Award

Ambition Education Trust ~ Cleaning Tender

AMBITION EDUCATION TRUST

This public procurement record has 2 releases in its history.

Award

16 Apr 2026 at 15:19

Tender

11 Jul 2025 at 11:22

Summary of the contracting process

The Ambition Education Trust, located at Sandringham School in St Albans, Hertfordshire, is engaging in a procurement process for school cleaning services through an open competitive flexible procedure, as set out by the Procurement Act 2023. The contract, valued at approximately £700,000 per annum, will cover five schools: Ridgeway Academy, Verulam School, St Albans Girls' School, The Adeyfield Academy, and Garden Fields School. This process is currently at the award stage, with GSO Limited identified as a supplier. The contract spans from 29 April 2026 to 31 March 2029, with potential extensions up to 31 March 2031. Noteworthy dates include the award notice published on 16 April 2026 and the anticipated contract signature date on 28 April 2026.

This procurement represents a substantial opportunity for businesses specialising in cleaning services to establish or expand their footprint in the educational sector across Hertfordshire. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) will find this tender particularly advantageous due to its comprehensive scope and the emphasis on innovative cleaning technologies and methods that adhere to BICSc standards. The structured partnership model, requiring proactive management and consistent adherence to cleanliness and communication criteria, encourages the involvement of companies capable of delivering high-quality, efficient cleaning solutions. This tender promises significant business growth prospects for suppliers who meet the stringent requirements outlined by the Ambition Education Trust.

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Notice Title

Ambition Education Trust ~ Cleaning Tender

Notice Description

The Ambition Education trust (AET) was formed on 1st September 2024, growing from a friendly merger of two previous successful trusts, Alban Academies Trust and ATLAS MAT. The new vision and values of AET strongly mirror those from the two, previous trusts. The trust is composed of 10 schools situated in Hertfordshire, across St Albans, Welwyn Garden City and Hemel Hempstead. There are three primaries, one infants, one junior and five secondary schools with over 800 staff delivering high-quality education to over 7500 young people from the ages 3 to 18. The overall aim of the Trust is to achieve Educational Excellence for All. The successful Supplier will be required to provide cleaning services for Ambitions Education Trust in the following schools: * Ridgeway Academy (Secondary) * Verulam School (Secondary) * St Albans Girls' School (STAGS) (Secondary) * The Adeyfield Academy (Secondary) * Garden Fields School (Primary) This procurement is being conducted under a competitive flexible procedure in accordance with the Procurement Act 2023. Following the initial selection stage, the Contracting Authority intends to invite up to five suppliers to participate in the tender stage. Selection will be based on the criteria set out in the PSQ/tender documents and will be applied in a transparent and non-discriminatory manner. Suppliers must meet the minimum conditions of participation in order to progress to the tender stage. Contract value is likely to be around PS700,000 per annum Part 2 ~ Opportunity Overview The school project stakeholder's aims for this process are as follows: * Consistency of cleanliness across the schools * Quality of local and off-site supervision (auditing/ training/ communication/ recruitment) * Improving communication between the service provider and school stakeholders and between the service provider and the trust * Upgrade of machinery and technology and review of chemicals used * Disciplined reporting and adherence to the meeting cycle to assure that reactive and proactive works are prioritised and completed * Development true sense of partnership with the successful service provider The basis and rationale that the Client requires the successful Supplier to operate to at all times is being able to provide a school cleaning service that is fit for purpose and that the Supplier is proactive in the management of the contract, thus ensuring that all specifications are achieved and that the frequency of cleans is as detailed within the tender specification. The contract being tendered is for three years in duration from April 2026 until end March 2029 with the option to extend upon agreement with the Client, for a further two-year period (awarded in singular years). The contract will be fixed price in nature, with the Supplier invoicing the Client for one-twelfth of the annual cost on a monthly basis, however the successful supplier will be expected to return any hours not worked to the trust. It should be noted that the successful Supplier will be expected to bring to the contract: innovation; technology; new equipment; and cleaning methods, with BICSc standards being achieved, as a minimum, thus ensuring that the highest levels of cleanliness are maintained in all areas at all times and also ensuring that the productivity of the cleaning operatives is enhanced moving forward into the new contract term. The incumbent supplier in the four secondary schools is KGB - as a result of two historical tender processes. Ridgeway and Verulam are currently working to an input specification whereas STAGS and the Adeyfield Academy are working to an output specification. The main ITT will set out the specification type that is preferable to the client. Garden Fields Primary School has Origin Cleaning Ltd as its incumbent supplier. There are likely to be several members of staff at each school enrolled in LGPS Please see PSQ document for reference.

Lot Information

Lot 1

Renewal: The contract being tendered is for three years in duration from April 2026 until end March 2029 with the option to extend upon agreement with the Client, for a further two-year period (awarded in singular years). The contract will be fixed price in nature, with the Supplier invoicing the Client for one-twelfth of the annual cost on a monthly basis, however the successful supplier will be expected to return any hours not worked to the trust.

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-055d8f
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/034869-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Tender, Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Open
Procurement Method Details
Competitive flexible procedure
Tender Suitability
SME
Awardee Scale
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

90 - Sewage, refuse, cleaning and environmental services


CPV Codes

90919300 - School cleaning services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£3,500,000 £1M-£10M
Lots Value
£3,500,000 £1M-£10M
Awards Value
£3,500,000 £1M-£10M
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
16 Apr 20261 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
28 Nov 2025Expired
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
19 Dec 20254 months ago
Contract Period
28 Apr 2026 - 31 Mar 2029 2-3 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Complete
Awards Status
Pending
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
AMBITION EDUCATION TRUST
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
HERTFORDSHIRE
Postcode
AL4 9NX
Post Town
St Albans
Country
England

Major Region (ITL 1)
TLH East (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLH2 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLH27 South West Hertfordshire
Delivery Location
TLH2 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire

Local Authority
St Albans
Electoral Ward
Marshalswick West
Westminster Constituency
St Albans

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

GSO

Further Information

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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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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