Official UK procurement notice
Catering Services Contract for Coombe Academies Trust
Authority: COOMBE ACADEMY TRUST (Public body)·On behalf of: ACE Advice Limited
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThis five school Trust is looking for a contract caterer to provide a fixed price catering contract to the two secondary schools and three primary schools in the Trust.
- How the procedure runs: The procedure will consist of four distinct stages, allowing for an initial assessment of interested suppliers. Suppliers will be evaluated against the specific objectives of the new contract through the following stages: • Selection Stage and Shortlisting • Invitation to Tender (ITT) and Shortlisting for Presentation • Presentation of Proposal to the Authority • Reference Checking The evaluation of the shortlisting process will be based on the information submitted by the bidding companies. A shortlist of suppliers will be compiled, with the 4 highest-scoring submissions invited to progress to the subsequent stage of the procurement process. Only those companies that are selected and formally notified will be invited to submit a response during the ITT stage.
CPV: School catering services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1AwardedRenewalPublished value£5,500,000
What it takes to wini
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 morei
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).
Published award criteria (2)
- Quality
- Price
- 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
- Awarded
- Procurement threshold
- Above threshold (FTS publication)
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 5 Dec 2025, 12:25 GMT
- Last source update
- 12 May 2026, 09:10 BST
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 20 Apr 2026
- FTS notice number
2025/S 000-080120- Latest notice
- Contract award notice (UK6)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-05ef9aFind a Tender
- How it runs
The procedure will consist of four distinct stages, allowing for an initial assessment of interested suppliers. Suppliers will be evaluated against the specific objectives of the new contract through the following stages:
- Selection Stage and Shortlisting
- Invitation to Tender (ITT) and Shortlisting for Presentation
- Presentation of Proposal to the Authority
- Reference Checking
The evaluation of the shortlisting process will be based on the information submitted by the bidding companies. A shortlist of suppliers will be compiled, with the 4 highest-scoring submissions invited to progress to the subsequent stage of the procurement process.
Only those companies that are selected and formally notified will be invited to submit a response during the ITT stage.
How it was run
Official notice- Requests to participate (first stage)
- 24 Dec 2025, 12:00 GMT
- Submission deadline
- 24 Dec 2025, 12:00 GMT
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
Timeline
5 Dec 2025 → 1 Aug 2026 · 6 dates- Tender notice published321 days ago5 Dec 2025, 12:25 GMT
- Submission deadline302 days ago24 Dec 2025, 12:00 GMT
- Award decision expected by185 days ago20 Apr 2026, 23:59 BST
- Assessment summaries sent164 days ago12 May 2026, 00:00 BST
- Latest notice published163 days ago12 May 2026, 09:10 BST
- Contract starts83 days ago1 Aug 2026, 00:00 BST
Notice history
4 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 5 Dec 2025- Tender notice published5 Dec 2025, 12:25 GMTUK4
- Contract award notice published12 May 2026, 09:10 BSTUK6
- Status changed to complete12 May 2026, 09:10 BST
- Contract signature expected31 Jul 2026, 23:59 BSTscheduled
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accent Catering 1 Aug 2026 – 31 Jul 2029 · up to 31 Jul 2031Extensions: 2 x 12 month extensions are available subject to both parties agreement in writing · Options: Additional schools may join the Trust over the life of this agreement, so it is expected the catering contracts in these schools would join this agreement when their terms permit | £7,952,562 inc. VAT | 11 May 2026 | Awarded |
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5final-stage tenders | 2 | 0 | — |
Who bid
- wonACCENT CATERING SERVICES LIMITED · South East England
- did not winIMPACT FOOD GROUP LIMITED · South East England
- did not winLUNCHTIME COMPANY LTD · East of England
- did not winINDEPENDENT CATERING LTDSME · South East England
- did not winTHE PANTRY (UK) LIMITEDSME · Greater London
Bidders as named on the Procurement Act 2023 award notice. “Won” means the bidder holds an award on this notice.
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
3 public bodies on the noticeOther public bodies
- ACE Advice LimitedBeneficiary authority
- ACE ADVICE LTDProcess contact pointProcuring entityProcurement support
Bidders & participating suppliers
5 commercial parties on the notice · 1 awarded- ACCENT CATERING SERVICES LIMITEDAwarded supplier
- IMPACT FOOD GROUP LIMITEDBidder / tenderer
- INDEPENDENT CATERING LTDBidder / tenderer
- LUNCHTIME COMPANY LTDBidder / tenderer
- THE PANTRY (UK) LIMITEDBidder / tenderer
Official documents & specifications (3)
Official links; attachments are not copiedTender pack and attachments
- Bidding documents and specifications To apply for the tender documents, please contact: Andrew Chapman [email protected] 07935 766679
Notices published for this procedure
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender