Official UK procurement notice
Sheffield South East Trust Cluster ~ Catering Tender
Authority: Sheffield South East Trust Cluster (Public body)
The successful Supplier will be required to provide Catering Services for Sheffield South East Trust Cluster, a cluster of schools which have come to market in a collaborative way. The Sheffield South East Trust is leading a city wide collaborative initiative to deliver a new, shared catering service across Sheffield schools from September 2027.
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThe successful Supplier will be required to provide Catering Services for Sheffield South East Trust Cluster, a cluster of schools which have come to market in a collaborative way.
•Contract start date: August 1st
•Contract value: 4.4m Per year, excluding VAT.
•Contract length: Three {3} +1 +1
•Number of schools: 44 {7 in one Trust}
The Sheffield South East Trust is leading a city wide collaborative initiative to deliver a new, shared catering service across Sheffield schools from September 2027. By working in partnership, we will unlock economies of scale that deliver greater value and shared benefit. This network brings together schools of all sizes and settings inner city and rural alike bound by a shared commitment to excellence. Our holistic, inclusive approach is designed to enhance learning and secure lifelong outcomes for every pupil in our care. We recognise that collective action delivers far more than working in isolation: together, we build stronger foundations for children and their families, raising aspirations across our region.
Mark Dunker, CFO, of Sheffield South East Trust has brought on board the Litmus Partnership to stand alongside us—guiding, shaping, and delivering the very best future for every single pupil in our care. Led by unshakeable purpose and crystal clear vision, we are driven to find nothing less than the perfect solution for the young people in our schools. This project has grown from a shared hope into something truly extraordinary over these past months: 36 school leaders have now united, standing together to choose a contractor who will match our ambition and deliver the absolute highest standards in food, care, and service.
Please see PSQ Document for more information.
For more information about this opportunity, please visit the eSourcing portal at:
litmustms.co.uk/tenders/UK-UK-Sheffi… ↗
To respond to this opportunity, please click here:
- How the procedure runs: Please see PSQ Document for more information.
CPV: School catering services
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The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1RenewalPublished value£22,000,000
What it takes to wini
Evaluation split and conditions of participation as published; the tender pack may add morei
Published sub-criteria (2)
- Criterion 1: 70%
- Criterion 2: 30%
Published award criteria (2)
- Criterion 1
- Criterion 2
No conditions of participation were published on the notice; check the tender documents.
- Price carries 30 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 3 points. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.
- Turnover usually expected at this size: about £14,653,285 (twice the annual value).
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula. Turnover is an indicative market norm (≈2× annual value), not a published condition.
Competition analysis · published record, not a forecast of who will bid
How Sheffield South East Trust Cluster buys Catering services (CPV 5552), and who usually turns up
Sheffield South East Trust Cluster has little published record in this market. Frameworks and DPS are left out: they draw different bid counts. Whole-market view: Catering services (CPV 5552) →
How the contest usually goes
Winner shares use published awards; bid and price charts use contested lots.
i
The counts under this question show how many awards have a known supplier size.
Across this market, small firms won 36% of awards with a known supplier size.
i
Local means the winner is registered in the region where that award was delivered. The market figure counts awards delivered in Yorkshire and the Humber.
Across this market, 8% of winners were registered in the delivery region.
i
Half of these awards have an award date within 56 days of the bid deadline.
i
The market share is a minimum: some awards have no bid count.
Across this market, at least 18% of awarded procurements had no recorded rival.
How many bids did past lots attract?
i
1 bid13%
2–323%
4–653%
7+10%
How did awards compare with estimates?
i
Below estimate39%
Within ±2%44%
Above estimate17%
Assess each lot i
i
Open a lot for its forecast, this buyer’s previous supplier and possible competitors, from published award history, not a bid list
Lot #1CPV 5552Published estimate£22m
i
Each lot shows its own forecast based on its own category; forecasts for different lots of the same notice are not comparative.
1 bid28%
2–324%
4–641%
7+8%
i
Based on 20 comparable awards. Each lot reflects its own category; forecasts for different lots of the same notice are not comparative.
Middle 50%£22m
Estimate£22m
Who has supplied this buyer on similar work? i
i
No earlier contract of this buyer matches this lot on the published record.
Who could compete for this lot? i
i
| Supplier | Won in this category | Live contracts | Award vs estimate |
|---|---|---|---|
| £194m64 awards in 36m · last 1 month ago | 38 live · £132m i | at estimate n=64 | |
Cater Link LimitedLarge | £157m35 awards in 36m · last 1 month ago | 20 live · £74m i | at estimate n=34 |
| £34m11 awards in 36m · last 2 months ago | 6 live · £24m i | 30% above n=12 | |
Innovate ServicesLarge | £77m35 awards in 36m · last 5 months ago | 36 live · £96m i | 7% above n=44 |
| £37m20 awards in 36m · last 4 months ago | 5 live · £15m i | 17% above n=9 |
About this data
- Estimates, labelled. The price range, possible competitors and earlier-work matches are our estimates from past awards, not published facts, win chances or price advice. The buyer’s own record and the wider market are shown apart, never mixed.
- Source. Official UK public procurement notices (Find a Tender and Contracts Finder), reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0, updated through the day and rebuilt nightly. Not every figure uses both feeds, and each one shows how many records it rests on: see the methodology. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.
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
- Open for tender
- 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
- 13 Nov 2026, 14:02 GMT
- Last source update
- 13 Nov 2026, 14:02 GMT
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 3 May 2027
- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-108036- Latest notice
- Tender notice (UK4)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-07bbc0Find a Tender
- How it runs
Please see PSQ Document for more information.
How to participate & submission route
Official notice Submit via Litmus TMS- Requests to participate (first stage)
- —
- Tender submission deadline
- 18 Jan 2027, 12:00 GMT
- Clarification deadline
- 8 Dec 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
Timeline
13 Nov 2026 → 1 Aug 2027 · 5 dates- Tender notice published1h ago13 Nov 2026, 14:02 GMT
- Today13 Nov 2026
- Clarification questions byin 24 days8 Dec 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Submission deadlinein 65 days18 Jan 2027, 12:00 GMT
- Award decision expected byin 171 days3 May 2027, 23:59 BST
- Contract startsin 260 days1 Aug 2027, 00:00 BST
Notice history
1 event · 1 release on Find a Tender- Tender notice published13 Nov 2026, 14:02 GMTUK4
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Nothing awarded yet- Awards (0)
- No award published
- Contracts (0)
- No contract published
- Bid statistics
- No aggregate bid statistics published
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Official documents & specifications (1)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender