statistics
- Public Procurement Organisation Number: PMZG-4913-JQXG
Government Buildings, Cardiff Road
Newport
NP10 8XG
United Kingdom
Email: CommercialTeam@ons.gov.uk
Region: UKL21 - Monmouthshire and Newport
Organisation type: Public authority - central government