Planning

Provision of Managed Payroll & Pension Administration Service

PLYMOUTH CAST MULTI ACADEMY TRUST

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Planning

07 May 2026 at 14:53

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Plymouth CAST Multi Academy Trust is in the planning stage of a procurement process for a managed payroll and pension administration service. Located in Plymouth, UK, the Trust aims to consolidate its payroll and pension functions across its diverse school locations. This initiative is set within the "services" industry category and involves a pre-market engagement exercise scheduled for completion by 5th June 2026. Interested suppliers can engage in dialogue sessions on 5th June 2026, with written submissions due by the end of that day. The formal procurement process is expected to commence with a future notice tentatively planned for 1st September 2026.

This tender provides significant business growth opportunities for companies specialising in payroll management and pension fund administration services. The procurement process is especially suitable for SMEs interested in offering scalable solutions that can enhance operational efficiencies, reporting compliance, and user experience across educational institutions. Enterprises capable of demonstrating innovation in system integration, implementation, and commercial models stand a good chance to benefit from this opportunity, potentially securing a contract valued at approximately £500,000, expandable to approximately £600,000 over a five-year term with possible extensions.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Provision of Managed Payroll & Pension Administration Service

Notice Description

Plymouth CAST is undertaking a pre-market engagement exercise to inform the development of a future procurement for a managed payroll and pension administration service. Through this engagement, the Trust aims to: * Test the feasibility of the proposed service scope; * Understand current market solutions and innovation; * Inform system integration requirements; * Explore implementation and transition approaches; * Understand commercial and pricing models; * Identify risks or considerations prior to formal tender. The Trust currently operates payroll and pension administration across multiple schools and locations, with central oversight provided by the finance and HR teams. The Trust intends to move to a single managed payroll and pension administration solution that supports: * Consistent processes across all schools; * Improved reporting and compliance; * Efficient workflows between schools and central teams; * Improved user experience for employees and managers; * Scalability to support future Trust growth if required.

Planning Information

https://uk.eu-supply.com/app/rfq/rwlentrance_s.asp?PID=104249&TID=100109420&B= This pre-market engagement is intended to inform the Trust’s detailed specification and procurement strategy, and the Trust welcomes dialogue with interested suppliers to help shape a future tender that delivers a robust, education-focused payroll solution. Suppliers will be offered a 1-hour slot on Friday 5th June 2026. A maximum of 6 slots are available If you wish to book in a slot, please message the request through the tendering portal EU Supply with your email address with your preferred date and time for Friday 5th June 2026. Slots will be allocated on a first come first serve basis. Once all slots are booked out we will have to respectfully decline any further requests. However, written submissions can be provided for the questions provided within the pre-market engagement document shared as a document within the tender portal which must be submitted by 4pm on the 5th June 2026. All information from these meetings will be shared within the tender pack, where it has been deemed as not commercially sensitive.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-0693bb
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/042089-2026
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
Awardee Scale
Not specified

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

66 - Financial and insurance services

79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security

CPV Codes

66520000 - Pension services

66523100 - Pension fund administration services

79211110 - Payroll management services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£500,000 £500K-£1M
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
7 May 20261 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
1 Sep 20264 months to go
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
3 May 2027 - 2 May 2032 Over 5 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
PLYMOUTH CAST MULTI ACADEMY TRUST
Additional Buyers

PHP LAW LLP

Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
TOTNES
Postcode
TQ9 5RW
Post Town
Torquay
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLK South West (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLK4 Devon
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLK41 Plymouth
Delivery Location
TLK South West (England)
Local Authority
Plymouth
Electoral Ward
Eggbuckland
Westminster Constituency
Plymouth Moor View

Further Information

Notice Documents

Notice URLs

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

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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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