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Bedford Borough Leisure Facilities Management

Bedford Borough Council

This public procurement record has 2 releases in its history.

PlanningUpdate

21 Jul 2026 at 16:50

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Planning

21 Jul 2026 at 14:23

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Bedford Borough Council is planning a long-term leisure facilities management contract covering the operation of its five existing leisure sites in Bedford Borough. The service is classified as sporting services and falls within the wider leisure and sports facilities management market. The appointed operator would be responsible for managing the council’s current estate and delivering ongoing leisure operations across those sites. This is a services procurement for organisations that operate public leisure facilities, sports centres or comparable community assets. The work will be delivered at the council’s existing facilities in Bedford Borough. The council is engaging potential bidders to understand the market and inform its procurement strategy before bringing the operating contract to market.

This procurement is at the planning stage and is not an invitation to tender. Bedford Borough Council intends to use market engagement before finalising its procurement strategy. Interested organisations are asked to review the briefing and questionnaire and return completed responses through the council’s e-tendering portal by 7 August 2026 at 5pm. The planned contract would cover the five existing sites from 1 February 2027 to 31 January 2041. The published information sets out a long-term operating arrangement, but does not yet establish a tender submission process, award timetable or contract value. Businesses should therefore treat the engagement as an opportunity to help shape the future procurement rather than as a bid stage.

The engagement is most relevant to established leisure operators, sports and recreation organisations, and service providers with experience running multiple public-facing facilities. Suppliers well placed to contribute are likely to have operational management capability across a portfolio of sites, including staffing, customer services, facilities management, programming and day-to-day service delivery. Experience of operating community leisure assets for a local authority or similar public body would be particularly relevant. The scale and long-term nature of the proposed arrangement suggest that participants should be able to demonstrate organisational capacity, financial resilience and a credible approach to sustaining services over many years. Businesses with specialist leisure expertise may also consider whether a consortium or delivery partnership would suit the eventual contract.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Bedford Borough Leisure Facilities Management

Notice Description

Bedford Borough Council wishes to engage with potential bidders for a long term leisure operating contract, managing the operation of its current 5 sites. The Council has produced a questionnaire and invites participants to complete and feedback to inform the Council's procurement strategy. Participants are invited to register to our e-tendering portal where the questionnaire and briefing document can be downloaded and returned.

Planning Information

Participants should access Bedford's e-tendering portal, In-Tend, here: https://in-tendhost.co.uk/bedford/aspx/Home Please login or register to the portal, and locate project BBC EN 04282. Within this project, participants can locate the combined briefing and questionnaire. Please return completed questionnaires via the project correspondence function on In-Tend by 7 August at 5pm.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-06cff4
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/068883-2026
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
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Not specified

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

92 - Recreational, cultural and sporting services

CPV Codes

92600000 - Sporting services

Notice Value(s)

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

Notice Dates

Publication Date
21 Jul 20261 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
1 Feb 2027 - 31 Jan 2041 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
Bedford Borough 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
BEDFORD
Postcode
MK42 9AP
Postcode Area
Milton Keynes
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLH East (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLH2 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLH24 Bedford
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Bedford
Electoral Ward
Cauldwell
Westminster Constituency
Bedford

Further Information

Notice Documents

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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