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Concessionary Travel Management

Kent County Council

This public procurement record has 5 releases in its history.

Award

10 Sep 2026 at 11:56

UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Award

17 Aug 2026 at 12:00

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
TenderUpdate

14 May 2026 at 11:08

UK4 - Tender Notice
TenderUpdate

12 May 2026 at 08:48

UK4 - Tender Notice
Tender

06 May 2026 at 16:47

UK4 - Tender Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Kent County Council procured concessionary travel management services for statutory and discretionary travel schemes in Kent. The requirement covers the technical administration and financial forecasting of the England National Concessionary Travel Scheme, the Kent Travel Saver and the 16+ Travel Saver. The supplier manages a large concessionary bus-pass operation covering around 240,000 passes and 17 million annual trips, alongside discounted travel schemes for school pupils, sixth-form students, further-education learners, apprentices and other eligible users. Work includes regulatory advice, scheme publication, operator data collection, usage analysis, reimbursement calculations, payment and reconciliation advice, operator and Department for Transport enquiries, negotiation support and data-quality assurance. The service is delivered for Kent County Council across Kent and falls within transport systems consultancy and technical analysis or consultancy services.

The procurement is complete: SYSTRA Limited was awarded the single contract on 17 August 2026, and the contract was signed on 10 September 2026. It uses an above-threshold open competitive flexible procedure with participation, initial tender, negotiation, final tender and award stages. Two bids reached the final stage, including one from an SME. The award and contract value is £560,448 excluding VAT, or £672,537.60 including VAT. The contract runs from 1 October 2026 to 30 September 2030, with extensions available as either two separate one-year periods or one two-year period, up to 30 September 2032. The sole lot was suitable for SMEs and evaluated using a Price per Quality Point methodology.

This requirement indicates a specialist market for suppliers able to combine public transport consultancy, concessionary fare administration, financial forecasting and robust data analysis. A credible competitor would need to understand statutory concessionary travel regulations and reimbursement arrangements, work directly with bus operators and educational establishments, and support negotiations with transport providers. It would also need capacity to handle high-volume pass and journey data, forecast usage and costs, calculate accurate interim and final payments, manage appeals and respond to formal complaints. Evidence of reliable data governance, quality assurance, timely scheme publication and clear advice to a local authority would be important. The completed competition also shows that an SME reached the final stage, indicating that suitably capable smaller specialist firms can compete for this type of work.

How relevant is this notice?

Notice Information

Notice Title

Concessionary Travel Management

Notice Description

The requirement of the Concessionary Travel Management contract is for the technical administration and associated financial forecasting activities for statutory and discretionary Concessionary Travel Schemes within the Growth, Environment and Transport Directorate and the provision of associated consultancy services. Kent County Council has a statutory duty under The Transport Act (2000), as amended by the Travel Concessions (Eligibility) Act (2007), to provide a concessionary bus pass scheme for qualifying individuals. This is the England National Concessionary Travel Scheme (ENCTS). The ENCTS scheme for Kent involves the management of a scheme, covering circa 240,000 passes and 17 million annual trips based upon data from 2024/25. The budget for ENCTS is circa PS18 million per annum. The Kent Travel Saver provides discounted travel for students in the year groups 7 to 11, who are not entitled to statutory home to school transport. The scheme encompasses 22,000 2 passes, with a gross annual cost of PS14.7 million, net of PS5.1 million to the Council due to pass fee income and contributions from Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) funding. The 16+ Travel Saver provides discounted travel for those eligible who are staying on sixth form, attending further education college, work, learning providers or apprenticeship provider. The scheme is administered by the Council in conjunction with educational establishments, who are provided with funding from national government to provide bursaries for those on low incomes. The supplier will be required to: * Provide technical advice on scheme compatibility with statutory regulations; * Provide forecasted pass use, trips and costs for the scheme year ahead; * Publish scheme details in line with statutory requirements; * Collect data from operators directly, analyse data to identify use and calculate re-imbursement; * Advise the authority on re-imbursement, interim payments and reconciliations; * Respond to enquiries from bus operators; * Respond to the DfT in relation to regular or ad hoc enquiries on behalf of the Council; * Provide technical support to the Authority in negotiations with Operators; and * Ensure the accuracy and quality of usage data. The Supplier will be expected to support the Council in the development of the KTS scheme and the 16+ Travel Saver Scheme The contract periods are: -Initial Term: 01 October 2026 - 30 September 2030 -Optional Extension Term: 01 October 2030 - 30 September 2032

Lot Information

Lot 1

Renewal: The periods for extension will consist of either two single-year extensions or the full two (2) year period.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-0692a2
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/085819-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Tender, Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK7 - Contract Details 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

71 - Architectural, construction, engineering and inspection services

CPV Codes

71311200 - Transport systems consultancy services

71621000 - Technical analysis or consultancy services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£780,000 £500K-£1M
Lots Value
£780,000 £500K-£1M
Awards Value
£560,448 £500K-£1M
Contracts Value
£560,448 £500K-£1M

Notice Dates

Publication Date
10 Sep 20266 days ago
Submission Deadline
12 Jun 2026Expired
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
17 Aug 20261 months ago
Contract Period
1 Oct 2026 - 30 Sep 2030 4-5 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Complete
Awards Status
Active
Contracts Status
Active

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Kent County Council
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
MAIDSTONE
Postcode
ME14 1XQ
Postcode Area
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
TLJ4 Kent
Local Authority
Maidstone
Electoral Ward
Penenden Heath
Westminster Constituency
Maidstone and Malling

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

SYSTRA LIMITED

Further Information

Notice Documents

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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