What the price covers
Quotes for the same project often differ because each builder has priced a different job. A tender package removes that. For £1,095 we assemble a coordinated set of architectural, structural and building regulations drawings, a specification written clause by clause, and a schedule of works that each builder prices in the same order. They all price the same thing.
You then compare totals and line items, ask each builder about the differences, and choose with the facts. It is the document a careful client would want before signing a building contract.
When it pays for itself
A tender is worth having when the budget is large or the building old, because the hidden costs live in the gaps between drawings and quotes: who supplies the steel, who allows for the party wall, who pays to make good. A schedule makes each gap a line that must be filled.
It also helps you after the quote. A fixed specification is the benchmark for variations. If a builder wants to change a material, the schedule shows what was agreed.
Who carries the client's duties
On a domestic job, the law sets duties on the client that most owners never knew they had. With a single contractor, a domestic client's duties pass to that contractor; a designer can take them on by written agreement as principal designer, and without that agreement they pass automatically to the principal contractor.
That is worth knowing before you sign. Ask your designer and builder who holds which duty before the build starts, and get the answer in writing.
Notices a builder must give
Building control must be told of the intention to start, and work may start two days after the notice; it must hear within five days that work has begun. Your builder gives these notices; the package reminds them of both.
Builders must also be competent for the work they take on: regulation 11F puts that duty on anyone who designs or carries out building work. Ask each tenderer how they meet it. Our tender package page shows the layout.
Ordering
If we drew the project, the package follows from the drawings. If another designer did, send the set. Either way we confirm the fee in writing first.
The figures, with sources
Single contractor
On a one-contractor job a domestic client's duties pass to the contractor.
Source: HSE, Domestic clients and CDM 2015, checked 25 Oct 2026
Principal designer
A designer can take on the client's duties by written agreement.
Source: HSE, Domestic clients and CDM 2015, checked 25 Oct 2026
Default
Without a written agreement, the duties pass automatically to the principal contractor.
Source: HSE, Domestic clients and CDM 2015, checked 25 Oct 2026
2 days
Wait after notice of intention to start before building work may begin.
Source: Building Regulations 2010, regulation 16, checked 15 Oct 2026
5 days
Longest wait after work starts before telling building control it has commenced.
Source: Building Regulations 2010, regulation 16, checked 15 Oct 2026
Reg. 11F
Anyone designing or carrying out building work must have the skills, knowledge and experience for it.
Source: Building Regulations 2010, regulation 11F, checked 15 Oct 2026
Questions
Do you find the builders for me?
No. You choose who to invite; we prepare the package and, if you wish, compare the returns.
Is the build cost included?
No. Build costs are the builders' quotes. The package is the document that lets you compare them.
Can I use it with drawings you did not make?
Yes, after we have read them and agreed the fee.
Do I need one on a small job?
On a modest project a single quote may be enough. We tell you honestly if a package would not pay for itself.
The fee for tender package
What you get
- A coordinated set of drawings to build from
- A written specification of materials and finishes
- A pricing schedule for each builder to complete
- A tender letter with dates, queries and exclusions
- A comparison of the returned tenders
