Small Venues Fund - Fund Administrator
The procurement contact named on the official notice.
This sits in the upper-middle of the Financial & Insurance Services band — a substantial contract for the sector. Based on 8,013 valued Financial & Insurance Services tenders in our corpus.
North East Combined Authority has published 3 Financial & Insurance Services notices, about every 7 months. On that rhythm the next one is expected around April 2027.
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Following the North East Mayoral Strategic Authority (North East MSA) Cabinet meeting in March 2026, North East Mayor Kim McGuiness announced a package of £104million to turbocharge the region's creative industries driving new jobs and opportunities for local people.
As part of that package, a commitment was made to back small venues across North East England.
Working alongside the sector, the North East MSA's Small Venues Fund (SVF) has been developed to support creative grassroots venues, providing them with the resources and capacity to host events and provide space and a platform for creatives to thrive.
It has been shaped to ensure that this fund is fit for purpose and supports an array of artists from across the creative industries.
The fund will support an increase in opportunities for both artists and venue operators supporting the exposure of such facilities both within the region and further afield.
The fund will open more opportunities to touring artists, providing an increase in the visitor economy and a wider economic impact.
The North East MSA is looking to appoint an external Fund Administrator with experience of public sector grant administration and knowledge of the creative and cultural sector to manage the programme from initial enquiry through to project closure.
The fund will be delivered on a phased basis.
The successful bidder will provide a fully managed grant administration service for the Small Venues Fund.
Services will include: o Programme mobilisation. o Applicant support and enquiry management. o Expression of Interest management. o Full application management. o Application appraisal and due diligence. o Independent assessment panel administration. o Grant contracting and subsidy control compliance. o Grant monitoring and compliance activity. o Financial management and payment administration. o Reporting and management information. o Support for programme evaluation.
The overall project value is £2.45m million, of which £2.2 million is set aside for grant awards.
The value of the contract for the Fund Administrator is up to £250,000 excluding VAT, for the duration of the contract.
What the notice asks for
Working alongside the sector, the North East
Working alongside the sector, the North East MSA's Small Venues Fund (SVF) has been developed to support creative grassroots venues, providing them with the resources and capacity to host events and provide space and a platform for creatives to thrive.
It has been shaped to ensure
It has been shaped to ensure that this fund is fit for purpose and supports an array of artists from across the creative industries.
The fund will support an increase in
The fund will support an increase in opportunities for both artists and venue operators supporting the exposure of such facilities both within the region and further afield.
The successful bidder will provide a fully
The successful bidder will provide a fully managed grant administration service for the Small Venues Fund.
O Applicant support and enquiry management
o Applicant support and enquiry management.
Sentences from the notice that state an obligation, surfaced automatically and shown in the order they appear. Not an exhaustive list — always confirm against the tender documents.
What it takes to bid this
Typical UK bid effort for the £100k–£1m band — an estimate, not a quote.
Qualify & bid/no-bid ~10% · SQ / PQQ ~20% · Written response ~55% · Review & presentation ~15%
Stated in this notice
- Plan for deliveryMobilisation period“…und. Services will include: o Programme mobilisation. o Applicant support and enquiry management. o Expression o…”
Typical for this category — confirm against the ITT pack
- Show at bidComparable references / case studies
- Hold at bidFinancial standing (accounts, often ~2× contract value turnover)
- Hold at bidInsurance cover (PL / EL, often PI)
- Show at bidSocial value commitments
Hold at bid = pass/fail conditions of participation. Show at bid = scored in the quality response. Plan for delivery = contract obligations from day one.
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- OCID
- ocds-h6vhtk-06f045
- Stage
- planning · Planning
- Source
- Find a Tender
- Buyer ref
- 083003-2026
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source data © Crown copyright.
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