UKRI –5498 TechFirst undergraduate and Spärck AI scholarships: Cohort Management Function (Lot 1), Recruitment Function (Lot 2)

Published facts

What the notice says

Buyer

UK Research & Innovation (UKRI)

Published status

complete

Latest release reference

085218-2026

CPV codes

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV) codes: 72212190, 72230000, 72316000, 79421000, 79600000, 79611000, 79635000, 80000000, 80500000, 98300000

Published tags

award, contract

Latest record Bidwake loaded from this source

10 Oct 2026

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) has awarded a contract for the provision of Recruitment Management Services (Lot 2) to support the delivery of its TechFirst Undergraduate and Spärck AI Scholarship programmes. The appointed supplier will deliver an end-to-end recruitment management service, including the design, promotion and delivery of recruitment campaigns to attract and engage prospective applicants. The service includes applicant outreach and engagement, management of the application process, candidate communications, administration of eligibility checks, coordination of assessment activities, and support throughout the selection process to ensure a high-quality candidate experience. The supplier will also work collaboratively with UKRI and other delivery partners to support programme governance, performance reporting and continuous improvement, contributing to the successful delivery of UKRI's strategic objectives.

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Observed notice trail

How the published record developed

Events follow the publisher date where one is available. “Seen by Bidwake” is the date this service first found the record.

1. Planning notice observed

   20 Mar 2026

   Latest variant observed by Bidwake on 16 Jul 2026.

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   Record references

   Release reference

   025562-2026

   Published tags

   planning

2. Tender notice observed

   22 Apr 2026

   Latest variant observed by Bidwake on 16 Jul 2026.

   Open this official Find a Tender notice

   Record references

   Release reference

   036797-2026

   Published tags

   tender

3. Award notice observed

   3 Aug 2026

   Latest variant observed by Bidwake on 15 Aug 2026.

   Open this official Find a Tender notice

   Record references

   Release reference

   073270-2026

   Published tags

   award, contract

4. Award notice observed

   5 Aug 2026

   Latest variant observed by Bidwake on 15 Aug 2026.

   Open this official Find a Tender notice

Awards and suppliers

Published award and contract facts

• UKRI –5498 TechFirst undergraduate and Spärck AI scholarships: Cohort Recruitment Function (Lot 2)

  Buyer: UK Research & Innovation (UKRI)Supplier: Penna Plc

  End date in notice

  21 Oct 2027Date from the linked contract

  Value shown in notice

  £1,564,228Value from the linked contract

  Official source

  Open the official Find a Tender notice for UKRI –5498 TechFirst undergraduate and Spärck AI scholarships: Cohort Recruitment Function (Lot 2)

  About this figure

  • This figure comes from the linked contract record. Overall totals continue to use the separately published award value.
  • The dates published for the award and the linked contract do not agree. A contract end date is shown only when the linked records agree.

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  Source

  Find a Tender

  Award or lot reference

  2

• UKRI-5498 TechFirst Undergraduate and Spärck AI Scholarships – Cohort Management Services (Lot 1)

  Buyer: UK Research & Innovation (UKRI)Supplier: QA LIMITED

Related evidence

Published terms and linked processes

No recurrence, renewal or options wording appears in these notices.

No exact source-published process relationship was found.