Official UK procurement notice
Central Region Schools Trust - Catering Contract
Authority: CENTRAL REGION SCHOOLS TRUST (Education)·On behalf of: ACE Advice Limited
Re-procurement openThe Mead Educational Trust Catering Contract · bids close
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThis is a catering tender for the Trust. It is seeking a single supplier to provide catering services to three secondary schools, and nine middle / primary schools, which includes some meal delivery services.
The Trust is seeking a supplier who will work alongside the schools to improve the health and nutrition of the students, through the provision of freshly prepared meals and snacks.
- 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£6,300,000
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)
- Price
- Quality: The Trust will assess the quality of the suppliers submission through the written submission. This will then be moderated by the information provided at the presentations and measured against the information obtained through the supplied references.
- Price carries 20 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 2 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
- 30 Dec 2025, 15:43 GMT
- Last source update
- 22 May 2026, 16:28 BST
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 11 May 2026
- FTS notice number
2025/S 000-086488- Latest notice
- Contract award notice (UK6)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-05fe51Find 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)
- 14 Jan 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Submission deadline
- 14 Jan 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
To be complaint to the CRST Purchasing and Procurement Policy we will require bidders to submit all returns to two separate locations.
The formal submissions must be emailed to [email protected] with an additional copy of the document loaded into the Bidiful Portal.
Timeline
30 Dec 2025 → 1 Aug 2026 · 6 dates- Tender notice published296 days ago30 Dec 2025, 15:43 GMT
- Submission deadline281 days ago14 Jan 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Award decision expected by163 days ago11 May 2026, 23:59 BST
- Assessment summaries sent153 days ago22 May 2026, 00:00 BST
- Latest notice published153 days ago22 May 2026, 16:28 BST
- Contract starts82 days ago1 Aug 2026, 00:00 BST
Notice history
4 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 30 Dec 2025- Tender notice published30 Dec 2025, 15:43 GMTUK4
- Contract award notice published22 May 2026, 16:28 BSTUK6
- Status changed to complete22 May 2026, 16:28 BST
- Contract signature expected30 Jun 2026, 23:59 BSTscheduled
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mellors Catering Services1 Aug 2026 – 31 Jul 2029 · up to 31 Jul 2031Extensions: 2 x 12 month extensions are available if all parties agree in writing · Options: The contract may be extended to include any additional schools which may join the Trust over the contract term, once any previous agreements ended in line with their contractual terms. | £9,330,000 inc. VAT | 22 May 2026 | Awarded |
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6final-stage tenders | 0 | 0 | — |
Who bid
- wonMELLORS CATERING SERVICES LIMITED · North West England
- did not winA.B.M. CATERING LIMITED · West Midlands
- did not winASPENS-SERVICES LIMITED · Greater London
- did not winCATER LINK LIMITED · South East England
- did not winCOMPASS CONTRACT SERVICES (U.K.) LIMITED · West Midlands
- did not winIMPACT FOOD GROUP LIMITED · South East England
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
- ACADEMY CONSULTANCY EXPERT ADVICE LTDProcess contact pointProcuring entityProcurement Support
Bidders & participating suppliers
6 commercial parties on the notice · 1 awarded- A.B.M. CATERING LIMITEDBidder / tenderer
- ASPENS-SERVICES LIMITEDBidder / tenderer
- CATER LINK LIMITEDBidder / tenderer
- COMPASS CONTRACT SERVICES (U.K.) LIMITEDBidder / tenderer
- IMPACT FOOD GROUP LIMITEDBidder / tenderer
- MELLORS CATERING SERVICES LIMITEDAwarded supplier
Official documents & specifications (3)
Official links; attachments are not copiedTender pack and attachments
- Bidding documents and specifications Access to the selection stage documentation will be provided upon application in writing to: Ian Henderson E: [email protected]
Notices published for this procedure
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender