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Published 18 May 2026, 14:18 BST

Official UK procurement notice

W5023 The School Improvement Service, the Quality Assurance Service and the Moderation Service

Official notice

Authority: Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council (Local council)

ServicesOpen procedureAbove thresholdLight touch regimeSME suitableVCSE suitable
Sectors: Education & Training (80) Delivery: West Midlands (UKG38)
Published estimate£1,000,000≈ £333k / year · £1,250,000 inc. VAT37% below published estimate
Submissions closed 12 Jun 2026awarded 4 Sept 2026
Awarded to Challenging Education
Contract term 3 yrsends 31 Aug 2029 · up to 31 Aug 2031 with extensions · starts 1 Sept 2026

What is being bought

Published requirement description

The council is looking to procure one provider to deliver a school improvement service, a quality assurance service for alterative provision and a moderation service provision.

The Moderation Service is a statutory service under The Education (National Curriculum) (Key Stage 2 Assessment Arrangements) (England) Order 2003, which was made pursuant to section 87 of the Education Act 2002. The Moderation Service therefore plays a central role in enabling the Council to fulfil its statutory duties to oversee performance, secure improvement, assure safeguarding practice, and ensure the accuracy of statutory assessment.

  • The authority expects to re-tender this requirement around 1 Apr 2031, 23:59 BST.

CPV: Education and training services

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · value published
Lot #1AwardedRenewal 3 yrsSMEVCSEPublished value£1,000,000
Contract period: 1 Sept 2026 – 31 Aug 2029 (3 yrs) · up to 31 Aug 2031 with extensionsValue: £1,000,000 exc. VAT · £1,250,000 inc. VAT
Delivery: West MidlandsEligibility: SME eligibleVCSE eligible
Extensions: 2 periods of up to 12 months each
80000000 Education and training services

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 were scored
Quality: 70%Price: 30%
Published sub-criteria (3)
  • Quality: 60%
  • Quality: 10%
  • Price: 30%
Published award criteria (3)
  • Price
  • Quality
  • Quality
What this means for your bid
  • Price carries 30 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 3 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
Open procedure
Legal basis
UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
Procurement category
Services
Notice status
Awarded
Procurement threshold
Above threshold (FTS publication)
Regulatory regime
Light touch regime
Commercial structure
Stand-alone contract (no framework)
Competition type
Competitive procedure
GPA / WTO covered
Unspecified in notice
Recurring procurement
Yes · next expected 1 Apr 2031
First published
18 May 2026, 14:18 BST
Last source update
4 Sept 2026, 08:46 BST
Award evaluation window
Submission end – 28 Jul 2026
FTS notice number
2026/S 000-045381
Latest notice
Contract award notice (UK6)
Classification (CPV)
Education and training services
Delivery area
West Midlands (UKG38)
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-069b0b Find a Tender

How it was run

Official notice
Run through: In-tend · Who buys & how to bid on In-tend
Supplier login requiredElectronic submission allowedLanguage: EN
Access & registration note: Free · one account per buying organisation's portal · reCAPTCHA on signup
Submission deadline
12 Jun 2026, 12:00 BST
Submission channel
Official e-sourcing portal
Electronic submission
Allowed
Accepted languages
en
Detailed submission instructions & authority contactsFrom official release

in-tendhost.co.uk/walsallcouncil/aspx/… ↗

Timeline

18 May 2026 → 4 Sept 2026 · 6 dates
  1. Tender notice published160 days ago
    18 May 2026, 14:18 BST
  2. Submission deadline135 days ago
    12 Jun 2026, 12:00 BST
  3. Award decision expected by89 days ago
    28 Jul 2026, 23:59 BST
  4. Contract starts55 days ago
    1 Sept 2026, 00:00 BST
  5. Assessment summaries sent52 days ago
    4 Sept 2026, 00:00 BST
  6. Latest notice published51 days ago
    4 Sept 2026, 08:46 BST

Notice history

4 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 18 May 2026
  1. Tender notice published
    18 May 2026, 14:18 BST
    UK4
  2. Contract award notice published
    4 Sept 2026, 08:46 BST
    UK6
  3. Status changed to complete
    4 Sept 2026, 08:46 BST
  4. Contract signature expected
    15 Sept 2026, 23:59 BST
    scheduled

Commercial outcome & contract awards

Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast
Awards 1
Awarded value £630,0001 award exc. VAT
Bids received 21 from SMEs
Awarded toValueDateStatus
Challenging EducationSME15 Sept 2026 – 31 Aug 2029 · up to 31 Aug 2031Extensions: 1 x 24 month extension facility£630,0004 Sept 2026Awarded

Bid statistics published by the authority

BidsSMEVCSEValid bid range
2final-stage tenders11—

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

Walsall Council

Contracting authorityPublic authority - sub-central government GB-PPON: PHGR-7481-DHXR Civic Centre, Darwall Street, Walsall, West Midlands, WS1 1TPContact email

Bidders & participating suppliers

1 commercial party on the notice
  • CHALLENGING EDUCATION LIMITEDAwarded supplierGB-COH: 10146423GB-PPON: PRNG-7747-CXGJ 1 Brassey Road, Shrewsbury, West Midlands, SY3 7FAContact email

Official documents & specifications (2)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Notices published for this procedure

  • Contract award notice awardContract award noticeUK6Contract award notice on Find a Tender
  • Tender notice tenderTender noticeUK4Tender notice on Find a Tender