---
title: "North Northamptonshire Council Bus Framework Mini-Competition CONTRACT PC2603"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-06f513"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06f513"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f513.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f513.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "North Northamptonshire Council"
published: "2026-09-08"
---

# North Northamptonshire Council Bus Framework Mini-Competition CONTRACT PC2603

Buyer: North Northamptonshire Council  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-06f513

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[Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f513.json)

## Summary

North Northamptonshire Council procured the operation of local bus service 3 on Mondays to Saturdays. The requirement is to enhance the service frequency from three to four buses an hour through pump priming, supporting more frequent local passenger transport in North Northamptonshire. This is a public transport service rather than a vehicle supply or infrastructure contract, and falls within road transport services. The council is the buying organisation. The selected supplier, Midland Red (South) Limited, is a large commercial bus operator. Businesses considering similar work should therefore be able to provide and manage scheduled local bus operations, with the operational capability to deliver increased service frequency across the area and maintain reliable provision throughout the contracted service days.

The procurement is complete and awarded following a competitive mini-competition under the North Northamptonshire Council Bus Framework. Midland Red (South) Limited was awarded the contract on 16 July 2026 for £900,000 gross, including the whole requirement. The contract period runs from 8 September 2026 to 16 January 2028, with an optional extension that could extend the maximum period to 22 July 2029. The award is active. The process used a selective procedure through the framework and was competitive. One completed lot covered the service. The published outcome identifies service quality and delivery against the bus-service requirement as the basis relevant to the award, with the successful supplier appointed for the local route enhancement.

This award demonstrates established demand from North Northamptonshire Council for contracted local bus operation and for targeted investment to increase route frequency. A credible future competitor would need experience running scheduled public bus services, suitable operational capacity for Monday-to-Saturday provision, and the ability to add vehicle and driver resources while maintaining dependable service levels. The requirement favours operators that understand local route delivery, timetable management, passenger-facing operations, transport safety and regulatory compliance. Experience working through a public-sector bus framework or a comparable procurement route would also be relevant, as would evidence of managing service enhancements without disrupting existing operations. The selected supplier’s profile indicates that substantial operational scale may be advantageous for this type of council-backed service.

## Notice

North Northamptonshire Council (hereafter referred to as 'the Council') requires quotations for the operation of local bus service 3 on Monday to Saturdays through pump priming an enhancement to lift the frequency from three to four buses an hour.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/085130-2026 |
| Notice type | UK6 - Contract Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Selective |
| Procurement method details | Award under framework |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 8 Sep 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 16 Jul 2026 |
| Contract period | 8 Sep 2026 - 16 Jan 2028 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £900,000 |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Complete |
| Awards status | Active |
| Contracts status | Not specified |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | North Northamptonshire Council |
| Locality | CORBY |
| Postcode area | Northampton |
| Postcode | NN17 1QG |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLF East Midlands (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLF2 Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire |
| ITL 3 | TLF25 North Northamptonshire |
| Local authority | North Northamptonshire |
| Electoral ward | Corby West |
| Westminster constituency | Corby and East Northamptonshire |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | MIDLAND RED (SOUTH) LIMITED |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 60 - Transport services (excl. Waste transport)

### Codes

- 60100000 - Road transport services

## Release History

- 8 Sep 2026 at 18:14 - Award - UK6 - Contract Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/085130-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/085130-2026
  8th September 2026 - Contract award notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- http://www.stagecoachbus.com
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/api/1.0/ocdsReleasePackages/ocds-h6vhtk-05d849
- https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents
- https://www.northnorthants.gov.uk/

## 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-06f513. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f513.json.