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Appointment of an Independent Competent Person (ICP) to support undertaking Safety Verification for the Mass Transit Project (Sheffield Supertram Network)

South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Planning

09 Sep 2026 at 17:42

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority intends to appoint an Independent Competent Person to support formal safety verification for the Mass Transit Project, renewing the Sheffield Supertram Network. The work covers engineering and railway-track inspection services across the light rail system, including its 32 trams, 29 kilometres of track, 12 substations, depot, overhead line electrification, bridges, underpass, earthworks, drainage, signalling and communications assets. The network operates mainly in Sheffield and extends to Rotherham using tram-train technology. The Independent Competent Person will support safety verification when renewed or modified infrastructure and vehicles are introduced, in line with the Railways and Other Guided Systems (Safety) Regulations 2006. The buyer is the network owner and strategic infrastructure manager.

This is a preliminary planning and market-engagement exercise, not an invitation to tender. The authority is seeking views on market capability, suitable procurement routes and anticipated cost before selecting its approach. It expects the service contract to run from 15 October 2026 to 31 March 2028. There is one planned lot covering the full requirement, and the procurement is identified as suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises. A market-engagement questionnaire is scheduled for completion and return by 23 September 2026. The authority has not yet set out a final procurement procedure, tender method, evaluation basis or contract value. Suppliers should treat the dates as indicative expectations and use the engagement stage to explain how they could deliver the requirement.

This will suit organisations able to act independently as a Competent Person under the Railways and Other Guided Systems (Safety) Regulations 2006, with strong railway or guided-transport safety verification capability. Relevant suppliers are likely to understand the duties of transport undertakings and infrastructure managers, safety management systems, and formal verification for new or modified vehicles and infrastructure. Experience spanning light rail assets would be particularly relevant, including track, trams, electrification, substations, civil engineering, signalling and communications. Firms with the technical breadth to assess a complex operating network and support a substantial asset-renewal programme should use the engagement to set out their capability, preferred contractual route and anticipated service cost. The single-lot structure is expressly suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Appointment of an Independent Competent Person (ICP) to support undertaking Safety Verification for the Mass Transit Project (Sheffield Supertram Network)

Notice Description

The purpose of this exercise is to support the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) to identify and select an appropriate procurement route for appointing an 'Independent Competent Person' as defined in the Railways and Other Guided Systems (Safety) Regulations 2006 in relation to the Mass Transit (Supertram) Renewal Project. SYMCA is keen to understand market capability, preferred contractual routes, and an anticipated cost for the services required. This exercise consists of a short market engagement questionnaire for completion and return. SYMCA is the owner of the South Yorkshire Supertram system, a 29km light rail network running predominately within the city of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England, UK. The network includes two fleets of trams (32 vehicles in total), 29km of tracks, 12 substations, one depot, 29km of overhead line electrification, numerous civil engineering assets including bridges, an underpass, earthworks and drainage, and signalling and communications assets. The network originally opened in 1994 and was extended in 2018 into the neighbouring town of Rotherham using innovative tram train technology. The network was previously operated by South Yorkshire Supertram Limited between 1994-2024 which was a subsidiary of national transport operator Stagecoach Group. When this contract ended, SYMCA appointed South Yorkshire Future Trams Limited (SYFTL) to operate the system and undertake day to day maintenance. SYFTL, which is a subsidiary company of SYMCA, is contracted via an Operating Agreement, which allows SYMCA to act as the commissioner (specifying the service levels, maintenance and cleaning standards etc.) with SYFTL responsible for the delivery. Under the Operating Agreement, SYMCA is generally responsible for the funding and delivery of renewals and investment into the system. The Railways and Other Guided Systems (Safety) Regulations (ROGS) place obligations on both SYFTL and SYMCA in relation to managing the network's safety. SYFTL is a Transport Undertaking as the entity which runs trams on the network. SYMCA is the Infrastructure Manager through its role in strategic management of the assets which form the tramway and its role in delivering renewals, however certain activities are undertaken by SYFTL under delegation. Therefore both SYFTL and SYMCA meet the definition of a 'Transport Operator' under ROGS. 1ROGS places certain obligations on Transport Operators where new or modified infrastructure and vehicles are introduced, including the requirement to undertake formal Safety Verification where a Duty Holder's Safety Management System identifies this requirement. As part of this process, Duty Holders must appoint an Independent Competent Person to support this process. SYMCA is currently embarking on a significant project to renew many assets forming the network and needs to appoint the services of an Independent Competent Person as described by ROGS.

Planning Information

The project details and market engagement questionnaire are available at https://procontract.due-north.com. Please register an interest at Project ID DN829011 to access all information.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-06f60b
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/085569-2026
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

71 - Architectural, construction, engineering and inspection services

CPV Codes

71300000 - Engineering services

71631470 - Railway-track inspection services

Notice Value(s)

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

Notice Dates

Publication Date
9 Sep 20266 days ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
15 Oct 2026 - 31 Mar 2028 1-2 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
South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
SHEFFIELD
Postcode
S1 2BQ
Postcode Area
Sheffield
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLE Yorkshire and The Humber
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLE3 South Yorkshire
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLE32 Sheffield
Delivery Location
TLE3 South Yorkshire
Local Authority
Sheffield
Electoral Ward
City
Westminster Constituency
Sheffield Central

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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