Havant Borough Council is giving the construction supply chain an early heads up on an upcoming tender for its Langstone Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management scheme - the total estimated value of the scheme is currently put at up to £16. 8 million (inc VAT).

The Council has previously undertaken market engagement for the construction delivery of the scheme which covers approximately 1km of tidal coastline in Havant, providing increased flood and erosion risk protection to 53 residential and 4 business properties, critical infrastructure including the A3023 (the only highway access to Hayling Island) and a number of heritage assets.

The frontage occupies a unique setting between two harbours and is an important area for cultural heritage, with six listed buildings and two Conservation Areas.

The flood defences have been designed with a 50-year design life and to provide a present day, 1:200 year (o.5% Annual Exceedance Probability (AEP)) standard of protection against tidal still water level.

The Council is proposing an initial contract period for delivery for the works of 2 years and 7 months, A longer term or additional extension periods may be required, subject to future plans for the works.

Current estimated start and end dates are 1 May 2026 to 1 December 2028 with a possible further extension option to 1 December 2029.

In 2024, the Council carried out Market Engagement in the form of meetings with four suppliers identified from either their known experience in constructing coastal flood protection schemes of similar scale and complexity, and through suitable frameworks. In addition, Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) was conducted with a commissioned supplier to provide feedback on the buildability of the scheme during the design phase.

The conclusions of the market engagement included:

• There was sufficient interest in the scheme to undertake a procurement process.
• A Restricted Procedure, rather than an Open Procedure or call-off from a suitable construction framework would achieve the most advantageous results for the council in terms of programme, quality and cost.
• The project would benefit from an Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) stage with the selected works supplier to assist in identifying improvements in phasing and any works that can be undertaken earlier to assist in scheme delivery and cost reduction.

A Restricted Procedure was previously started under the Public Contract Regulations, 2015. However, due to an administrative error, this procurement process could not be completed and is due to re-commence under the Procurement Act, 2023 as a Competitive Flexible Procedure (CFP).

The proposed CFP will be based on the preferred Restricted Process identified during the previously undertaken market engagement, with no further market engagement activities planned in preparation for the new process.

The Council is pointing out that participation in the completed market engagement activities is not a prerequisite for participating in any future procurement process. Suppliers that did engage with the council will not receive any preferential treatment in any future procurement process and prior participation is not an indication of selection, or a guarantee of future work.

Currently the Council expects to publish a formal tender notice for the contract at the beginning of September 2025.