Tender

​​Provision of Comprehensive Legal Representation and Advice Pilot Scheme for Coaches within the British High-Performance System

• THE UNITED KINGDOM SPORTS COUNCIL

UK4: Tender notice - Procurement Act 2023 - view information about notice types

Notice identifier: 2025/S 000-076087

Procurement identifier (OCID): ocds-h6vhtk-05e667

Published 21 November 2025, 2:29pm

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Scope

Reference

PRO211125

Description

UK Sport is committed to delivering a world-leading high-performance system that enables British athletes to achieve success on the global stage, within environments that are safe, inclusive, and supportive. As part of our strategic ambition to foster a thriving sporting system with positive societal impact, we are investing in the professional wellbeing of the coaching workforce that underpins elite sport.

UK Sport is seeking tenders from experienced and suitably qualified legal service providers, through an open Invitation to Tender ("ITT"), for the delivery of a Pilot Scheme comprising dedicated legal representation and advice services for high performance coaches operating within the UK's World Class Performance Programmes (the "Pilot Scheme"). This procurement (the "Procurement") represents a key element of UK Sport's interim support offer for coaches and will serve as a critical building block in the development of the Independent Coaches Body ("ICB").

While experience delivering legal services within the sports sector, particularly in high-performance or elite sporting environments and in alignment with sector frameworks such as Sport Integrity, is highly valued, UK Sport also welcomes applications from providers outside the sector. Bidders are encouraged to demonstrate their understanding of the unique legal challenges faced by coaches, including employment, safeguarding, and disciplinary matters, and to provide evidence of their capability to deliver high-quality, relevant, and responsive legal support tailored to the needs of high-performance coaches and the wider sports sector.

The Pilot Scheme is a direct response to the findings of the Whyte Review (2023), which identified the need for systemic reform to create safer, more supportive environments across UK sport. In partnership with Sport England, UK Sport has committed to a joint policy response that prioritises the professionalisation of coaching, enhanced wellbeing provision, and a culture of safeguarding and accountability. 

Further research, including the Care for Coaches report (UK Coaching & Liverpool John Moores University, 2024)1, has highlighted legal representation as a critical area of unmet need. Coaches often face complex employment, disciplinary, and safeguarding challenges without access to consistent or affordable legal support, an area which the Pilot Scheme intends to address.

This Procurement will therefore enable the provision of timely, expert advice and representation across employment matters, contract negotiations, and safeguarding or disciplinary proceedings for coaches in the high-performance system. This service will not only meet immediate needs but also inform the long-term legal support model to be delivered through the ICB as a core membership benefit.

Objectives

The objectives of the Pilot Scheme are as follows (the "Pilot Scheme Objectives"):

A. Empower Coaches through Legal Advice and Representation

Ensure that eligible coaches have access to high-quality legal support services.

B. Deliver a Cost-Effective and Efficient Pilot Scheme

Ensure the Pilot Scheme is operationally and financially efficient, effective in its delivery, and clearly understood by all stakeholders.

Contract Value

UK Sport has budgeted to make payments of up to a value of £400,000-450,000 (inclusive of VAT) to cover all costs associated with the delivery of the Services across the full term of the Pilot Scheme. Payment will be made only for work that is delivered, calculated in accordance with the relevant agreed fee structure not exceeding the maximum budget in aggregate.

Contract Duration

The Pilot Scheme is a pilot and therefore UK Sport propose to enter into the Contract with the Tenderer from the date on which the Contract is signed by both parties (the "Contract Commencement Date") for a duration of two (2) years (the "Term"), unless terminated in accordance with the terms contained therein.

Total value (estimated)

• £375,000 excluding VAT
• £450,000 including VAT

Below the relevant threshold

Contract dates (estimated)

• 31 January 2026 to 1 February 2028
• 2 years, 2 days

Main procurement category

Services

CPV classifications

• 66513100 - Legal expenses insurance services
• 79110000 - Legal advisory and representation services
• 79140000 - Legal advisory and information services

Contract locations

• UK - United Kingdom

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Participation

This procurement is reserved for

UK suppliers

Particular suitability

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SME)

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Submission

Enquiry deadline

1 December 2025, 3:00pm

Tender submission deadline

16 December 2025, 3:00pm

Submission address and any special instructions

All tender submissions must be submitted via email to coachsupportservices@uksport.gov.uk

Tenders may be submitted electronically

No

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Award criteria

Name	Description	Type	Weighting
Quality of service provision	1. Service Model, Expertise, and Coach-Centred Delivery (20%) In your proposal, please set out your bespoke legal services offer which you intend to develop and deliver specifically for the Pilot... Scheme. Please cover the following: - Clearly describe your proposed service model (e.g. single provider, panel, aggregator), and explain its relevance and suitability for the needs of high-performance coaches. - Outline the scope and depth of your legal expertise, specifically addressing employment, safeguarding, disciplinary, and sport-specific matters. - Detail your protocols for access, escalation, and case management, including how coaches will engage with the service and how complex or urgent cases will be handled. - Explain your approach to delivering a coach-centred service, highlighting how you will ensure responsiveness, confidentiality, and a positive user experience. 7 A4 Pages Font size: minimum 11pt Margins: no less than 2cm File format: Word or PDF only 2. Experience and Track Record (15%) In your proposal, please: - Demonstrate your experience delivering legal services in sport, employment law, safeguarding, or similar contexts. - Provide case studies or examples of previous work with comparable organisations or clients. - Include references or testimonials from relevant stakeholders to evidence your track record. - As part of your submission, please provide a short CV for each member of the proposed delivery team who will be directly involved in the project. CVs should include: - Relevant qualifications and professional experience - Specific roles and responsibilities within the proposed project - Previous experience on similar projects - Any certifications or accreditations relevant to the scope of work - CVs should be no longer than one page per individual 5 A4 Page plus CVs for each member of the delivery team (CVs will not be included in the maximum page count). Font size: minimum 11pt Margins: no less than 2cm File format: Word or PDF only 3. Governance and Oversight (10%) In your proposal, please: - Describe your approach to reporting, monitoring, and accountability for the service. - Outline your data protection and confidentiality protocols. - Explain the mechanisms you will use to ensure the ethical use of public funds. 4 A4 Page Font size: minimum 11pt Margins: no less than 2cm File format: Word or PDF only 4. Education and Empowerment (5%) In your proposal, please: - Present your plans to develop educational resources for coaches (such as guides, videos, or FAQs). - Describe your strategies to promote proactive legal awareness and reduce reliance on reactive support. The education and empowerment piece is intended to raise awareness around the legal needs of coaches within the high-performance system and how they can recognise and take better control of their affairs. Your plans and strategies may therefore include, for example, newsletters or podcasts to raise awareness of legal rights specifically in the context of coaches within the high-performance system, dissemination of information to coaches and signposting, FAQs for coaches, etc. We would expect a minimum of one new educational resource per quarter and welcome interactive, video, and/or document-based content. 3 Pages A4 plus a maximum of two examples of educational resources (examples of educational resources will not be included in the maximum page count). Font size: minimum 11pt Margins: no less than 2cm File format: Word or PDF only Scores range from 0 (fails to meet required standard) to 5 (Exceeds Standards). See ITT for full details	Quality	50%
Pricing	In your proposal, please provide costings against the following pricing elements: Monthly retainer fee (15%) This should cover the costs of your overall legal services offer and in particular, support... for routine legal matters, such as those set out in the Specification (contract renewals, exit processes, ad-hoc advice on employment issues, etc,). It should also build in the costs of the development and delivery of educational resources and training materials geared towards raising awareness as part of your overall legal services offer. Complex matters that are handled on a case-by-case basis shall be under the chargeable hour model set out below. Please detail the cost of your monthly retainer fee, based on the following: A maximum number of hours included under the retainer per month (please detail). The provision of education and training materials throughout the term of the Pilot Scheme. Case-by-case chargeable hours (15%) This pricing model should cover complex or exceptional matters beyond routine legal support, which require a greater level of support, analysis and representation. Please provide the following: The hourly rates for each of your firm's fee earner categories (please refer to paragraph 1.2 of Schedule 4 of the draft Contract for fee earner categories). A numerical average of the fee earner rates, forming a 'blended rate', which shall comprise the total of each of the hourly rates, divided by the number of fee earner categories - (total fee earner rates) / number of fee earner categories.) 1 A4 Page Font size: minimum 11pt Margins: no less than 2cm File format: Word or PDF only Overall pricing scores for each Tenderer will be based on the following pricing models, which form the sub-criteria of the pricing evaluation: 1. A fixed monthly retainer fee for simple matters, queries and routine support, which covers the Tenderer's overall legal services offer, including education and training materials (but excluding complex matters dealt with on a case-by-case basis, as per the below point); and 2. A blended hourly rate for matters which are more complex and dealt with on a case-by-case basis, comprising a numerical average of each grade of the Tenderer's fee earner hourly rates, for the purposes of the evaluation scoring. Prices will be scored on a comparative basis, in respect of each price evaluation sub-criteria, whereby the lowest bid will receive 100% of the available marks within each of their respective weightings. All other bids within the relevant sub-criteria will be compared against the lowest bid and will be scored in accordance with the following formula to calculate each of the bidder's scores for each sub-criteria: Lowest Monthly Retainer Fee / Competitor Monthly Retainer Fee = X * 15% (weighting) = X% score for sub-criteria Lowest Blended Hourly Rate / Competitor Blended Hourly Rate = X * 15% (weighting) = X% score for sub-criteria The sum of the weighted scores of 1 and 2 above provides the final score for the pricing criterion in relation to the overall 30% weighting. Working examples can be seen in the full ITT.	Price	30%
EDI & Environmental Sustainability	EDI and Environmental Sustainability will have an equal weighting of 10% each. Suppliers will be evaluated on their commitment to Equality, Diversity & Inclusion (EDI) and environmental sustainability... in line with the Procurement Act. The assessment considers the existence and quality of relevant policies, evidence of compliance with laws and regulations, and the provision of structured training. Higher scores reflect substantial EDI and environmental sustainability measures, policies that go beyond basic compliance, and a clear focus on continuous improvement. Suppliers demonstrating limited evidence or non-compliance will score lower, while those showing robust practices and ethical standards will achieve the highest rating. This is completed via a questionnaire found on the ITT. Scores range from 1 (Below Standards) to 3 (Exceeds Standards).	Quality	20%

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Procedure

Procedure type

Below threshold - open competition

Special regime

Light touch

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Documents

Associated tender documents

FINAL UK Sport Invitation to Tender - Legal Advice and Representation for Coaches.docx

Contract for Coaching Legal Services UK Sport.pdf

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Contracting authority

THE UNITED KINGDOM SPORTS COUNCIL

• Companies House: RC000765
• Public Procurement Organisation Number: PDHV-6143-RRMX

10 South Colonnade

LONDON

E14 4PU

United Kingdom

Contact name: Jemima Coates

Email: Coachsupportservices@uksport.gov.uk

Website: https://www.uksport.gov.uk/about-us/tenders

Region: UKI42 - Tower Hamlets

Organisation type: Public authority - central government