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S4S Cluster 12 ~ Catering Tender

S4S Cluster 12 ~ Catering Tender

This public procurement record has 2 releases in its history.

Award

04 Sep 2026 at 10:40

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Tender

13 Oct 2025 at 12:06

UK4 - Tender Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Services4Schools (S4S), working with The Litmus Partnership, procured outsourced school catering services for three primary-school settings in Wolverhampton. The requirement covers all catering delivered within the schools, including hospitality and free-issue services. It is divided into two lots: Claregate Primary School in Tettenhall, and Christ Church Federation, comprising Christ Church CE Infant School and Nursery and Christ Church CE Junior School in Tettenhall Wood. Bidders were expected to offer for all three schools as one contract, although each lot could be awarded separately. The work is school catering services (CPV 55524000), serving schools with differing operational requirements across the S4S Cluster 12 arrangement.

This procurement has been awarded through an open competitive flexible procedure. The two lots were awarded separately to Aspens Services Ltd on 19 May 2026: Claregate Primary School for £608,000 gross, and Christ Church Federation for £436,440 gross. Both awards have an initial contract period from 17 September 2026 to 1 April 2029, with renewal permitted to a maximum extent date of 1 April 2031. Evaluation weighted quality at 70% and price at 30%; each lot received five bids, including two from SMEs. The tender enquiry deadline was 7 November 2025, submissions closed on 9 January 2026, and the award decision period ended on 18 February 2026. Both lots were identified as suitable for SMEs.

This award demonstrates established demand from S4S for managed catering across multiple primary schools, with separate opportunities for a single school or a federation when the requirement returns. Credible competitors will need experience operating across primary schools with varying requirements, supported by strong service quality and competitive pricing. The successful operating model requires a robust operational base in the West Midlands, allowing reliable contract support and flexibility across the schools. Suppliers should be able to manage outsourced catering operations, hospitality and free-issue provision, and deliver on a guaranteed-performance basis with budget discipline and profit-sharing arrangements. Workforce-transfer capability is important because TUPE applies, while suppliers taking on staff in the Local Government Pension Scheme need to secure Admitted Body Status and continue pension contributions.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

S4S Cluster 12 ~ Catering Tender

Notice Description

This tender process is a collaborative project, undertaken by The Litmus Partnership Ltd on behalf of Services4Schools (S4S). This is a Lotted tender process for three Schools. The successful Supplier will be required to provide catering services for the following Schools within S4S Cluster 12. Lot 1 Claregate Primary School, Chester Avenue, Tettenhall, Wolverhampton, WV 6 9JU https://www.claregateprimaryschool.co.uk/ Lot 2 Christ Church Federation, comprising: Christ Church CE (VC) Infant School & Nursery, Shaw Lane, Tettenhall Wood, Wolverhampton, WV6 8EL Christ Church CE (VC) Junior School, Woodcote Road, Tettenhall Wood, Wolverhampton, WV6 8LG https://www.christchurchfederation.co.uk/ It is expected that any bidding contractor will submit for all three Schools as one contract, however, there is the option for each Lot to award their contract individually. The contract covers the scope for the provision of all catering services within the Schools, which is inclusive of all hospitality and free issue requirements. The duration of the contract being offered is for an initial three-year period commencing on 02 April 2026 and concluding on 01 April 2029, with the potential to then extend for a further two 12-month periods. This extension will be granted by mutual consent and on the same terms and conditions as the original contract without the right to further extend beyond the full five years. The contract being offered within this tender will be on a guaranteed performance basis, with an expected profit share of any betterment to the agreed budget. The Cluster is seeking a suitably experienced contractor who is able to evidence working with multiple Primary Schools with varying requirements. The successful contractor will already have, or need to develop, a strong operational base within the West Midlands, thus allowing for both adequate contract support and operational flexibility that is to be delivered to support the contract as and when needed moving forwards into this contract term. The services across the Schools are currently outsourced, and TUPE is expected to apply. It is anticipated that a number of the current employees are members of the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) and, in this instance, the successful contractor will be expected to gain Admitted Body Status (ABS) in order to continue contributing to the scheme. Please see PSQ Document for more information.

Lot Information

Claregate Primary School

Renewal: 3+!+! Please see PSQ document for more information.

Christ Church Federation

Renewal: 3+1+1 Please see PSQ document for more information.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-05ae24
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/083793-2026
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
Large

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

55 - Hotel, restaurant and retail trade services

CPV Codes

55524000 - School catering services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£1,044,440 £1M-£10M
Lots Value
£1,044,440 £1M-£10M
Awards Value
£1,044,440 £1M-£10M
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
4 Sep 20261 months ago
Submission Deadline
9 Jan 2026Expired
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
19 May 20265 months ago
Contract Period
17 Sep 2026 - 1 Apr 2029 2-3 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
S4S Cluster 12 ~ Catering Tender
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
WOLVERHAMPTON
Postcode
WV6 8LG
Postcode Area
Wolverhampton
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLG West Midlands (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLG3 West Midlands
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLG39 Wolverhampton
Delivery Location
TLG39 Wolverhampton
Local Authority
Wolverhampton
Electoral Ward
Tettenhall Wightwick
Westminster Constituency
Wolverhampton West

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

Aspens Services Ltd

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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