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SOL - School Bus and Coach DPS

Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Award

18 Sep 2026 at 15:57

Award Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council procured school bus and coach transport services through its School Bus and Coach Transport Dynamic Purchasing System. The requirement covers individual school bus routes and coach journeys, with buses or coaches supplied with drivers. The services are for routes delivered in and around Solihull. The procurement is categorised as passenger transport vehicle hire with driver. Three small and medium-sized transport businesses were selected for separate route awards: ASA Travel Ltd, based in Birmingham; Hollywood Travel Ltd, based in Solihull; and Meadway Private Hire (Birmingham) Ltd trading as Meadway Coaches, based in Birmingham. The arrangement concerns operational school transport rather than vehicle supply, fleet purchase or general logistics services.

The procurement has been awarded and the tender is complete. It used an open procedure with an electronic auction, and bids were evaluated on price. Three bids are recorded for each of the route award groupings. Contracts were signed on 18 September 2026: ASA Travel Ltd received a contract worth £323,000; Hollywood Travel Ltd received a contract worth £1,866,722; and Meadway Private Hire (Birmingham) Ltd trading as Meadway Coaches received a contract worth £1,765,575. The procurement was presented as one lot, but that lot is recorded as cancelled while the three related awards remain active. The arrangement included an option to extend for up to five years. No separate contract duration is stated.

This completed award shows established demand from Solihull Council for sizeable, route-based school transport delivered by professional bus and coach operators. A credible future competitor would need suitable buses and coaches, qualified drivers, the operational capacity to run multiple school routes reliably, and the ability to manage timetables, vehicle availability and day-to-day service continuity. The awards to three SMEs indicate that smaller regional operators can compete, either independently or by building sufficient fleet and driver capacity for grouped routes. Suppliers based in Solihull or the wider Birmingham area may be well placed for local delivery, but the decisive basis was price, so efficient fleet utilisation and competitive operating costs would be important.

How relevant is this notice?

Notice Information

Notice Title

SOL - School Bus and Coach DPS

Notice Description

This notice contains details of individual Bus Routes awarded via the Solihull School Bus and Coach Transport DPS 2026 For call-off route awards made under this DPS June - Sept 2026

Lot Information

Lot 1

This notice contains details of individual Bus Routes awarded via the Solihull School Bus and Coach Transport DPS 2026 For call-off route awards made under this DPS June - Sept 2026 The School Bus and Coach Transport DPS remains open to new entrants and interested parties can find this opportunity on CSW-Jets at www.csw-jets.co.uk

Options: Option to extend up to 5 Years.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-0775c4
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/088844-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
Award Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Open
Procurement Method Details
Open procedure
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

60 - Transport services (excl. Waste transport)

CPV Codes

60172000 - Hire of buses and coaches with driver

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
£3,955,297 £1M-£10M

Notice Dates

Publication Date
18 Sep 20262 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
Not specified - Not specified
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Solihull Metropolitan 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
SOLIHULL
Postcode
B91 3QB
Postcode Area
Birmingham
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLG West Midlands (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLG3 West Midlands
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLG32 Solihull
Delivery Location
TLG32 Solihull
Local Authority
Solihull
Electoral Ward
St Alphege
Westminster Constituency
Solihull West and Shirley

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
3
Supplier Names

ASA Travel Ltd

Hollywood Travel

Meadway Private Hire (Birmingham)

Further Information

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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