Procurement notices
Procurement notices are the official announcements published across the life of a UK contract. The full UK1 to UK17 family, what each one signals and where to find them.
Updated on September 5, 2026
A procurement notice is any official announcement a contracting authority publishes about a contract, from the first statement of intent to buy through to termination. The tender notice is the best known, but the Procurement Act 2023 created a whole family, each with a defined moment and purpose, and each carrying a UK reference number.
How it works
Transparency is the organising principle of the Act, and the notice regime is how it is delivered. All of them are published on the central digital platform at Find a Tender.
Before the competition: the pipeline notice (UK1), the preliminary market engagement notice (UK2) and the planned procurement notice (UK3). To run it: the tender notice (UK4), the below-threshold tender notice for smaller advertised contracts, and the transparency notice (UK5), which an authority must publish when it intends to award directly without competition. To close it: the contract award notice (UK6), published before signature and starting the standstill, and the contract details notice (UK7), published once the contract exists.
During the life of the contract: the contract performance notice (UK9) on performance against key performance indicators, the contract change notice (UK10) when a contract is modified, the contract termination notice (UK11), the procurement termination notice (UK12) where a competition is abandoned, and the payments compliance notice (UK17) on how promptly the authority pays. Dynamic markets have four of their own, covering intention (UK13), establishment (UK14), modification (UK15) and cessation (UK16). Separately, a correction or amendment republishes an existing notice, typically to move a deadline. Ireland uses the EU notice set on eTenders and TED, with different names but the same rhythm.
What it means for a bidder
Each type earns its place in a supplier's monitoring for a different reason. Pipeline and planned procurement notices let you prepare months ahead. Tender notices are the core of the search. Amendments must be read the moment they land, because they can change the scope or the timetable. Transparency notices tell you a contract in your sector is being handed over without a competition, which is worth knowing and occasionally worth challenging. And award, change and termination notices, routinely ignored, reveal who wins what, at what price, and when the work will come back to the market.
Effective monitoring therefore covers the whole family, not just tender notices.
Example
In January a housing association publishes a planned procurement notice for the replacement of communal boilers. In April the tender notice appears, valued at about £2.9 million including VAT. In May an amendment pushes the deadline back ten days. In September the contract award notice names the winner, followed by a contract details notice on signature. A heating contractor following that authority had eight months of visibility.
Frequently asked questions
Does every contract get a notice?
No. Below £12,000 including VAT for central government and £30,000 for other authorities there is no duty to advertise (verified 2026-09-05, gov.uk below-threshold contracts guidance).
Where can I read notices free of charge?
Find a Tender is free to search, as are Public Contracts Scotland, Sell2Wales, eTendersNI and eTenders in Ireland. Scoutee can pull these sources together and alert you to what is relevant.
Is an award notice always published?
For above-threshold contracts, yes. Below threshold, a contract details notice is required where the contract was advertised.