Official UK procurement notice
Food and Catering Supplies for Ark Schools Across the UK.
Authority: Ark (Public body)·On behalf of: ISCC Group Purchasing Trading as Procure
What is being bought6 lots · detail below
Published requirement descriptionArk Schools Multi Academy Trust (“Ark Schools”) is seeking to appoint a number of suppliers for the provision of food products, catering consumables and associated goods to 32 Ark academies (London, Birmingham, Hastings and Portsmouth).
The contract will be managed by ISCC Purchasing Ltd trading as Procure (“ISCC Procure”), acting as procurement manager and agent for supplier contracting, ordering and consolidated invoicing.
- How the procedure runs: The competitive flexible procedure will consist of 2 distinct stages allowing for an initial assessment for 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 The evaluation of the shortlisting process will be based on the information submitted by bidding companies. The ITT submissions, written responses and commercial pricing will be evaluated. The written submissions will be evaluated and moderated by reviewing the provided supplier references.
CPV: Cleaning products · Dairy products · Disposable catering supplies · Food, beverages, tobacco and related products · Fruit, vegetables and related products · Meat · Meat products · Miscellaneous food products · Miscellaneous food products and dried goods · Pork · Poultry
Lots and requirements (6)Procurement structure
6 lots · all with a published value (£25,000,000 together) · evaluation weights differ by lotLot #1Grocery and ProvisionsAwardedRenewalPublished value£6,500,000
Single supplier to provide Grocery & Provisions to 32 of the Ark academies operated kitchens across London, Birmingham, Portsmouth and Hastings
Lot #2Frozen GoodsAwardedRenewalPublished value£5,500,000
Single supplier to provide Frozen goods to 32 of the Ark academies operated kitchens across London, Birmingham, Portsmouth and Hastings
Lot #3ButcheryAwardedRenewalPublished value£5,800,000
Single supplier to provide Butchery to 32 of the Ark academies operated kitchens across London, Birmingham, Portsmouth and Hastings.
Lot #4Fruit and VegetableAwardedRenewalPublished value£3,000,000
Single supplier to provide fruit and Vegetables to 32 of the Ark academies operated kitchens across London, Birmingham, Portsmouth and Hastings.
Lot #5ChilledAwardedRenewalPublished value£3,000,000
Single supplier to provide Chilled items to 32 of the Ark academies operated kitchens across London, Birmingham, Portsmouth and Hastings.
Lot #6Non- FoodAwardedRenewalPublished value£1,200,000
Single supplier to provide Non-Food items to 32 of the Ark academies operated kitchens across London, Birmingham, Portsmouth and Hastings.
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).
Lots publish different evaluation splits; there is no single procedure weighting.
| Lot | Quality | Price | Social value | Split |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 · Grocery and Provisions | 48% | 40% | 12% | |
| 2 · Frozen Goods | 48% | 40% | 12% | |
| 3 · Butchery | 48% | 40% | 12% | |
| 4 · Fruit and Vegetable | 38% | 50% | 12% | |
| 5 · Chilled | 38% | 50% | 12% | |
| 6 · Non- Food | 48% | 40% | 12% |
- Price carries 40–50 points depending on the lot; most lots put it at 40 points.
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
- Goods
- 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
- 29 Apr 2026, 17:06 BST
- Last source update
- 31 Jul 2026, 09:26 BST
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 17 Jul 2026
- Authority reference
2 - Food- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-039478- Latest notice
- Contract award notice (UK6)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-068e77Find a Tender
- How it runs
The competitive flexible procedure will consist of 2 distinct stages allowing for an initial assessment for 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
The evaluation of the shortlisting process will be based on the information submitted by bidding companies. The ITT submissions, written responses and commercial pricing will be evaluated. The written submissions will be evaluated and moderated by reviewing the provided supplier references.
How it was run
Official notice- Requests to participate (first stage)
- 14 May 2026, 12:00 BST
- Submission deadline
- 14 May 2026, 12:00 BST
- Clarification deadline
- 12 May 2026, 12:00 BST
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
Timeline
29 Apr 2026 → 12 Aug 2026 · 8 dates- Tender notice published179 days ago29 Apr 2026, 17:06 BST
- Clarification questions by166 days ago12 May 2026, 12:00 BST
- Submission deadline164 days ago14 May 2026, 12:00 BST
- Award decision expected by99 days ago17 Jul 2026, 23:59 BST
- Assessment summaries sent88 days ago29 Jul 2026, 00:00 BST
- Latest notice published86 days ago31 Jul 2026, 09:26 BST
- Contract starts85 days ago1 Aug 2026, 00:00 BST
- Standstill ends73 days ago12 Aug 2026, 23:59 BST
Notice history
4 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 29 Apr 2026- Tender notice published29 Apr 2026, 17:06 BSTUK4
- Contract award notice published31 Jul 2026, 09:26 BSTUK6
- Status changed to complete31 Jul 2026, 09:26 BST
- Contract signature expected30 Aug 2026, 23:59 BSTscheduled
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lot 4 · Fruit and Vegetable1 award | |||
| Valimex LimitedSMEFruit and Veg31 Aug 2026 – 31 Jul 2029 · up to 31 Jul 2031Extensions: 1 x 24 month | £3,000,000 inc. VAT | 29 Jul 2026standstill to 12 Aug 2026 | Standstill |
| Lot 6 · Non- Food1 award | |||
| Nivek Catering Supplies LimitedSME31 Aug 2026 – 31 Jul 2029 · up to 31 Jul 2031Extensions: 1 x 24 month | £1,500,000 inc. VAT | 29 Jul 2026standstill to 12 Aug 2026 | Standstill |
| Across several lots1 award | |||
| Michael I Holdsworth Ltd31 Aug 2026 – 31 Jul 2029 · up to 31 Jul 2031Extensions: 1 x 24 month extension is available subject to agreement in writing by all parties | £19,500,000 inc. VAT | 29 Jul 2026standstill to 12 Aug 2026 | Standstill |
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Lot | Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 · Grocery and Provisions | 1final-stage tenders · 2 at stage one | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2 · Frozen Goods | 1final-stage tenders | 0 | 0 | — |
| 3 · Butchery | 1final-stage tenders | 0 | 0 | — |
| 4 · Fruit and Vegetable | 3final-stage tenders | 3 | 0 | — |
| 5 · Chilled | 1final-stage tenders · 2 at stage one | 0 | 0 | — |
| 6 · Non- Food | 1final-stage tenders | 1 | 0 | — |
Who bid
- wonMICHAEL I HOLDSWORTH LIMITED · East Midlands · 1, 2, 3, 5
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
2 public bodies on the noticeOther public bodies
- ISCC Group Purchasing Trading as ProcureProcuring entityProcurement Support
Bidders & participating suppliers
3 commercial parties on the notice- MICHAEL I HOLDSWORTH LIMITEDAwarded supplier
- NIVEK CATERING SUPPLIES LIMITEDAwarded supplier
- Valimex LimitedAwarded supplier
Official documents & specifications (4)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender