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planningFind a Tender · planning

2223-0331 Garrett Street Affordable Workspace Project

Buyer: London Borough of Islington →

BuyerLondon Borough of Islington
Statusplanning
DeadlineNot published
Value£2,500,000
Published18 Feb 2026

What is being bought

This contract seeks an operator to manage the upcoming affordable workspace on Garrett Street, EC1Y 0TY on a 7-year lease. Intended as a flexible creative workspace / makerspace covering 1,205 sqm over ground and 1st floor levels, it will increase the diversity of businesses supported through the AWS programme. The contract will be offered on a peppercorn rent in exchange for targeted social value that reflects the estimated £3.15m market rental value over the contract term. As with other Islington AWS sites there will be no monetary income directly delivered to the council. The operator will be responsible for business rates, discounted service charges and insurance.

Delivery location

UKC, GB · UKD, GB · UKE, GB · UKF, GB · UKG, GB · UKH, GB · UKI, GB · UKJ, GB · UKK, GB

Categories

Real estate services 70000000

Lot details

Lot 1

No lot description published.

Statusplanning
Contract periodFrom 1 Aug 2026 to 31 Jul 2033
SME suitabilitySuitable for SMEs

What is included

ItemCategoryQuantity
1Real estate servicesNot published

Comparable-procurement analytics

Benchmarked against retained Find a Tender procedures with CPV division 70. The category anchor is Real estate services (70000000); this is a deliberately broad market comparator. The comparison is shown at several levels rather than pretending one company or region is always the best benchmark.

Comparison setProceduresReported bids per procedureNamed award suppliersPrice evidence
Market: CPV division 701,1853 median · 40.4 average (371 of 1,185 with a bid count)3.7 average (433 of 1,185 with named award suppliers)Not published
Same buyer4Not publishedNot publishedNot published
Delivery region: UKC704 median · 51.6 average (17 of 70 with a bid count)7.8 average (27 of 70 with named award suppliers)Not published
Similar published value (0.5×–2×)72Not publishedNot publishedNot published

“Reported bids” is an official aggregate, sometimes reported per lot; it is the closest available competition measure. “Named award suppliers” are winners, not all applicants.

Price-outcome signal

Not enough comparable procedures currently publish both a GBP tender value and a usable lowest-valid-bid value to calculate a responsible price-reduction benchmark. Tenderline deliberately does not infer a saving from named award suppliers or from missing award values.

Procurement strategy & market signals

Framework agreementNot published
Dynamic purchasing systemNot published
Competitive procurementNot published
Recurring requirementNot published
Procurement method rationaleNot published
Rationale classificationsNot published
Special regimeconcession
Covered byNot published
Submission policyNot published
Selection criteriaNot published
Risk detailsNot published

Planning & early market engagement

BudgetValue not published
No-engagement rationaleNot published
Planning documents1
Planning milestones1
MilestoneTypeDueStatus
This Notice is for informational purposes only and is not a formal invitation to tender. Its aim is to enhance transparency and competition for the upcoming tender notice. All details provided here may be updated or changed in the final tender notice. The Authority reserves the right to cancel, postpone, suspend or abort the procurement at any stage. The issue of this notice in no way commits the Authority to commence a procurement process. Preliminary Market Engagement (PME) - Garrett Street Affordable Workspace The Affordable Workspace team undertook prior market engagement between June 2023 and Jan 2026 to inform the development of the Garrett Street Affordable Workspace opportunity. Activities included a combination of site visits, market research, questionnaires, FAQ publications and targeted outreach. A summary of all PME activity is provided below. 1. Market Research (March 2025) A detailed Garrett Street Market Research Paper was produced in March 2025 to assess demand for makerspace and creative studio provision, analyse local market conditions, and identify potential user groups. The findings were used to shape the vision and specification for the site. 2. Site Visits (June 2023 - Jan 2026) Formal site visits were organised between June 2023 and Jan 2026 All organisations on the Council's Affordable Workspace mailing list were invited. Visits included guided tours, discussion of the project vision, and operator feedback. 3. Market Engagement Questionnaire A written questionnaire was issued to operators on the mailing list to gauge market interest, understand delivery models, assess social value capability, and collect views on the proposed offer. 4. FAQs and Clarifications FAQ documents were developed and updated in response to supplier enquiries, site visit discussions and email feedback (Garret Street site info & FAQ Oct 2024, and Garret Street FAQ Document 2025. These documents summarised key points relating to planning, build timeline, workspace vision, utilities, lease structure, service charges, and operational considerations. They were circulated to all interested parties to ensure consistent information across the market. 5. Outreach via AWS Bulletin (Monthly) The opportunity was promoted through the Affordable Workspace monthly bulletin, reaching an audience of approximately 5,500 subscribers. The October bulletin specifically promoted the Garrett Street opportunity and invited operators to book site visits. This broadened market awareness and helped ensure fair access to pre-market information. 6. Direct Engagement (Emails & Meetings) The Council responded to ongoing enquiries from operators, businesses and residents. Meetings were offered to discuss opportunities, and clarifications were incorporated into public FAQs. All enquiries were logged and used to refine the scope and PME materials. Garrett Street Site Update Document and Site Plans was sent to the mailing list in January 2026. The Garrett site update email mentions the revised practical completion date of July 2026 instead of early 2027.) 7. External Learning Session - Leah's Yard (Sheffield) A knowledge-sharing session was held with Sheffield City Council regarding their "Leah's Yard" creative workspace scheme. Lessons learned helped refine communication, engagement and marketing approaches for Garrett Street. Further site visits can be arranged following publication of the tender notice. The tender for the Garret Street Affordable Workspace lease and concession contract will be advertised on the: • (FTS) Find a Tender service: ( https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Search). Suppliers who wish to view the tender notice and submit a bid must be registered on the: • (LTP) London Tenders Portal: (https://www.londontenders.org).engagementNot publishedmet

Related procurements

No linked framework, prior procurement or reprocurement published.

Documents & submission route

Source data inventory

Diagnostic view. “Not published” means this current release does not provide a value.

OCIDocds-h6vhtk-06577c
Latest release ID014960-2026
Latest release timestampWed Feb 18 2026 16:31:54 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
Sourcefind-a-tender
Official notice URLNot published
Tender statusplanning
Procurement methodNot published
Procurement method detailsNot published
Main procurement categoryservices
Above thresholdYes
Legal basis2023/54
Tender period: startNot published
Tender period: endNot published
Expression of interest deadlineNot published
Enquiry deadlineNot published
Award period: startNot published
Award period: endNot published
Submission method detailsNot published
Submission languagesNot published
Electronic catalogue policyNot published
Total tender value£2,500,000
Tender lots in source1
Tender items in source1
Tender documents in source0
Awards in latest release0
Contracts in latest release0
Parties in latest release1

Notice history

DateEventReference
18 Feb 2026planning014960-2026

All source data

Unmodified official OCDS data retained by Tenderline for this procurement process.

Complete current OCDS release JSON
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      }
    ]
  },
  "initiationType": "tender"
}
Complete JSON history (1 releases)
18 Feb 2026 · 014960-2026 · planning
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        "description": "This Notice is for informational purposes only and is not a formal invitation to tender. Its aim is to enhance transparency and competition for the upcoming tender notice. All details provided here may be updated or changed in the final tender notice. The Authority reserves the right to cancel, postpone, suspend or abort the procurement at any stage. The issue of this notice in no way commits the Authority to commence a procurement process.\nPreliminary Market Engagement (PME) - Garrett Street Affordable Workspace \nThe Affordable Workspace team undertook prior market engagement between June 2023 and Jan 2026 to inform the development of the Garrett Street Affordable Workspace opportunity. Activities included a combination of site visits, market research, questionnaires, FAQ publications and targeted outreach. A summary of all PME activity is provided below.\n1. Market Research (March 2025)\nA detailed Garrett Street Market Research Paper was produced in March 2025 to assess demand for makerspace and creative studio provision, analyse local market conditions, and identify potential user groups. The findings were used to shape the vision and specification for the site. \n2. Site Visits (June 2023 - Jan 2026)\nFormal site visits were organised between June 2023 and Jan 2026\nAll organisations on the Council's Affordable Workspace mailing list were invited. Visits included guided tours, discussion of the project vision, and operator feedback. \n3. Market Engagement Questionnaire\nA written questionnaire was issued to operators on the mailing list to gauge market interest, understand delivery models, assess social value capability, and collect views on the proposed offer. \n4. FAQs and Clarifications\nFAQ documents were developed and updated in response to supplier enquiries, site visit discussions and email feedback (Garret Street site info & FAQ Oct 2024, and Garret Street FAQ Document 2025. These documents summarised key points relating to planning, build timeline, workspace vision, utilities, lease structure, service charges, and operational considerations. They were circulated to all interested parties to ensure consistent information across the market.\n5. Outreach via AWS Bulletin (Monthly)\nThe opportunity was promoted through the Affordable Workspace monthly bulletin, reaching an audience of approximately 5,500 subscribers. The October bulletin specifically promoted the Garrett Street opportunity and invited operators to book site visits. This broadened market awareness and helped ensure fair access to pre-market information. \n6. Direct Engagement (Emails & Meetings)\nThe Council responded to ongoing enquiries from operators, businesses and residents. Meetings were offered to discuss opportunities, and clarifications were incorporated into public FAQs. All enquiries were logged and used to refine the scope and PME materials. Garrett Street Site Update Document and Site Plans was sent to the mailing list in January 2026. The Garrett site update email mentions the revised practical completion date of July 2026 instead of early 2027.)\n7. External Learning Session - Leah's Yard (Sheffield)\nA knowledge-sharing session was held with Sheffield City Council regarding their \"Leah's Yard\" creative workspace scheme. Lessons learned helped refine communication, engagement and marketing approaches for Garrett Street. \nFurther site visits can be arranged following publication of the tender notice.  \nThe tender for the Garret Street Affordable Workspace lease and concession contract will be advertised on the:\n•\t(FTS) Find a Tender service: ( https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Search). \nSuppliers who wish to view the tender notice and submit a bid must be registered on the:\n•\t(LTP) London Tenders Portal: (https://www.londontenders.org)."
      }
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  },
  "initiationType": "tender"
}