AwardedAwarded 29 December 2025

ID 6210936 - DAERA - CAFRE - Farming for Sustainability Scheme Training and Themed Groups Requirements

College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise · Education

In brief

College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise awarded training and education work to Countryside Services Limited on 29 December 2025.

The notice gives a value of £3,500,000 excluding VAT.

The contract runs for 3 years, up to 5 years with extensions, starting 5 January 2026.

It is split into 2 lots, so a supplier can bid for part of the work.

The buyer says it is suitable for small and medium-sized businesses.

Built from the notice's own fields. Always check the official notice before you bid.

What the notice says

This contract will be broken down into 2 Lots: • Lot 1 - Face-to-face training for groups of farmers • Lot 2 - Themed peer-to-peer group facilitators Each Lot will be evaluated and awarded independently. Lot 1- CAFRE require a Supplier to administer, secure access to appropriate venues and deliver training to participants who cannot use e-learning courses without support. The supplier will be required to administer, hire appropriate venues, and deliver training sessions to groups of participating farmers. Each course will have its own specific Learning Outcomes, underpinning knowledge, assessment process (if required) and delivery schedule. Lot 2 - CAFRE requires a Supplier to administer and deliver specialist technical facilitation and mentoring to Themed Groups. These groups will be delivered alongside Business Sustainability Groups (BSGs) and are a development from the previous Business development Group (BDG) scheme which operated under the Northern Ireland Rural Development Programme. BSGs are enterprise specific but with a focus on the sustainability of the entire farm. Themed Groups will provide more focused support and advice relating to specific enterprises and topics. Groups will also have a shorter duration of 18-24 months with an estimated 3-6 meetings per group per year dependent on topic. This will be a demand-led contract and all values are estimates only.

Lots

LotTradeValue
Face-to-face training for groups of farmers
5 January 2026 to 4 January 2029
What this lot covers

CAFRE require a Supplier to administer, secure access to appropriate venues and deliver training to participants who cannot use e-learning courses without support. The supplier will be required to administer, hire appropriate venues, and deliver training sessions to groups of participating farmers. The training courses will be prioritised by DAERA as part of the Sustainable Agriculture Programme or wider policy programme, with CAFRE responsible for overall planning and development of learning materials for each training course. Each course will have its own specific Learning Outcomes, underpinning knowledge, assessment process (if required) and delivery schedule.

Training, Education services£500,000
Themed peer-to-peer group facilitators
5 January 2026 to 4 January 2029
What this lot covers

CAFRE requires a Supplier to administer and deliver specialist technical facilitation and mentoring to Themed Groups. These groups will be delivered alongside Business Sustainability Groups (BSGs) and are a development from the previous Business Development Group (BDG) scheme which operated under the Northern Ireland Rural Development Programme. BSGs are enterprise specific but with a focus on the sustainability of the entire farm. Themed Groups will provide more focused support and advice relating to specific enterprises and topics. Groups will also have a shorter duration of 18-24 months with an estimated 3-6 meetings per group per year dependent on topic.

Training, Education services£3,000,000

Who won

WinnerLotValueDates
Countryside Services Limited (SME)
2 bids received
Face-to-face training for groups of farmers£500,000
Awarded 12 December 2025
5 January 2026 to 4 January 2029
Countryside Services Limited (SME)
2 bids received
Themed peer-to-peer group facilitators£3,000,000
Awarded 12 December 2025
5 January 2026 to 4 January 2029

Values as the award notice gives them, excluding VAT where stated.

Timeline

  1. Tender notice · UK4, notice 066886-2025
  2. Contract award notice · UK6, notice 082659-2025
  3. Contract details notice · UK7, notice 006939-2026

About the buyer

Procurements

6

Awards

5

Suppliers it has used most for training

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From notice 066886-2025 on Find a Tender, first published 20 October 2025, last updated 27 January 2026. We last checked for changes on 28 September 2026.