---
title: "***PRE-MARKET ENGAGEMENT*** BSP-26-004 Cash Handling Service for EA Catering Service"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-06cbc8"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06cbc8"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06cbc8.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06cbc8.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Planning"
buyer: "EDUCATION AUTHORITY"
published: "2026-07-15"
---

# ***PRE-MARKET ENGAGEMENT*** BSP-26-004 Cash Handling Service for EA Catering Service

Buyer: EDUCATION AUTHORITY  
Current stage: Planning  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-06cbc8

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## Summary

The Education Authority in Northern Ireland is engaging in a Preliminary Market Engagement (PME) exercise to explore possibilities for a cash handling service for their catering operations. This process, currently in the planning stage, is designed to understand market capabilities and is not a formal tender. Key information, including a questionnaire, can be accessed on the eTendersNI platform, with submissions due by 31st July 2026. The engagement addresses financial, banking, security, and collection agency services within the UKN region, with an anticipated contract period starting from 1st November 2026 to 31st October 2029.

This PME presents significant opportunities for businesses specialising in cash handling, security, banking, and related financial services. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and voluntary, charitable, and social enterprises (VCSEs) are particularly encouraged to participate, aligning with the procurement's suitability criteria. By engaging with this process, businesses can help the Education Authority shape future tender requirements, potentially positioning themselves favourably for subsequent procurement opportunities. This engagement is proactive and informative, aiming to align the Authority's needs with innovative market solutions.

## Notice

***This is not a tender exercise*** The Education Authority Northern Ireland (EANI) would like to invite participation in a Preliminary Market Engagement (PME) exercise to seek the views of the market for Cash Handling for EA Catering Service. The purpose of this PME exercise is for EANI to gain an understanding of the latest developments and innovative solutions available and will be used to assist EANI in gaining a better understanding of the feasibility of the requirements, the most appropriate procurement and operational approach, the capacity of the market to deliver the requirements and an opportunity for the market to highlight any possible risks or issues. For the avoidance of doubt, this is the scoping phase of the project and is not part of any formal procurement process and there is no commitment at this stage to carry out such a process. Any information gathered will not be considered in any future tender exercise. Please note that participation or non-participation in this PME exercise shall not prevent any supplier from participating in any future procurement process, nor is it intended that any information provided shall place any supplier at an advantage or disadvantage in any future procurement exercise. Further information including the questionnaire can be downloaded from the documents section of the CfT on eTendersNI. Suppliers who wish to participate in the PME exercise must return the completed questionnaire via the messaging function of the CfT on eTendersNI no later than 15:00 on Friday 31 July 2026.

### Planning Information

Further information including the questionnaire can be downloaded from the documents section of the CfT on eTendersNI. Interested suppliers are asked to complete and return the questionnaire.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/066686-2026 |
| 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, VCSE |
| Awardee scale | Not specified |
| All stages | Planning |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 15 Jul 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | 27 Aug 2026 |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | 1 Nov 2026 - 31 Oct 2029 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £1,100,000 |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Planning |
| Lots status | Planning |
| Awards status | Not specified |
| Contracts status | Not specified |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | EDUCATION AUTHORITY |
| Locality | BELFAST |
| Post town | Northern Ireland |
| Postcode | BT1 2NQ |
| Country | Northern Ireland |
| ITL 1 | TLN Northern Ireland |
| ITL 2 | TLN0 Northern Ireland |
| ITL 3 | TLN06 Belfast |
| Local authority | Belfast |
| Electoral ward | Duncairn |
| Westminster constituency | Belfast North |
| Delivery location | TLN Northern Ireland |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

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

### Codes

- 66000000 - Financial and insurance services
- 66110000 - Banking services
- 79710000 - Security services
- 79940000 - Collection agency services

## Release History

- 15 Jul 2026 at 10:53 - Planning - UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/066686-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/066686-2026
  15th July 2026 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents

## Provenance

This Markdown file is an alternate public rendering of the D3 Tenders contract record. The canonical page is https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06cbc8. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06cbc8.json.