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Published 31 Jul 2026, 09:24 BST

Official UK procurement notice

Arboricultural Services for Swale Borough Council

Official notice

Authority: Swale Borough Council (Local council)

2 lotsServicesOpen procedureAbove thresholdSME suitableVCSE suitable
Sectors: Agricultural, forestry, horticultural, aquacultural and apicultural services (77) Delivery: South East (UKJ4)
Published estimate£262,500total for 2 lots · £315,000 inc. VAT
Submissions closed 31 Aug 2026
Lots 2see the lot list below
Contract term 3 yrsends 14 Jan 2030 · up to 14 Jan 2032 with extensions · starts 15 Jan 2027

What is being bought2 lots · detail below

Published requirement description

Swale Borough Council is inviting Expressions of Interest to tender for arboricultural services.

The contract will involve undertaking a range of arboricultural services, the contractor is expected to provide a suitably qualified team with van, chipper and equipment. It is estimated that the contractor will provide one day per week split between climbing and ground works, Swale Borough Council will provide a list of works for the team and prioritise their workload.

The contract shall commence on 15th January 2027 and terminate on 14th January 2030. The council may extend the opportunity for a further 2 years on a 1yr + 1yr basis. The tender/s who submit/s the Most Advantageous Tender will be awarded the contract.

Expressions of Interest and the Invitation to Tender (ITT) document must be submitted / uploaded on the Council's e-tendering portal. The closing date for submission of Expressions of Interest and the closing date for the ITT is 31st August 2026 at 09:00hrs.

All communication / clarifications must be submitted via the e-tendering portal.

For more information about this opportunity, please visit the eSourcing portal at:

www.kentbusinessportal.org.uk/tenders/UK-UK-Sittin… ↗

To respond to this opportunity, please click here:

www.kentbusinessportal.org.uk/respond/K5GMDUZKP6 ↗

  • The authority expects to re-tender this requirement around 1 Jul 2031, 23:59 BST.

CPV: Agricultural, forestry, horticultural, aquacultural and apicultural services

Lots and requirements (2)Procurement structure

2 lots · all with a published value (£262,500 together) · same conditions of participation on every lot · same evaluation weights on every lot
Lot #1Groundwork days and climbing daysRenewal 3 yrsSMEVCSEPublished value£175,000

There are three pricing options, option 1 (51days) will be used as the baseline figure for the contract and options 2&3 (55 or 60 days) could be used if they are commercially viable. Tenderers must price all three options. Option one, split 21 ground work days (2 man team) and 30 Climbing work days (3 man team). Option two, 25 ground/ 30 climbing. Option three, 28 ground / 32 climbing.

Contract period: 15 Jan 2027 – 14 Jan 2030 (3 yrs) · up to 14 Jan 2032 with extensionsValue: £175,000 exc. VAT · £210,000 inc. VAT
Delivery: South EastEligibility: SME eligibleVCSE eligible
Extensions: The Authority reserves the right to additional purchases while the contract is valid. It may award additional or repeat, goods, works or services in accordance with Schedule 5, paragraph 8 of the Act. · The council may extend the opportunity for 2 years on a 1yr + 1yr basis.
77000000 Agricultural, forestry, horticultural, aquacultural and apicultural services
Pre-qualification & selection criteria (PQQ)2
  • Economic & financial standing

    Satisfactory credit check (low or very low risk score)

  • Technical & professional ability

    As per specification.

Lot #2Emergency responses and use of specialised equipmentRenewal 3 yrsSMEVCSEPublished value£87,500

This lot refers to The Council's additional tree maintenance budget which may rise to the value of £17,500pa but is not guarenteed within the contract value. This lot includes work such as emergency responses and use of specialised equipment.

Contract period: 15 Jan 2027 – 14 Jan 2030 (3 yrs) · up to 14 Jan 2032 with extensionsValue: £87,500 exc. VAT · £105,000 inc. VAT
Delivery: South EastEligibility: SME eligibleVCSE eligible
Extensions: The Authority reserves the right to additional purchases while the contract is valid. It may award additional or repeat, goods, works or services in accordance with Schedule 5, paragraph 8 of the Act. · The council may extend the opportunity for 2 years on a 1yr + 1yr basis.
77000000 Agricultural, forestry, horticultural, aquacultural and apicultural services
Pre-qualification & selection criteria (PQQ)2
  • Economic & financial standing

    Satisfactory credit check (low or very low risk score)

  • Technical & professional ability

    As per specification.

What it takes to win
i

How this buyer will score bids.

The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).

Evaluation split and conditions of participation as published; the tender pack may add more
How bids were scored · same split on all 2 lots
Quality: 50%Price: 50%
Published award criteria (2)
  • Price
  • Quality
Lot distribution rule: Tenderers must bid for both lots. Both lots will be awarded to the same supplier.
Conditions of participation · identical on every lot2
  • Economic & financial standing

    Satisfactory credit check (low or very low risk score)

  • Technical & professional ability

    As per specification.

What this means for your bid
  • Price carries 50 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 5 points. This one is won on the number: sharpen the price before polishing the prose.

Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.

Procedure terms & legal framework

From the official record
Procedure method
Open procedure
Legal basis
UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
Procurement category
Services
Notice status
Closed
Procurement threshold
Above threshold (FTS publication)
Regulatory regime
Standard
Commercial structure
Stand-alone contract (no framework)
Competition type
Competitive procedure
GPA / WTO covered
Yes (GPA)
Recurring procurement
Yes · next expected 1 Jul 2031
First published
31 Jul 2026, 09:24 BST
Last source update
6 Aug 2026, 11:40 BST
Award evaluation window
Submission end – 21 Oct 2026
Authority reference
PA90
FTS notice number
2026/S 000-072481
Latest notice
Tender notice (UK4)
Classification (CPV)
Agricultural, forestry, horticultural, aquacultural and apicultural services
Delivery area
South East (UKJ4)
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-06d84c Find a Tender
Contract terms summary

Invoices should be sent to [email protected]

Review and risk notes
Risks

Tenderers should note that local government reorganisation (LGR) may result in a change to the Authority's structure during the term of any resulting contract. If applicable, the Authority may rely on the conditions under Schedule 8 of the Procurement Act and any modification relating to LGR may be treated as a permitted contract modification on the basis of materialisation of a known risk.

How it was run

Official notice
Run through: ProContract (Due North) · Who buys & how to bid on ProContract
Supplier login requiredElectronic submission allowedLanguage: EN
Access & registration note: Free · short registration with manual review; public opportunity list
Submission deadline
31 Aug 2026, 09:00 BST
Clarification deadline
21 Aug 2026, 09:00 BST
Submission channel
Official e-sourcing portal
Electronic submission
Allowed
Accepted languages
en
Detailed submission instructions & authority contactsFrom official release

www.kentbusinessportal.org.uk/delta/mainMenu.html ↗

Timeline

31 Jul 2026 → 15 Jan 2027 · 6 dates
  1. Tender notice published88 days ago
    31 Jul 2026, 09:24 BST
  2. Latest notice published82 days ago
    6 Aug 2026, 11:40 BST
  3. Clarification questions by67 days ago
    21 Aug 2026, 09:00 BST
  4. Submission deadline57 days ago
    31 Aug 2026, 09:00 BST
  5. Award decision expected by6 days ago
    21 Oct 2026, 23:59 BST
  6. Today
    28 Oct 2026
  7. Contract startsin 78 days
    15 Jan 2027

Notice history

3 events · 3 releases on Find a Tender · since 31 Jul 2026
  1. Tender notice published
    31 Jul 2026, 09:24 BST
    UK4
  2. Tender notice published
    31 Jul 2026, 10:56 BST
    UK4
  3. Tender notice published
    6 Aug 2026, 11:40 BST
    UK4

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

Swale Borough Council

Contracting authorityPublic authority - sub-central government GB-PPON: PJVX-4924-XHDQ Swale House, East Street, Sittingbourne, South East, ME10 3HTContact email

Official documents & specifications (3)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Notices published for this procedure

  • Tender notice tenderTender noticeUK4Tender notice on Find a Tender
  • Tender notice tenderTender noticeUK4Tender notice on Find a Tender
  • Tender notice tenderTender noticeUK4Tender notice on Find a Tender