Planning

Birmingham Holiday Activities and Food Programme 2026-2029

BIRMINGHAM CITY COUNCIL

This public procurement record has 2 releases in its history.

PlanningUpdate

12 Feb 2026 at 11:28

Planning

12 Feb 2026 at 11:23

Summary of the contracting process

Birmingham City Council is seeking to understand the market through a soft market testing exercise related to the Birmingham Holiday Activities and Food Programme 2026-2029. The Council, located at Council House, 1 Victoria Square, Birmingham, is inviting interested organisations to participate by completing a questionnaire via their e-tendering system In-tend. This exercise, part of the planning stage, is designed to gather insights into provider capabilities, helping shape future commissioning intentions. The project spans the welfare services for children and young people, children's holiday-camp services, and school meals industry categories in the UKG31 region. Key dates include a submission deadline for the market testing exercise on 1 March 2026, and the commencement of the actual programme from October 2026 to March 2029, with a potential contract extension for an additional year.

This tender presents significant growth opportunities for businesses specialising in programme management services within the children's welfare and educational support sectors. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and voluntary, community, and social enterprises (VCSEs) are particularly encouraged to participate, as the project's scope includes supporting children eligible for free school meals in Birmingham. Engaging in this tender could enhance business visibility and establish a robust partnership with Birmingham City Council, contributing to a positive community impact while expanding operational capacity. The procurement is currently in the planning phase, involving market engagement to refine the delivery strategy for effective service provision.

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Notice Title

Birmingham Holiday Activities and Food Programme 2026-2029

Notice Description

Birmingham City Council is conducting soft market testing to gain a better understanding of the provider landscape and gather insight into the market for a potential procurement of a programme management function for the Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) programme. The purpose of this exercise is to explore market experience, capability, approaches, and capacity to help shape our commissioning intentions. The HAF programme provides a wide range of holiday activities and food for children and young people eligible for free school meals, as well as those who meet other qualifying criteria. We are inviting interested organisations to review this briefing and complete the accompanying questionnaire to support our understanding of how the market could contribute to the effective delivery of this programme management function. The Contract will be for 2.5 years, commencing October 2026 and ending 31st March 2029, with a potential option to extend for 1 year.

Planning Information

Information relating to the soft market testing is being issued via the Council’s e-tendering system, In-tend, with a link to an MS Form questionnaire. Interested organisations are requested to complete and submit the questionnaire using the link provided. Please click on the link to complete the questionnaire on MS Forms https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=Z86aaeTSzUuzA9K74rm78c7xM9WhwgRHmLmGJ-9yP5dUMTYzOEc2SDQ4S0ZZUklSTlAwTk9aRjg0RC4u&route=shorturl The ‘In-tend’ system is secure and free to use for organisations. If you have any questions on how to use this website, please contact the CPS Help Desk email cps@birmingham.gov.uk This exercise is purely exploratory and designed to help the Council assess the viability and scope of any future procurement. Participation is entirely voluntary and will not affect your eligibility to take part in any subsequent procurement activity Closing date for submission of response: 12:00hrs (NOON) 1 March 2026

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-064ec8
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/012780-2026
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
SME, VCSE
Awardee Scale
Not specified

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

15 - Food, beverages, tobacco and related products

55 - Hotel, restaurant and retail trade services

85 - Health and social work services


CPV Codes

15894210 - School meals

55243000 - Children's holiday-camp services

85311300 - Welfare services for children and young people

Notice Value(s)

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

Notice Dates

Publication Date
12 Feb 20261 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
1 Apr 20262 months to go
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
30 Sep 2026 - 31 Mar 2029 2-3 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
BIRMINGHAM CITY COUNCIL
Contact Name
Commercial and Procurement Services
Contact Email
etendering@birmingham.gov.uk
Contact Phone
Not specified

Buyer Location

Locality
BIRMINGHAM
Postcode
B1 1BB
Post Town
Birmingham
Country
England

Major Region (ITL 1)
TLG West Midlands (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLG3 West Midlands
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLG31 Birmingham
Delivery Location
TLG31 Birmingham

Local Authority
Birmingham
Electoral Ward
Ladywood
Westminster Constituency
Birmingham Ladywood

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

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