Buying research services 

The Research and Citizen Insight (R&CI) team offers: 

• support with research projects, evaluations and public consultations 
• insights into the needs, lives and views of Essex residents 

To decide whether your research needs can be met internally or if you need to buy research services from a third-party supplier, contact research@essex.gov.uk with your requirements, including: 

• some background information 
• your budget 
• timings 

We’ll contact you to discuss whether we can meet your requirements internally.

We’ll also go through the research governance processes (PDF,62KB)  you’ll need to follow. 

If you need to buy research services 

If your project cannot be delivered internally, we can support you to buy research services from a third-party provider. 

Services you can buy externally include: 

• delivering interviews and focus groups 
• engagement with stakeholders and partners 
• programme evaluation 

The process for buying research services depends on your budget. 

Under £10,000

If your budget is under £10,000 (ten thousand), contact research@essex.gov.uk for advice and guidance. 

Over £100,000 

If your budget is over £100,000 (one hundred thousand) you need to contact procurement.team@essex.gov.uk.

Between £10,000 to £100,000

If your budget is between £10,000 to £100,000 (ten thousand to one hundred thousand), you need to invite providers to submit quotes following the research request for quotation (RFQ) process. 

How to complete an RFQ for research services

You will need to follow the main steps in the low risk purchases guidance. 

For the specification, evaluation and contracting steps, you should use these research templates and instructions.

1. Use the research services RFQ response pack (DOCX, 183KB) to create your project specification document and make sure you cover all the necessary details.
2. You’ll need to identify suitable providers. Check the list of known providers (DOCX, 100KB) who provide research, engagement and evaluation services in the UK. Keep a note of why you have selected these providers. 
3. Email your RFQ specification document to a minimum of 5 providers. Give providers a minimum of 2 weeks to send you their quotes (3 to 4 weeks for more complex projects). 
4. Once all the quotes are in, use the scoring template (XLS,44KB) to add your evaluation criteria from your RFQ, and score your providers’ quotes. You should involve 2 to 3 people in the process. This may include your contact in the R&CI team, depending on your project. If you only receive 1 or 2 proposals, you will need authorisation from the procurement team to proceed. 
5. Once you have agreed a provider complete the contract template (DOC,30KB) and following the instructions for awarding the chosen supplier and informing unsuccessful suppliers.

If at any point you are unsure of what steps to take, contact research@essex.gov.uk for advice.