Scope
Reference
SCC-SMS-0941
Description
his Procurement is being conducted in accordance with the Procurement Act 2023 (the Act) using the Competitive Flexible Procedure. This document describes how the Procurement Process will be conducted, including details of the associated Procurement timetable, award criteria and how to respond to this opportunity. Suppliers are strongly encouraged to read this document before preparing their submission.
This document has been prepared to assist Potential Suppliers in deciding whether to in this Procurement. Please read this document carefully, as failure to comply with this document may result in exclusion from the Procurement and/or the rejection of any submission at any stage of the Procurement Process.
Planned and responsive asbestos Management Surveys, Re-inspections and/or Refurbishment Surveys and associated reports to both domestic and non-domestic properties, including Bulk Sampling and Analysis, provision of online database/compliance system.
The term of the contract shall be 2nd March 2026 until 28th February 2031 with the option to extend for up to a further 5 further years at the sole discretion of the Council.
Total value (estimated)
- £12,000,000 including VAT
Above the relevant threshold
Contract dates (estimated)
- 2 March 2026 to 1 March 2031
- Possible extension to 1 March 2036
- 10 years
Description of possible extension:
The term of the contract shall be 2nd March 2026 until 28th February 2031 with the option to extend for up to a further 5 further years at the sole discretion of the Council.
Main procurement category
Services
CPV classifications
- 71315300 - Building surveying services
- 71355000 - Surveying services
- 71630000 - Technical inspection and testing services
- 90650000 - Asbestos removal services
Contract locations
- UKJ32 - Southampton
Participation
Particular suitability
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SME)
Submission
Enquiry deadline
28 November 2025, 2:00pm
Submission type
Requests to participate
Deadline for requests to participate
8 December 2025, 2:00pm
Submission address and any special instructions
Tenders may be submitted electronically
Yes
Languages that may be used for submission
English
Suppliers to be invited to tender
5 suppliers
Selection criteria:
Stage 1 - Procurement Specific Questionnaire - open to alltop 5 suppliers selected for stage 2Stage 2 - Dialogue Session to discuss complexities of the contract and how it will be deliveredStage 3 - call for final tenders from shortlisted providers only.2.8 The Procurement ProcessThis Procurement Process will be conducted in 3 stages. The 3 stages are described in more detail below.Stage 1: Invitation to participate (CURRENT STAGE OF THE PROCUREMENT PROCESS)Stage 1 commenced with the issuing of a Tender Notice [Note: insert link to Tender Notice published on the Central Digital Platform] and the publication of this document.This document includes a Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ) labelled Asbestos Surveying and Analysis PSQ which all Potential Suppliers are required to complete and return in accordance with the Procurement Timetable and instructions within this document.The Council will use this stage to confirm that neither the Potential Supplier, nor any related persons within its corporate group, associated persons relied on to meet the conditions of participation, or proposed sub-contractors are listed on the Cabinet Office debarment list. To the extent that any such entities are listed on the debarment list, the Council will consider whether to exclude the Potential Supplier from participating in the Procurement Process in accordance with its obligations under the Act.In addition, the Council will consider whether any Potential Supplier or related persons within its corporate group, associated persons relied on to meet the conditions of participation, or proposed sub-contractors are excluded or excludable Suppliers, and before the Council determines that a Potential Supplier is an excluded or excludable Supplier, it will provide the Potential Supplier reasonable opportunity to make representations and provide evidence as is proportionate in the circumstances. If the Potential Supplier is an excluded or excludable Supplier only by virtue of an associated person or proposed sub-contractor, the Council will notify the Potential Supplier of its intention to exclude the Potential Supplier and provide the Potential Supplier with reasonable opportunity to replace the associated person or sub-contractor. If as a consequence of this process the Council excludes the Potential Supplier from participating in the Procurement Process, or is aware of an associated person or sub-contract having been replaced, it will give notice of this fact within 30 days of its decision to the Procurement Review Unit (PRU).The Council will also undertake a review of the completed PSQ with reference to any information held on the Central Digital Platform. Responses to any conditions of participation will be assessed in accordance with the selection process and any selection criteria as set out in the Tender Notice, PSQ and described in this document. The assessment of these responses will identify up to 5 number of Potential Suppliers to be invited to participate in Stage 2.Stage 1 will complete with Potential Suppliers being notified in writing of whether or not they have been successfully shortlisted to participate in Stage 2. Potential Suppliers not invited to Stage 2 will be provided with a written explanation of the reasons why they have not been shortlisted to participate in Stage 2.Potential Suppliers should note that the Council reserves the right to re-assess any response to the PSQ, in light of any new relevant information that comes to the Council's attention.Stage 2: Invitation to participate in DialogueStage 2 will commence with the issuing of a letter and an updated Instructions Document (Part A) and associated procurement documents inviting Potential Suppliers that have successfully passed Stage 2 to attend one or more dialogue meetings.The updated Instructions Document (Part A) will also describe in detail how the dialogue will be conducted, including the exact location and dates for the relevant meetings, as well as the attendee arrangements.At commencement of the Procurement Process, the areas of dialogue that the Council anticipates having with Potential Suppliers is as follows:The dialogue will be via a teams meeting and will consist of at least one dialogue meeting with the intention that the Council will ensure suppliers thoroughly understand the specification and the requirements of the Council and to field any additional questions (which will be shared with all shortlisted suppliers). The meeting will be between the Council and each shortlisted supplier.Stage 3: Invitation to submit a final tenderStage 3 will commence with the issuing of a letter and updated Instructions Document (Part A) and associated procurement documents inviting Potential Suppliers that have been successfully shortlisted at Stage 1 and who have participated in dialogue, to submit their final tenders.STAGE ONE - Request to Participate (Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ)):The PSQ will be subject to an initial compliance check to confirm that the:a) The PSQ has been submitted on time, is completed correctly, signed as directed, all required documents included, and meet the requirements and conditions set out in the Tender Pack.b) The PSQ is sufficiently complete to enable it to be evaluated.c) Potential Supplier has not contravened any of the terms and conditions and instructions of the Procurement Process.Requests to Participate that do not meet a) - d) may be rejected at this stage. Requests to Participate that meet the requirements set out in a) - d) must also meet the minimum compliance requirements of the PSQ set out in Section 3.2 of this Instructions Document (Part A). Any Potential Supplier who does not meet these minimum requirements will not proceed to the next stage of the Procurement Process and will be excluded from the Procurement Process.Potential Suppliers who pass stage one of the evaluation and have been ranked in the top 5 of submissions received shall be invited to submit a Final Tender following the dialogue meeting, then the submission will be subject to the price and qualitative evaluation. The Council intend to invite the top 5 suppliers to dialogue and progression to stage 3 calls for final tenders.STAGE TWO - no form of evaluation required.• STAGE THREE:The final tender will be subject to an initial compliance check to confirm that the:a) The Final Tender has been submitted on time, is completed correctly, signed as directed, all required documents included, and meet the requirements and conditions set out in the Tender Pack.b) The Final Tender is sufficiently complete to enable it to be evaluated.c) Potential Supplier has not contravened any of the terms and conditions and instructions of the Procurement Process.d) Potential Supplier has submitted a Final Tender that is capable of being acceptedThe price/quality split can be seen in Section 3.3 of this document, and Potential Suppliers will be allocated a weighted score against the method statements in Section 3 of the Tender Response Document (Part B) - Final Tender. The Pricing Schedule can be seen at Section 4.3.2 Stage One - Procurement Specific Questionnaire (CURRENT STAGE OF THE PROCUREMENT PROCESS)3.2.1 The Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ) can be seen labelled Asbestos Surveying and Analysis Procurement Specific Questionnaire which forms part of this Tender Pack.3.2.2 The PSQ assesses Potential Suppliers to establish if they are to be treated as an 'Excluded' or 'Excludable' Supplier in accordance with Sections 57 and 58 of the Procurement Act 2023. In addition, these questions set the Conditions of Participation for this Tender. These questions ensure that Potential Suppliers participating in the Tender process have the legal and financial capacity, and the technical ability to perform the Contract.3.2.3 The PSQ consists of three parts:Part 3 - Conditions of Participation: the Council may set Conditions of Participation which a Potential Supplier must satisfy in order to be awarded the Contract. They can relate to the supplier's legal and financial capacity or their technical ability which can be seen in the table below.3.2.4 A Potential Supplier must first pass all of the pass/fail questions within the PSQ. The Council will then evaluate the scored questions in accordance with the scoring methodology and weightings listed in the table below. The Council will then invite the top five scoring Potential Suppliers to participate in the Initial Tender stage of this Procurement Process (Stage 2).Scored PSQ Questions WeightingRelevant experience and contract examples (Questions 17) 25%Survey Report Turnaround (Question 23) 35%Same Day Sampling (Question 24) 15%Volumes Per Week (Question 25) 15%Mobilisation Time (Question 26) 10%
Award decision date (estimated)
11 February 2026
Award criteria
| Name | Description | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Reporting and Data Integration | 15% |
Quality |
| UKAS Accreditation and Legacy Data | 12.5% |
Quality |
| Resourcing and Productivity | 12.5% |
Quality |
| Data Handling and Keystone (or other data management system) Integration | 10% |
Quality |
| Quality Assurance and Audit Compliance | 10% |
Quality |
| Risk Management and Escalation | 7.5% |
Quality |
| Innovation and Continuous Improvement | 5% |
Quality |
| Value for Money in Delivery | 5% |
Quality |
| Social Value | 2.5% |
Quality |
| Price | 30% |
Price |
Weighting description
Criteria Weighting
Price 30%
Quality 70%
With the quality criteria being;
Method Statement Criteria Weighting
Reporting and Data Integration 15%
UKAS Accreditation and Legacy Data 12.5%
Resourcing and Productivity 12.5%
Data Handling and Keystone (or other data management system) Integration 10%
Quality Assurance and Audit Compliance 10%
Risk Management and Escalation 7.5%
Innovation and Continuous Improvement 5%
Value for Money in Delivery 5%
Social Value 2.5%
Other information
Conflicts assessment prepared/revised
Yes
Procedure
Procedure type
Competitive flexible procedure
Competitive flexible procedure description
Stage 1 - Procurement Specific Questionnaire - open to all
top 5 suppliers selected for stage 2
Stage 2 - Dialogue Session to discuss complexities of the contract and how it will be delivered
Stage 3 - call for final tenders from shortlisted providers only.
2.8 The Procurement Process
This Procurement Process will be conducted in 3 stages. The 3 stages are described in more detail below.
Stage 1: Invitation to participate (CURRENT STAGE OF THE PROCUREMENT PROCESS)
Stage 1 commenced with the issuing of a Tender Notice [Note: insert link to Tender Notice published on the Central Digital Platform] and the publication of this document.
This document includes a Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ) labelled Asbestos Surveying and Analysis PSQ which all Potential Suppliers are required to complete and return in accordance with the Procurement Timetable and instructions within this document.
The Council will use this stage to confirm that neither the Potential Supplier, nor any related persons within its corporate group, associated persons relied on to meet the conditions of participation, or proposed sub-contractors are listed on the Cabinet Office debarment list. To the extent that any such entities are listed on the debarment list, the Council will consider whether to exclude the Potential Supplier from participating in the Procurement Process in accordance with its obligations under the Act.
In addition, the Council will consider whether any Potential Supplier or related persons within its corporate group, associated persons relied on to meet the conditions of participation, or proposed sub-contractors are excluded or excludable Suppliers, and before the Council determines that a Potential Supplier is an excluded or excludable Supplier, it will provide the Potential Supplier reasonable opportunity to make representations and provide evidence as is proportionate in the circumstances. If the Potential Supplier is an excluded or excludable Supplier only by virtue of an associated person or proposed sub-contractor, the Council will notify the Potential Supplier of its intention to exclude the Potential Supplier and provide the Potential Supplier with reasonable opportunity to replace the associated person or sub-contractor. If as a consequence of this process the Council excludes the Potential Supplier from participating in the Procurement Process, or is aware of an associated person or sub-contract having been replaced, it will give notice of this fact within 30 days of its decision to the Procurement Review Unit (PRU).
The Council will also undertake a review of the completed PSQ with reference to any information held on the Central Digital Platform. Responses to any conditions of participation will be assessed in accordance with the selection process and any selection criteria as set out in the Tender Notice, PSQ and described in this document. The assessment of these responses will identify up to 5 number of Potential Suppliers to be invited to participate in Stage 2.
Stage 1 will complete with Potential Suppliers being notified in writing of whether or not they have been successfully shortlisted to participate in Stage 2. Potential Suppliers not invited to Stage 2 will be provided with a written explanation of the reasons why they have not been shortlisted to participate in Stage 2.
Potential Suppliers should note that the Council reserves the right to re-assess any response to the PSQ, in light of any new relevant information that comes to the Council's attention.
Stage 2: Invitation to participate in Dialogue
Stage 2 will commence with the issuing of a letter and an updated Instructions Document (Part A) and associated procurement documents inviting Potential Suppliers that have successfully passed Stage 2 to attend one or more dialogue meetings.
The updated Instructions Document (Part A) will also describe in detail how the dialogue will be conducted, including the exact location and dates for the relevant meetings, as well as the attendee arrangements.
At commencement of the Procurement Process, the areas of dialogue that the Council anticipates having with Potential Suppliers is as follows:
The dialogue will be via a teams meeting and will consist of at least one dialogue meeting with the intention that the Council will ensure suppliers thoroughly understand the specification and the requirements of the Council and to field any additional questions (which will be shared with all shortlisted suppliers). The meeting will be between the Council and each shortlisted supplier.
Stage 3: Invitation to submit a final tender
Stage 3 will commence with the issuing of a letter and updated Instructions Document (Part A) and associated procurement documents inviting Potential Suppliers that have been successfully shortlisted at Stage 1 and who have participated in dialogue, to submit their final tenders.
STAGE ONE - Request to Participate (Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ)):
The PSQ will be subject to an initial compliance check to confirm that the:
a) The PSQ has been submitted on time, is completed correctly, signed as directed, all required documents included, and meet the requirements and conditions set out in the Tender Pack.
b) The PSQ is sufficiently complete to enable it to be evaluated.
c) Potential Supplier has not contravened any of the terms and conditions and instructions of the Procurement Process.
Requests to Participate that do not meet a) - d) may be rejected at this stage. Requests to Participate that meet the requirements set out in a) - d) must also meet the minimum compliance requirements of the PSQ set out in Section 3.2 of this Instructions Document (Part A). Any Potential Supplier who does not meet these minimum requirements will not proceed to the next stage of the Procurement Process and will be excluded from the Procurement Process.
Potential Suppliers who pass stage one of the evaluation and have been ranked in the top 5 of submissions received shall be invited to submit a Final Tender following the dialogue meeting, then the submission will be subject to the price and qualitative evaluation. The Council intend to invite the top 5 suppliers to dialogue and progression to stage 3 calls for final tenders.
STAGE TWO - no form of evaluation required.
• STAGE THREE:
The final tender will be subject to an initial compliance check to confirm that the:
a) The Final Tender has been submitted on time, is completed correctly, signed as directed, all required documents included, and meet the requirements and conditions set out in the Tender Pack.
b) The Final Tender is sufficiently complete to enable it to be evaluated.
c) Potential Supplier has not contravened any of the terms and conditions and instructions of the Procurement Process.
d) Potential Supplier has submitted a Final Tender that is capable of being accepted
The price/quality split can be seen in Section 3.3 of this document, and Potential Suppliers will be allocated a weighted score against the method statements in Section 3 of the Tender Response Document (Part B) - Final Tender. The Pricing Schedule can be seen at Section 4.
3.2 Stage One - Procurement Specific Questionnaire (CURRENT STAGE OF THE PROCUREMENT PROCESS)
3.2.1 The Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ) can be seen labelled Asbestos Surveying and Analysis Procurement Specific Questionnaire which forms part of this Tender Pack.
3.2.2 The PSQ assesses Potential Suppliers to establish if they are to be treated as an 'Excluded' or 'Excludable' Supplier in accordance with Sections 57 and 58 of the Procurement Act 2023. In addition, these questions set the Conditions of Participation for this Tender. These questions ensure that Potential Suppliers participating in the Tender process have the legal and financial capacity, and the technical ability to perform the Contract.
3.2.3 The PSQ consists of three parts:
Part 3 - Conditions of Participation: the Council may set Conditions of Participation which a Potential Supplier must satisfy in order to be awarded the Contract. They can relate to the supplier's legal and financial capacity or their technical ability which can be seen in the table below.
3.2.4 A Potential Supplier must first pass all of the pass/fail questions within the PSQ. The Council will then evaluate the scored questions in accordance with the scoring methodology and weightings listed in the table below. The Council will then invite the top five scoring Potential Suppliers to participate in the Initial Tender stage of this Procurement Process (Stage 2).
Scored PSQ Questions Weighting
Relevant experience and contract examples (Questions 17) 25%
Survey Report Turnaround (Question 23) 35%
Same Day Sampling (Question 24) 15%
Volumes Per Week (Question 25) 15%
Mobilisation Time (Question 26) 10%
Contracting authority
Southampton City Council
- Public Procurement Organisation Number: PCGN-2413-RBTX
Civic Centre, Civic Centre Road
Southampton
SO14 7LY
United Kingdom
Region: UKJ32 - Southampton
Organisation type: Public authority - sub-central government