Planning

A Kentish Ceremony

KENT COUNTY COUNCIL

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

PlanningUpdate

05 Nov 2025 at 12:05

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
PlanningUpdate

03 Nov 2025 at 16:06

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Planning

28 Oct 2025 at 14:05

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Kent County Council is currently in the planning stage of procuring services under the project "A Kentish Ceremony." The procurement process seeks to appoint a supplier capable of managing the Kentish Ceremony brand, which includes magazine management, content creation, ad space sales, printing, distribution, and digital platform management. This initiative also involves producing the annual Bereavement Guide for Kent County and Bexley Council. The procurement falls under the services category with an estimated contract value of £420,000, running from 1st June 2026 to 31st May 2029. Suppliers are invited to participate in a market engagement process that includes completing a questionnaire by 26th November 2025, with submissions to be made through the Kent Business Portal.

This procurement opportunity offers significant potential for businesses engaged in magazine management, content creation, digital media, and advertisement sales. Companies with expertise in designing and managing digital content platforms and print production will find this tender particularly relevant. This contract provides a platform for growth and extension of services, particularly for businesses wanting to expand in the ceremonial publication industry within the United Kingdom. The involvement in producing governmental guides also opens avenues for networking and partnership within the procurement ecosystem of public sector projects.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

A Kentish Ceremony

Notice Description

Kent County Council (the Council) is planning a procurement process to appoint a new supplier through a contract for the delivery of services related to the Kentish Ceremony brand. This will include full-service management of the magazine, covering design, content curation, selling ad space, printing, and distribution, as well as ongoing management of the associated website and social media channels. The contract will also include the creation, printing, and distribution of the annual Bereavement Guide, produced on behalf of Kent County Council and Bexley Council. To view this notice, please click here: https://www.kentbusinessportal.org.uk/delta/viewNotice.html?noticeId=992168293

Planning Information

Kent County Council (the Council) is engaging with suppliers regarding capacity in the market to provide the Kentish Ceremony requirements, via a market engagement exercise in October/November 2025. All interested suppliers are asked to complete the published market engagement questionnaire and return to the Council by Wednesday 26th November 2025 deadline. After which further virtual market engagement discussions may be held with suppliers to discuss responses further in more detail. As part of the Market Engagement exercise, all interested organisations are invited to complete a Market Engagement questionnaire via the Kent Business Portal (https://www.kentbusinessportal.org.uk/) (Ref: 989981095). This will be used to gather information, and build on our existing market intelligence to shape our procurement strategy. All responses to this questionnaire should be submitted via the Kent Business Portal, no later than 12pm on Wednesday 26th November 2025. All questionnaire responses will be treated as ‘commercial in confidence. Please use the following access code to submit your market engagement questionnaire: 6F9F528U6W

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-05d554
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/071221-2025
Current Stage
Planning
All Stages
Planning

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement 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

22 - Printed matter and related products

72 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support

CPV Codes

22213000 - Magazines

72212224 - Web page editing software development services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£420,000 £100K-£500K
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
5 Nov 20253 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
26 Nov 2025Expired
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
31 May 2026 - 31 May 2029 3-4 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Planning
Lots Status
Planning
Awards Status
Not Specified
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
KENT COUNTY COUNCIL
Contact Name
Laura Garay
Contact Email
laura.garay2@kent.gov.uk
Contact Phone
Not specified

Buyer Location

Locality
MAIDSTONE
Postcode
ME14 1XQ
Post Town
Rochester
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLJ South East (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLJ4 Kent
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLJ45 Mid Kent
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Maidstone
Electoral Ward
Penenden Heath
Westminster Constituency
Maidstone and Malling

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

Download

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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