LEGISLATION PRINT PUBLISHING CONTRACT
Open
Closes in 11 days
Key facts
- Closing date
- Friday 30 October 2026, 17:00 (UK time) Closes in 11 days
- Buyer's estimated value
- £3,500,000 (excl. VAT) The buyer's own estimate, not income to you.
- Clarification questions deadline
- 8 October 2026, 17:00
- Contract period
- 31 Jul 2027 to 31 Jul 2029
- Procedure
- Competitive flexible procedure
- Notice type
- Tender notice (UK4)
- Suitable for SMEs (per buyer)
- Yes
Decision brief
Taken from the buyer's published notice (shown as written, shortened where long). Tenderpatch has not added to or interpreted it. Always read the official documents before bidding.
- How bids will be scored
-
- Quality 45%
- Price 45%
- Social Value 10%
- Conditions of participation (what you must show)
- None published in the notice. They may be in the tender documents.
- Contract length and extensions
- 31 Jul 2027 to 31 Jul 2029. Extensions: Three extension options of 12 months each.
- How to submit
- Submissions are to be sent to procurement@nationalarchives.gov.uk The National Archives' website address is www.nationalarchives.gov.uk Electronic submission: allowed.
- Changes the buyer has announced
- Published clarification questions and answers document.
- Tender documents
-
Stage 1 ITT document ↗ (www.find-tender.service.gov.uk)
Clarification Questions & Answers Document ↗ (www.find-tender.service.gov.uk)
New to public tenders? Plain-English guide to this page
- Framework
- An agreement that sets terms for work the buyer may order later, often from several suppliers. The value shown usually covers the whole agreement, not one job.
- Open for bids / closing date
- You must submit by the closing date and time, normally through the buyer's own online portal. Late bids are normally refused.
- Clarification questions
- A deadline for asking the buyer questions about the tender. It is earlier than the closing date.
- Conditions of participation
- What the buyer asks suppliers to show before they can be considered, such as experience, insurance or accreditations.
- Bids are scored on
- How the buyer will compare bids, usually a split between price and quality. A 60/40 split in favour of quality means the cheapest bid will not necessarily win.
- Lots
- A tender can be split into parts. You can often bid for only the lots that suit you.
- Area (ITL)
- The buyer names an official statistical area for where the work is, not a street address. Check the tender documents for the actual sites.
- UK4 and other notice codes
- Official codes for the type of notice. A "tender notice" means bids are being invited.
General explanations written by Tenderpatch, not part of this notice.
Description
The purpose of this Procurement Process is for The National Archives (TNA) to select a Print Publishing Supplier to deliver its Legislation Print Publishing Contract.
The intention is to award the Contract for an initial period 2 years, with options to extend for three further periods of up to twelve months each (2+1+1+1).
The attached Invitation to Tender document gives an overview of the print publishing requirements and should be read in conjunction with Annexes 1 - 4, which provide more information about what is printed and why. If you require access to them, please contact us at procurement@nationalarchives.gov.uk
We estimate the maximum contract value over the whole contract term (i.e. 5 years) to be circa £4,200,000 (inc. VAT).
The Print Publishing Supplier will operate the print publishing of legislation, associated documents, annual bound volumes of legislation and legislative effects, Chronological Tables and correction slips. The Print Publishing Supplier is responsible for all aspects of print production.
The Print Publishing Supplier will make sure that all printed items are made available for sale and deliver all aspects of order fulfilment and customers services related to the printing and sale of legislation items, including taking payment, handling enquiries and complaints, despatch and record keeping.
Printing legislation is a statutory requirement - the Print Publishing Supplier must provide a print publishing service that meets exacting quality standards and specifications, and that prints legislative items to prescribed and non-negotiable deadlines.
In addition, government departments pay a publishing fee for online publishing. The Print Publishing Supplier is not responsible for online publishing but is responsible for the financial administration of the publishing charges made to government departments. This involves invoicing departments for the correct publishing fees and ensuring that invoices are paid in a timely manner, including chasing where invoices have not been paid. The Print Publishing Supplier then transfers the publishing fees to The National Archives on a quarterly basis. The Print Publishing Supplier needs to inform The National Archives of any overdue outstanding departmental invoices.