Official UK procurement notice
Provision of Outsourced Catering
Authority: BISHOP BEWICK CATHOLIC EDUCATION TRUST (Public body)·On behalf of: VALUE MATCH SERVICES LTD
What is being bought3 lots · detail below
Published requirement descriptionLot 1 - Newcastle West and North: Provision of outsourced catering services for 13 schools within Newcastle West and North
Lot 2 - North Tyneside and Newcastle East Description Provision of outsourced catering services to 14 schools in North Tyneside and Newcastle East.
Lot 3 - Provision of outsourced catering services for 2 primary schools in North Tyneside
The Contract is to provide BBCET and its community of children with consistently high quality food services that meet nutritional standards and support the wellbeing of all recipients.
CPV: Food, beverages, tobacco and related products · Hotel, restaurant and retail trade services
Lots and requirements (3)Procurement structure
3 lots · all with a published value (£10,000,000 together) · same evaluation weights on every lotLot #1Newcastle West and NorthAwardedRenewalPublished value£4,500,000
The source published no individual description for this lot.
Lot #2North Tyneside and Newcastle EastAwardedRenewalPublished value£4,500,000
The source published no individual description for this lot.
Lot #3St Stephens and St Bartholomew'sAwardedRenewalPublished value£1,000,000
The source published no individual description for this lot.
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 45 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 4.5 points. Quality carries 55 of 100: the paper moves it further than 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
- Open procedure
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Awarded
- Procurement threshold
- Above threshold (FTS publication)
- Regulatory regime
- Utilities
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 1 Dec 2025, 13:13 GMT
- Last source update
- 1 Sept 2026, 13:22 BST
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 20 Feb 2026
- FTS notice number
2025/S 000-078482- Latest notice
- Contract details notice (UK7)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-05ebefFind a Tender
How it was run
Official notice- Submission deadline
- 16 Jan 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Clarification deadline
- 17 Dec 2025, 12:00 GMT
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
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Timeline
1 Dec 2025 → 1 Sept 2026 · 8 dates- Tender notice published325 days ago1 Dec 2025, 13:13 GMT
- Clarification questions by309 days ago17 Dec 2025, 12:00 GMT
- Submission deadline279 days ago16 Jan 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Award decision expected by243 days ago20 Feb 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Assessment summaries sent232 days ago4 Mar 2026
- Standstill ends222 days ago13 Mar 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Contract starts51 days ago1 Sept 2026, 00:00 BST
- Latest notice published51 days ago1 Sept 2026, 13:22 BST
Notice history
6 events · 4 releases on Find a Tender · since 1 Dec 2025- Tender notice published1 Dec 2025, 13:13 GMTUK4
- Tender notice published1 Dec 2025, 13:17 GMTUK4
- Contract award notice published4 Mar 2026, 09:39 GMTUK6
- Status changed to complete4 Mar 2026, 09:39 GMT
- Contract signature expected23 Mar 2026, 23:59 GMTscheduled
- Contract details notice published1 Sept 2026, 13:22 BSTUK7
Published amendments (1)
Incorrect regime selected - No special regime
Routine re-releases (4)
- 2025-12: 1 release · 1 Dec 2025
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Across several lots1 award | |||
| Aspens Services Limited1 Sept 2026 – 31 Aug 2028 · up to 31 Aug 2031Extensions: Contract commencing 01st September 2026 for 2 years with the option to extend for a further 3 * 12 month periods (subject to satisfactory performance), with a final potential end date of 31st August 2031. | £10,000,000 inc. VAT | 4 Mar 2026 | Awarded |
Contracts
Contract 1 · Aspens Services Limited
- Signed
- 13 Jul 2026
- Value
- £11,500,000
- Period
- 1 Aug 2026 – 31 Jul 2028 · up to 31 Jul 2031 with extensions
- Status
- active
- Extensions
- Option to extend from 1st Aug 2028 for a further 3 x 12-month periods (subject to satisfactory performance against KPIs)
3 agreed KPIs: Menu Planning - Food Standards · Menu Delivery - Food Standards · Management Information
- Menu Planning - Food Standards, Develop and submit a compliant 3-week menu cycle that meets all applicable School Food Standards, including portion sizes, nutritional balance, and allergen labelling.
- Menu Delivery - Food Standards, Deliver the approved 3-week menu cycle in full compliance with School Food Standards, allowing for local variations (e.g. themed days, cultural events).
- Management Information, Submit complete and accurate monthly management information which includes but is not limited to meal uptake, FSM data, cost breakdowns, and allergen logs.
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Lot | Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 · Newcastle West and North | 6final-stage tenders | 1 | 0 | — |
| 2 · North Tyneside and Newcastle East | 6final-stage tenders | 1 | 0 | — |
| 3 · St Stephens and St Bartholomew's | 6final-stage tenders | 1 | 0 | — |
Who bid
- wonASPENS-SERVICES LIMITED · Greater London · all lots
- did not winNewcastle City Council · North East England · all lots
- did not winMELLORS CATERING SERVICES LIMITED · North West England · all lots
- did not winHUTCHISON CATERING LIMITED · North East England · all lots
- did not winCREATIVE MANAGEMENT SERVICES LIMITEDSME · North East England · all lots
- did not winCATER LINK LIMITED · South East England · all lots
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
- VALUE MATCH SERVICES LTDProcuring entityProcurement Support
Bidders & participating suppliers
6 commercial parties on the notice · 1 awarded- ASPENS-SERVICES LIMITEDAwarded supplier
- CATER LINK LIMITEDBidder / tenderer
- CREATIVE MANAGEMENT SERVICES LIMITEDBidder / tenderer
- HUTCHISON CATERING LIMITEDBidder / tenderer
- MELLORS CATERING SERVICES LIMITEDBidder / tenderer
- Newcastle City CouncilBidder / tenderer
Official documents & specifications (7)
Official links; attachments are not copiedTender pack and attachments
Notices published for this procedure
- Contract details notice Contract details notice on Find a Tender
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender