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Soft Market Engagement - Christmas Market

Sheffield City Council

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Tender

05 Oct 2026 at 09:03

Tender Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Sheffield City Council is seeking to hear from suppliers interested in providing a Christmas market. The potential requirement falls within event services and retail trade services, and would be delivered in Sheffield. The Council describes this as a soft market engagement: it wants to understand supplier interest and gather information about the market. This is an exploratory exercise rather than a request to deliver a defined package of event services. Suppliers involved in Christmas markets, event organisation or market trading may find the subject relevant, but the exercise itself is intended to inform the Council rather than procure a service.

The buyer invited suppliers to respond through a soft market engagement, not a formal tender. The Council says the exercise will not lead to a contract award; it is gathering information and assessing the level of interest in the service. The stated response deadline was 16 October 2026 at 12:00. The recorded period for the potential activity runs from 17 to 18 October 2026. No procurement procedure, contract value, evaluation criteria, eligibility requirements or division into lots is set out. As this is market testing rather than a competition, suppliers should treat participation as an opportunity to inform the Council, not as a bid for a contract.

This engagement is relevant to businesses that organise or operate Christmas markets, provide event services, or support market retail activity. It offers a route to communicate market interest and potentially help the Council understand what suppliers can offer before any formal procurement is considered. The published requirement does not set out specific technical capabilities, accreditations, experience thresholds, capacity requirements or participation conditions, so suppliers cannot assess a defined delivery specification from the stated terms. The Council also indicates that the exercise is not a contract opportunity and will not itself result in a contract. Businesses seeking an immediate paid commission or a competitive tender to deliver a market should therefore distinguish this exploratory engagement from a procurement to win.

How relevant is this notice?

Notice Information

Notice Title

Soft Market Engagement - Christmas Market

Notice Description

Sheffield City Council is conducting a Soft Market Engagement activity to understand whether there are any suppliers of a Christmas Market interested in working with the Council. This soft market test exercise therefore does not constitute a formal tender and will not result in the letting of a contract. This process is solely to test the market to gather information and ascertain the level of interest in this Service.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-b5fd17-8e2dfed8-0f51-4dc1-b0a0-e063a19bd7ba
Publication Source
Contracts Finder
Latest Notice
https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/fb73f560-59af-4747-b2c4-63844071919e
Current Stage
Tender
All Stages
Tender

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
Tender Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Not Specified
Procurement Method Details
Not specified
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Not specified

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

55 - Hotel, restaurant and retail trade services

79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security

CPV Codes

55900000 - Retail trade services

79952000 - Event services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
5 Oct 2026Yesterday
Submission Deadline
16 Oct 20262 weeks to go
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
17 Oct 2026 - 18 Oct 2026 30 days
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Active
Lots Status
Not Specified
Awards Status
Not Specified
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Sheffield City Council
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
SHEFFIELD
Postcode
S1 2HH
Postcode Area
Sheffield
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLE Yorkshire and The Humber
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLE3 South Yorkshire
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLE32 Sheffield
Delivery Location
TLE Yorkshire and The Humber
Local Authority
Sheffield
Electoral Ward
City
Westminster Constituency
Sheffield Central

Further Information

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

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The Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS) is a framework designed to increase transparency and access to public procurement data in the public sector. It is widely used by governments and organisations worldwide to report on procurement processes and contracts.

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