Notice Information
Notice Title
E-Act Catering Tender
Notice Description
E-ACT is a dynamic, successful and growing Multi Academy Trust with primary and secondary academies across London, Bristol, Daventry, Birmingham, Oldham and Sheffield. The Trust has grown to 37 academies, with more than 93% rated Good or Outstanding by Ofsted, and 100% of them achieving the highest grade for leadership and management. Recognised nationally, E-ACT was named MAT of the Year at the 2023 MAT Excellence Awards. Guided by their mantra of "Opening Minds, Opening Doors," the Trust is committed to ensuring that disadvantaged students have equal opportunities to succeed and thrive. The Trust is tendering its catering services in three Lots, with a contract commencement date of 1st August 2026. Bidders are invited to submit proposals for individual Lots or multiple Lots collectively. The initial contract term will be three years, with a potential extension for a further two years (either 1+1 years or a single 2-year extension), subject to client satisfaction and mutual agreement on budgets and service levels. The Trust is conducting the procurement through a two stage Competitive Flexible process under the Light Touch Regime. The process will begin with a Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ) stage, followed by an Invitation to Tender (ITT) stage for shortlisted bidders. In line with the flexibility permitted under the Light Touch Regime, the Trust reserves the right to refine the award criteria during the process. Capital Investment is not required in bidders' proposals. * Lot One is London and Bucks, 9 academies and annual turnover circa PS1,102,445 * Lot Two is Bristol 13 academies and annual turnover circa PS613,800. * Lot Three is North and Midlands, 15 academies annual turnover circa PS1,674,600. The new contract will reward maximising sales and FSM uptake through pro-active management, consistently high food quality and tangible contract support. The Trust and CCL expect the successful Contractor to guarantee their financial proposals and maintain excellent standards throughout the life of the contract. At present, the Trust operates a 'price per meal' model for Free School Meals (FSM) in primaries and secondary academies, under which the Contractor only invoices for the food cost of the meal. All other sales are processed via cashless systems, with some sixth form cafes use POS terminals for contactless payments. This process is currently under review. The Trust requires a TUPE-compliant bid, including additional recommendations on service equipment, serving points, staffing levels and a bespoke food concept designed to drive sales and uptake. In summary, the Trust must be convinced that bidders can deliver their promises, achieve their sales targets, deliver their service enhancements in full and provide ongoing support to the academies. Should the Trust not receive suitable bids, they reserve the right to cancel the procurement or revert to an 'insourced' solution. Any proposals for marketing and light equipment investment must comply with DFE guidelines. The successful bidder will be expected to operate with a strong partnership, integrity and honesty.
Lot Information
Lot 1
Renewal: The two year extension is based upon contract performance and mutual agreement.
Notice Details
Publication & Lifecycle
- Open Contracting ID
- ocds-h6vhtk-059e09
- Publication Source
- Find A Tender Service
- Latest Notice
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/058069-2025
- Current Stage
- Tender
- All Stages
- Tender
Procurement Classification
- Notice Type
- UK4 - Tender Notice
- Procurement Type
- Standard
- Procurement Category
- Services
- Procurement Method
- Selective
- Procurement Method Details
- Competitive flexible procedure
- Tender Suitability
- Not specified
- Awardee Scale
- Not specified
Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)
- CPV Divisions
55 - Hotel, restaurant and retail trade services
-
- CPV Codes
55524000 - School catering services
Notice Value(s)
- Tender Value
- £10,173,000 £10M-£100M
- Lots Value
- £10,173,000 £10M-£100M
- Awards Value
- Not specified
- Contracts Value
- Not specified
Notice Dates
- Publication Date
- 19 Sep 20255 months ago
- Submission Deadline
- 21 Oct 2025Expired
- Future Notice Date
- Not specified
- Award Date
- Not specified
- Contract Period
- 31 Jul 2026 - 31 Jul 2029 3-4 years
- Recurrence
- Not specified
Notice Status
- Tender Status
- Active
- Lots Status
- Active
- Awards Status
- Not Specified
- Contracts Status
- Not Specified
Buyer & Supplier
Contracting Authority (Buyer)
- Main Buyer
- E-ACT
- Additional Buyers
- Contact Name
- CCL Procurement Team
- Contact Email
- info@cohesionconsulting.co.uk
- Contact Phone
- Not specified
Buyer Location
- Locality
- KETTERING
- Postcode
- NN15 7HP
- Post Town
- Northampton
- Country
- England
-
- Major Region (ITL 1)
- TLJ South East (England)
- Basic Region (ITL 2)
- TLJ4 Kent
- Small Region (ITL 3)
- TLJ46 West Kent
- Delivery Location
- TLD37 Greater Manchester North East, TLE32 Sheffield, TLF24 West Northamptonshire, TLG31 Birmingham, TLI7 Outer London - West and North West, TLK11 Bristol, City of
-
- Local Authority
- Tunbridge Wells
- Electoral Ward
- Park
- Westminster Constituency
- Tunbridge Wells
Further Information
Notice Documents
-
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/058069-2025
19th September 2025 - Tender notice on Find a Tender -
www.in-tendhost.co.uk/cohesionconsulting/aspx/Home
All documents are available free of charge on the above link.
Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)
View full OCDS Record for this contracting process
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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