Find a TenderOpen for tender Tender notice
Published 20 Oct 2026, 16:49 BST

Official UK procurement notice

Vehicle Wash Cleaning Contract

Authority: St Helens Council (Local council)

ServicesBelow threshold - open competitionBelow threshold
Published estimate£150,000≈ £50k / year · £180,000 inc. VAT
Submission deadline 16 Nov 202612:00 GMT · 26d 0h left
Clarification cut-off 9 Nov 202612:00 GMT · questions to the authority
Contract term 3 yrsends 3 Jan 2030 · extension options published · starts 4 Jan 2027

What is being bought

Published requirement description

St Helens Council is looking for a potential contractor to provide rates for the supply of vehicle chassis, body & ancillary equipment steam cleaning services.

A definitive forecast of future vehicle cleaning requirements cannot be supplied. The Council cannot guarantee the number of requests suppliers may or may not receive, but a list of approximate wash types is included within the pricing schedule document.

The Council has a diverse fleet of approximately 200 vehicles ranging from cars to 32,000 kg roll on / off vehicles, 25 plus refuse collection vehicles with another 25 plus recycling collection vehicles, coach built adapted buses to tractors and many more.

Approximately 80 of these vehicles require around 6 steam cleans per year.

Normal working hours for most of the fleet are Monday to Friday 6.00am to 6pm, although due to the nature of the various services some weekend and bank holiday work is undertaken. Whilst most vehicles can be made available during these periods some will need to be completed either after 6pm or at weekends.

The vehicles will need to be washed at Hardshaw Brook Depot WA9 1JR, the depot is open 24hours 365(6) days per year and access arrangements both during and outside normal working hours are via the depot security barrier.

Vehicle cleaning will take place in the designated vehicle wash bay area, and the successful provider will be responsible for keeping this area clean, along with the vehicle wash ramp and wash ramp recessed area.

CPV: Vehicle-fleet-support services

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · value published
Lot #1 3 yrsPublished value£150,000
Contract period: 4 Jan 2027 – 3 Jan 2030 (3 yrs)Value: £150,000 exc. VAT · £180,000 inc. VAT
Delivery: North WestTurnover guideline: ~£99,909/yr≈ 2× annual value
Extensions: The Council reserves the right to add additional services to this contract that fall within the scope of Vehicle Wash Cleaning.

Who is likely to bid for this lot ↓

What it takes to win
i

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 more
How bids are scored
Quality: 30%Price: 70%
Published sub-criteria (2)
  • Quality Questions: 30%
  • Price Evaluation: 70%
Published award criteria (2)
  • Quality Questions: Quality Questions (inclusive of Social Value)
  • Price Evaluation: Please refer to tender pack for further breakdown

No conditions of participation were published on the notice; check the tender documents.

What this means for your bid
  • Price carries 70 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 7 points. This one is won on the number: sharpen the price before polishing the prose.
  • Turnover usually expected at this size: about £99,909 (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 St Helens Council buys Repair and maintenance services of motor vehicles and associated equipment (CPV 5011), and who usually turns up

St Helens Council’s own published record, next to the published market for the same work. Frameworks and DPS are kept out: they attract a different number of bids. Whole-market view: Repair and maintenance services of motor vehicles and associated equipment (CPV 5011) →

1

How the contest usually goes

Winner shares use published awards; bid and price charts use contested lots.

Question for the bid
This buyerSt Helens Council · all categories
What to do with it
How often do SMEs win?
i

How often small and medium firms win.

Share of awards where the winner’s size is known.

The counts under this question show how many awards have a known supplier size.

Last 36 months.

Buyer: 32 of 44 known-size awards · market: CPV 5011 · North West England, n=10
73%90%

Small firms have won here. Neither number says whether you qualify; it describes who has been winning.

How often do local suppliers win?
i

How often local firms win similar work.

Winners with a registered address in the delivery region, out of awards with a known address.

Here, local means registered in North West England.

A local branch does not count if the registered address is elsewhere.

Last 36 months.

Buyer: 50 of 65 known-location awards · market: CPV 5011 · North West England, n=16
77%75%

Most of this buyer’s recorded winners are registered in North West England.

How long to a decision?
i

How long buyers here take to decide after bids close.

Middle value in days from the deadline to the first award notice, on competitions that published both dates.

Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.

Last 36 months.

Buyer: 10 decided notices · market: CPV 5011 · UK-wide, n=41
37 days50 days

Half of these awards were announced within 37 days of the bid deadline.

How often single-bid or direct?
i

How often work is awarded with no recorded rival.

Direct awards and tenders where every published lot count shows one bid.

Both shares are minimums: some awards have no bid count.

Thin markets produce this too; it is not proof of a tailored specification.

Last 36 months.

Buyer: at least 17 of 72 procurements with awards had no recorded rival · market: CPV 5011 · North West England, n=16
24%31%

Missing bid counts may hide more single-bid awards. This share is a minimum.

How many bids did past lots attract?

i

How many bids past lots received.

Each colour is a bid-count range. Only competed lots with a published count are included.

Past bids do not predict this tender.

Last 36 months.

This buyer12 lots with bid counts · all categories
0% had one bid
The market86 lots with bid counts · CPV 5011 · UK-wide
31% had one bid
Buyer / market · select a colour for counts
1 bid0% / 31%
Buyer: 0 of 12 lots with published bid counts. Market: 27 of 86 lots with published bid counts.
2–367% / 40%
Buyer: 8 of 12 lots with published bid counts. Market: 34 of 86 lots with published bid counts.
4–625% / 19%
Buyer: 3 of 12 lots with published bid counts. Market: 16 of 86 lots with published bid counts.
7+8% / 10%
Buyer: 1 of 12 lots with published bid counts. Market: 9 of 86 lots with published bid counts.

How did awards compare with estimates?

i

Where winning prices landed against estimates.

Each colour shows awards below, close to or above the published estimate, one lot at a time.

Past prices are a guide, not a bid price.

Last 36 months.

This buyer24 lots with estimate and award · all categories
46% below estimate
The market47 lots with estimate and award · CPV 5011 · UK-wide
23% below estimate
Buyer / market · select a colour for counts
Below estimate46% / 23%
Buyer: 11 of 24 lots with an estimate and award. Market: 11 of 47 lots with an estimate and award.
Within ±2%21% / 60%
Buyer: 5 of 24 lots with an estimate and award. Market: 28 of 47 lots with an estimate and award.
Above estimate33% / 17%
Buyer: 8 of 24 lots with an estimate and award. Market: 8 of 47 lots with an estimate and award.
2

Assess each lot
i

What past awards tell you about each lot.

See the forecast, this buyer’s earlier suppliers and firms with relevant wins.

No supplier is confirmed as a bidder.

Open a lot for its forecast, this buyer’s previous supplier and possible competitors, from published award history, not a bid list

Lot #1CPV 501136 monthsPublished estimate£150k
Expected competition
i

How many bids this lot may attract.

The forecast uses similar past competitions. The bar shows either that forecast or past bid counts; the line below says which.

Each lot shows its own forecast based on its own category; forecasts for different lots of the same notice are not comparative.

A forecast, not a list of bidders.

3expected bids13% single-bid risk
forecast from 11 past contests
Forecast chances for this lot
1 bid13%
Chance this lot gets 1 bid: 13%. This is a forecast.
2–369%
Chance this lot gets 2–3: 69%. This is a forecast.
4–615%
Chance this lot gets 4–6: 15%. This is a forecast.
7+3%
Chance this lot gets 7+: 3%. This is a forecast.
Commercial price forecast
i

Where the award price may land.

The forecast uses similar awards and the buyer’s estimate. The band covers the middle half of likely prices.

Based on 6 comparable awards. Each lot reflects its own category; forecasts for different lots of the same notice are not comparative.

A statistical guide from past awards, not a price to bid.

£150kLevel with estimate
6 comparable awards
Forecast compared with the buyer’s estimate
Middle 50%£111k–£150k
Half of likely prices fall between £111,345 and £150,000.
Estimate£150k
The buyer published an estimate of £150,000 for this lot.
A 29% chance the award lands exactly on the estimate.

Who has supplied this buyer on similar work?
i

Who has done similar work for this buyer.

Past contracts are matched by buyer, title and type of work.

A past supplier may not bid again.

No earlier contract of this buyer matches this lot on the published record.

Who could compete for this lot?
i

Who could compete for this lot?

Firms with relevant past wins. On a framework, we show firms on that agreement.

None is confirmed as a bidder.

SupplierWon in this categoryLive contractsAward vs estimate
1 win in North West England9 panel places
£4.8m32 awards in 36m · last 1 months ago14 live · £35m
i

Public contracts this supplier still holds.

Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book.

Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity.

at estimate n=13
1 win in North West England5 panel places
£6.9m18 awards in 36m · last 2 months ago9 live · £7.3m
i

Public contracts this supplier still holds.

Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book.

Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity.

3% below n=10
2 wins in North West England11 panel places
£3.2m23 awards in 36m · last 3 months ago3 live · £1.5m
i

Public contracts this supplier still holds.

Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book.

Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity.

35% below n=1
1 win in North West England
£4.2m1 awards in 36m · last 5 months agoNone on fileat estimate n=1
£300k1 awards in 36m · last 6 months ago1 live · £300k
i

Public contracts this supplier still holds.

Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book.

Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity.

at estimate n=1
About this data
  • Source. Official UK public procurement notices (Find a Tender), reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0. New notices arrive through the day; the figures are rebuilt nightly.
  • Two views, kept apart. The authority’s own track record and the wider market for the same kind of work sit side by side and are never mixed. Where the local picture is too thin, a figure widens to a broader market and says which one it used.
  • Forecasts are labelled. The price forecast and its range, possible competitors and the earlier-work matches are our estimates from past awards: not published facts, not win chances and not price advice. Official notices do not say who is bidding.
  • Every figure shows what it rests on. Not every notice publishes a bid count, a value or a delivery region, so each figure carries the number of records behind it, and one built on few records is marked as such. The on a figure explains it; the counting rules are in the methodology. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.

Procedure terms & legal framework

From the official record
Procedure method
Below threshold - open competition
Legal basis
UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
Procurement category
Services
Notice status
Open for tender
Procurement threshold
Below threshold
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
20 Oct 2026, 16:49 BST
Last source update
20 Oct 2026, 16:49 BST
Authority reference
UID: 021144
FTS notice number
2026/S 000-099187
Latest notice
Tender notice (UK4)
Classification (CPV)
Vehicle-fleet-support services
Delivery area
North West (UKD7)
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-078c3b Find a Tender

How to participate & submission route

Official notice Submit via ProContract (Due North)
Submission portal named on this notice: ProContract (Due North) · Who buys & how to bid on ProContract
Supplier login requiredElectronic submission allowed
Access & registration note: Free · short registration with manual review; public opportunity list
Requests to participate (first stage)
—
Tender submission deadline
16 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT
Clarification deadline
9 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT
Submission channel
Official e-sourcing portal
Electronic submission
Allowed
Detailed submission instructions & authority contactsFrom official release

procontract.due-north.com/Advert ↗

Submissions shall be received by the Council by the closing date and time stated within the Instruction for Tendering document.

No submission received after the closing date and time will be accepted other than where there are exceptional circumstances which may be considered by the Director of STAR Procurement in their sole discretion. Please note that tender submissions which are only partly uploaded at the closing date and time will be considered to have not been received and will be rejected by the Council.

No tender documents will be sent to you - you need to navigate to the "my opportunities" section and download the documents from the Chest website.

If you have any questions regarding this opportunity - please post them on the messaging facility on the Chest. Messages sent outside of the Chest will not be responded to.

ALL SUBMISSIONS MUST BE SENT THROUGH THE CHEST. Submissions sent via any other method will not be accepted.

Please ensure that you leave enough time to upload your documents before the closing date/time, as late submissions may not be accepted.

In submitting your quotation you agree to contract on the terms and conditions as detailed on The Chest. Due to the Council's obligations of fairness and equal treatment to all bidders it cannot accept amendments to these terms and conditions or alternative terms and conditions. If you seek to amend the terms and conditions or submit alternative terms and conditions the Council may reject your quotation.

Published estimate £150,000 excludes VAT (£180,000 including VAT).

Timeline

20 Oct 2026 → 4 Jan 2027 · 4 dates
  1. Tender notice published1 day ago
    20 Oct 2026, 16:49 BST
  2. Today
    21 Oct 2026
  3. Clarification questions byin 19 days
    9 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT
  4. Submission deadlinein 26 days
    16 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT
  5. Contract startsin 75 days
    4 Jan 2027

Notice history

1 event · 1 release on Find a Tender
  1. Tender notice published
    20 Oct 2026, 16:49 BST
    UK4

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

St Helens Council

Contracting authorityPublic authority - sub-central government GB-PPON: PPYM-6238-VHLR Town Hall, St Helens, North West, WA10 1HPContact email

Official documents & specifications (2)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Tender pack and attachments

Notices published for this procedure

  • Tender notice tenderTender noticeUK4Tender notice on Find a Tender