Catering services: UK Tenders, Buyers & Competition
CPV 55520000·Services · class·in Hotel, restaurant and retail trade services
Codes and neighbouring classes
The 8-digit CPV codes notices in this class actually use, and the other classes of the same division
55524000 School catering services1,242 notices · 67%55520000 Catering services643 notices · 35%55523100 School-meal services40 notices · 2%55521200 Meal delivery service25 notices · 1%55521100 Meals-on-wheels services15 notices · 1%55522000 Catering services for transport enterprises14 notices · 1%55521000 Catering services for private households7 notices · <1%- Canteen and catering services 116 · 12m
- Restaurant and food-serving services 57 · 12m
- Hotel accommodation services 42 · 12m
- Retail trade services 39 · 12m
- Letting services of short-stay furnished accommodation 26 · 12m
- Hotel meeting and conference services 25 · 12m
- Holiday centre and holiday home services 25 · 12m
- Beverage-serving services 24 · 12m
- Cafeteria services 23 · 12m
- Canteen services 16 · 12m
- All of Hotel, restaurant and retail trade services →
Open tenders in catering services
29 live at the nightly build · soonest deadline first
Who buys
All notices carrying this code · official UK_CA_TYPE where published (NHS bodies are central government authorities), else derived from the authority name
- Education & universities 42% (773 notices)
- Other public bodies 16% (287 notices)
- Local authorities 13% (237 notices)
- Central government 6% (110 notices)
- Police, fire & emergency 2% (30 notices)
- Not classified 22% (404 notices)
| Contracting authority | Type | Notices | Last 12 months | Open now |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ACE ADVICE LTD | not classified | 28 | 0 | 0 |
| Educo | Other public bodies | 24 | 12 | 1 |
| RED BOX CONSULTANCY SERVICES LIMITED | not classified | 21 | 0 | 0 |
| RPJ3 Group | Other public bodies | 17 | 12 | 2 |
| The Royal Parks Ltd | Other public bodies | 17 | 1 | 0 |
| Lisburn and Castlereagh City council | Local authorities | 11 | 3 | 1 |
| Procurement for Schools Ltd | Education & universities | 11 | 0 | 0 |
| The Sustainable Catering Consultancy | not classified | 11 | 0 | 0 |
| Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office | Central government | 10 | 2 | 0 |
| GY5 Limited | not classified | 10 | 0 | 0 |
1,368 distinct authorities in total · the ten most active shown.
Where the work is delivered
Delivery regions (ITL1) published on 1,677 of 1,863 notices · a notice covering several regions counts in each · competition columns: contracts awarded in the last 36 months, lots delivered in the region
| Region | Notices | Bids / lot | SME wins | Local wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greater London | 4 | 35% | 48% | |
| South East England | 4 | 27% | 66% | |
| West Midlands | 5 | 9% | 61% | |
| East of England | 4 | 17% | 32% | |
| South West England | 5 | 22% | 42% | |
| North West England | 4 | 30% | 53% | |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 4 | 27% | 35% | |
| East Midlands | 3 | 18% | 48% | |
| North East England | 5 | 29% | 63% | |
| Scotland | 3 | 18% | — | |
| Wales (Cymru) | 3 | 57% | 50% | |
| Northern Ireland | 3 | — | — |
Local wins = the winner’s registered region is the delivery region. Dashes: fewer than ten observations.
How it is bought
Commercial tool, procedure route and threshold as published on the notice, not a legal-regime claim
- Contract 89% (1,666 notices)
- Framework 8% (142 notices)
- Dynamic purchasing system 3% (55 notices)
- Selective 48% (903 notices)
- Open 39% (718 notices)
- Route not published 10% (194 notices)
- Limited / restricted 3% (48 notices)
- Above threshold 83% (371 notices)
- Below threshold 17% (78 notices)
Competition
Contracts published in the last 36 months (963) · bid counts per lot from award notices · values are net contract awards, framework and DPS ceilings excluded · SME and local status as declared
- 1 bid 13% (65)
- 2–3 34% (172)
- 4–6 47% (239)
- 7 or more 7% (36)
Who wins
Single-supplier active awards with a canonical supplier on notices carrying this code · 1,242 awards to 463 suppliers · the five most frequent winners hold 30% of contract awards in the last 36 months
| Supplier | Awards | Last 12 months | Buyers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aspens Services Ltd | 92 | 10 | 83 |
| Innovate Services Ltd | 50 | 5 | 44 |
| abm Catering Limited | 49 | 3 | 47 |
| CATER LINK LIMITED | 43 | 5 | 34 |
| CATER LINK LIMITED (03732298) | 36 | 3 | 32 |
| Olive Dining Ltd | 36 | 4 | 21 |
| Taylor Shaw | 30 | 2 | 19 |
| MELLORS CATERING SERVICES LIMITED | 29 | 5 | 22 |
Where to submit
E-sourcing portals named in the submission address · 470 of 1,863 notices name one · each portal page explains registration
Method
What the numbers on this page are and are not
Which notices count?
Every Find a Tender notice that carries a CPV code starting 5552. A notice with several codes counts in each sector it names. Earliest notice 2021; latest 18 Sept 2026.
Competition figures
From the 36-month lot-grain contest statistics: a lot counts where its own CPV codes (or, for single-class notices, the procedure’s) start 5552. Bids per lot come from the award notice’s bid statistics; “competed” means an open or selective route with no direct-award transparency notice; contract values are net, on single-supplier awards, with framework and DPS ceilings excluded. Frameworks and dynamic purchasing systems are reported separately because their “bids” are admissions to a panel.
Why no total value or month-by-month chart?
Sums of notice estimates repeat framework ceilings and mix net with gross. Monthly volumes per sector are not shown yet: the catalogue’s CPV coverage per notice changed in May 2026 (compiled records carry every lot’s codes), so a curve would show the catalogue, not the market.