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Published 26 Jan 2026, 16:05 GMT

Official UK procurement notice

Castle School Education Trust & The Priory Learning Trust ~ Catering Tender

Official notice

Authority: Castle School Education Trust (Education)·Consortium: 2 public authorities

ServicesCompetitive flexible procedureAbove thresholdSME suitable
Published estimate£12,500,000≈ £4.2m / year · £12,500,000 inc. VAT
Submissions closed 14 Aug 2026
Contract term 3 yrsends 1 Apr 2030 · up to 31 Mar 2032 with extensions · starts 1 Apr 2027

What is being bought

Published requirement description

The successful Supplier will be required to provide catering services for Castle School Education Trust (CSET) & The Priory Learning Trust ( TPLT).

The two separate contracts and ‘lots’ cover the scope for the provision of all catering services within the schools, which also includes free issue requirements.

Contract value for the schools is circa £1.2m per annum at CSET and £1.3m per annum at TPLT.

Whilst both Trusts are currently independently operated, they have strategic intent to join at some stage during the period of the tender project or subsequent catering contract, consequently both organisations intend to award this catering contract to the same contractor, as two separate lots.

The Castle School Education Trust and The Priory Learning Trust are expected to grow, with a number of additional schools becoming part of the Trust/s during this contract period and the provision of catering services at these schools when they have joined the Trust/s will fall under the scope of these contracts. Similarly, any Trust Schools with alternative catering provisions currently in place could fall into scope of this contract as their current catering arrangements end. The successful Supplier will be expected to provide this service at these additional schools using the same costing model applied to the successful tender submission. The duration of contract for these schools will not be increased, and they will join the contract for the remaining contract period that exists at the point of entry into the Trust/s.

Due to the scale of the contract, and to enable an effective mobilisation period, it has been decided to stagger the mobilisation dates with each Trust commencing at a slightly different time.

Contractors are required to bid for both Lots, and the contract award shall be made at the same time.

The contracts are being awarded based on an initial three year, with the opportunity to extend by a further period of up to two years at the discretion of the relevant governing body.

•The CSET contract shall commence on 01.04.27 until 31.03.30.

•The TPLT contract shall commence on 01.08.27 until 31.07.30.

Please see PSQ Document for more information.

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

litmustms.co.uk/tenders/UK-UK-Bristo… ↗

To respond to this opportunity, please click here:

litmustms.co.uk/respond/UK65TK5AQC ↗

  • How the procedure runs: Please see PSQ Documents for more information.

CPV: School catering services

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · value published
Lot #1Renewal 3 yrsSMEPublished value£12,500,000
Contract period: 1 Apr 2027 – 1 Apr 2030 (3 yrs) · up to 31 Mar 2032 with extensionsValue: £12,500,000 exc. VAT · £12,500,000 inc. VAT
Delivery: South WestEligibility: SME eligible
Extensions: 1+1 Please see PSQ Document for more information.

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
Quality: 70%Price: 30%
Published sub-criteria (2)
  • Criterion 1: 70%
  • Criterion 2: 30%
Published award criteria (2)
  • Criterion 1
  • Criterion 2
What this means for your bid
  • Price carries 30 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 3 points. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.

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

Procedure terms & legal framework

From the official record
Procedure method
Competitive flexible 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
Unspecified in notice
First published
26 Jan 2026, 16:05 GMT
Last source update
26 Jan 2026, 16:05 GMT
Award evaluation window
Submission end – 16 Nov 2026
FTS notice number
2026/S 000-006799
Latest notice
Tender notice (UK4)
Classification (CPV)
School catering services
Delivery area
South West (UKK12)
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-060eeb Find a Tender
How it runs

Please see PSQ Documents for more information.

How it was run

Official notice
Run through: Litmus TMS
Supplier login requiredElectronic submission not allowedLanguage: EN
Access & registration note: Free
Submission deadline
14 Aug 2026, 12:00 BST
Clarification deadline
20 Mar 2026, 12:00 GMT
Submission channel
Official e-sourcing portal
Electronic submission
Not allowed
Accepted languages
en
Detailed submission instructions & authority contactsFrom official release

Timeline

26 Jan 2026 → 1 Apr 2027 · 5 dates
  1. Tender notice published273 days ago
    26 Jan 2026, 16:05 GMT
  2. Clarification questions by220 days ago
    20 Mar 2026, 12:00 GMT
  3. Submission deadline73 days ago
    14 Aug 2026, 12:00 BST
  4. Today
    26 Oct 2026
  5. Award decision expected byin 21 days
    16 Nov 2026, 23:59 GMT
  6. Contract startsin 156 days
    1 Apr 2027, 00:00 BST

Notice history

1 event · 1 release on Find a Tender
  1. Tender notice published
    26 Jan 2026, 16:05 GMT
    UK4

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

2 public bodies on the notice

Castle School Education Trust

Contracting authorityPublic authority - sub-central government GB-PPON: PJBP-5124-DMWL CSET, Mangotsfield School, Rodway Hill, Bristol, South West, BS16 9LHContact name, email, phone

Consortium members and other public bodies

  • The Priory Learning TrustContracting authorityPublic authority - sub-central governmentGB-PPON: PRZP-8337-PBTJ North Somerset, South WestContact name, email, phone

Official documents & specifications (1)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Notices published for this procedure

  • Tender notice tenderTender noticeUK4Tender notice on Find a Tender