Contract award notice
Results of the procurement procedure
Section I: Contracting
entity
I.1) Name and addresses
Scottish Government
5 Atlantic Quay, 150 Broomielaw
Glasgow
G2 8LU
UK
Telephone: +44 412425466
E-mail: Kerry.Gubbins@Gov.Scot
NUTS: UKM
Internet address(es)
Main address: http://www.scotland.gov.uk
Address of the buyer profile: https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/Search_AuthProfile.aspx?ID=AA10482
I.2) Joint procurement
The contract is awarded by a central purchasing body
I.4) Type of the contracting authority
Ministry or any other national or federal authority, including their regional or local subdivisions
I.5) Main activity
General public services
Section II: Object
II.1) Scope of the procurement
II.1.1) Title
COMMS-Family Advocacy Service for Bereaved Families following a Death in Prison Custody
Reference number: Case/799177
II.1.2) Main CPV code
98000000
II.1.3) Type of contract
Services
II.1.4) Short description
The Scottish Government seeks to commission an independent Family Advocacy Service to provide specialist support and representation to families following the death of a loved one in prison custody. The service will be independent, trauma-informed, and rooted in advocacy principles, ensuring families are supported, heard, and empowered throughout complex post-death processes.
II.1.6) Information about lots
This contract is divided into lots:
No
II.1.7) Total value of the procurement
Value excluding VAT:
450 000.00
GBP
II.2) Description
II.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS code:
UKM
II.2.4) Description of the procurement
The Service Provider must:
- Manage, administer and coordinate the delivery of high-quality advocacy support to all eligible Service Users who request support following a death in prison custody.
- Design the service to deliver the activities within the Specification.
- Put in place systems, agreements and processes to ensure local delivery of advocacy support are consistently available across the whole of Scotland.
- Deliver the service independently of both Scottish Ministers, Scottish Prison Service, COPFS, and other statutory bodies.
- Monitor service delivery; provide the Purchaser with robust monitoring information; and act when needed to improve services.
- Ensure that Service Users, staff and other stakeholders are treated with dignity, fairness and respect.
II.2.5) Award criteria
Quality criterion: Quality
/ Weighting: 80
Price
/ Weighting:
20
II.2.11) Information about options
Options:
No
II.2.13) Information about European Union funds
The procurement is related to a project and/or programme financed by European Union funds:
No
II.2.14) Additional information
The Contract may be extended by two 12-month periods, to a date falling no later than 31 August 2029.
Section IV: Procedure
IV.1) Description
IV.1.1) Type of procedure
Open procedure
IV.1.8) Information about Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement:
Yes
IV.2) Administrative information
IV.2.1) Previous publication concerning this procedure
Notice number in the OJ S:
2026/S 000-027219
Section V: Award of contract
Contract No: Case/799177
A contract/lot is awarded:
Yes
V.2 Award of contract
V.2.1) Date of conclusion of the contract
22/07/2026
V.2.2) Information about tenders
Number of tenders received: 4
Number of tenders received from SMEs: 4
Number of tenders received from tenderers from EU Member States: 0
Number of tenders received from tenderers from non-EU Member States: 4
Number of tenders received by electronic means: 4
The contract has been awarded to a group of economic operators:
No
V.2.3) Name and address of the contractor
AdvoCard
c/0 Andrew Duncan Clinic, Royal Edinburgh Hospital, Morningside Place
Edinburgh
EH10 5HF
UK
Telephone: +44 000000
Fax: +44 000000
NUTS: UKM75
The contractor is an SME:
Yes
V.2.4) Information on value of the contract/lot (excluding VAT)
Total value of the contract/lot:
: 450 000.00
GBP
V.2.5) Information about subcontracting
Section VI: Complementary information
VI.3) Additional information
Economic operators may be excluded from this competition if they are in any of the situations referred to in regulation 58 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015.
SPD will be scored on a pass/fail basis.
Bidders must complete the SPD to demonstrate adherence to the Exclusion and Selection Criteria for this procurement.
The contract award criteria will be Quality 80% Price 20%.
Question Scoring Methodology for Award Criteria outlined in Invitation to Tender:
0 Unacceptable. Nil or inadequate response. Fails to demonstrate an ability to meet the requirement.
1 Poor. Response is partially relevant but generally poor. The response addresses some elements of the requirement but contains insufficient/limited detail or explanation to demonstrate how the requirement will be fulfilled.
2 Acceptable. Response is relevant and acceptable. The response addresses a broad understanding of the requirement but may lack details on how the requirement will be fulfilled in certain areas.
3 Good. Response is relevant and good. The response is sufficiently detailed to demonstrate a good understanding and provides details on how the requirements will be fulfilled.
4 Excellent. Response is completely relevant and excellent overall.
Tenderers are also asked to confirm:
that they will pay staff that are involved in the delivery of services under the contract, at least the real Living Wage.
they will meet standards on payment of subcontractors
Tenderers who do not pass these questions will not be subject to Commercial Analysis. As a result the tender will not be considered further.
Bidders must complete the SPD (Scotland) to demonstrate adherence to the Exclusion and Selection Criteria for this procurement.
If there are named subcontractors/technicians upon which the bidder will rely to meet the selection criteria, these named parties must complete and reattach the SPD Supplier Response Form attached to SPD.
The Contract may be extended by two 12-month periods, to a date falling no later than 31 August 2029.
(SC Ref:838941)
VI.4) Procedures for review
VI.4.1) Review body
Edinburgh Sheriff Court and Justice of the Peace Court
27 Chambers Street
Edinburgh
EH11LB
UK
VI.5) Date of dispatch of this notice
05/08/2026