Official UK procurement notice
CBC-2107-RFI-SK Alternative Education Framework re-commission (Request for Information)
Authority: Bedford Borough Council (Local council)·On behalf of: Central Bedfordshire Council
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionPre-Market Engagement Notice – Alternative Education and Provision Framework
Alternative Education and Provision Tender
Central Bedfordshire Council and Bedford Borough Council are developing a new Alternative Education and Provision Framework, which is intended to commence on 1 September 2027.
We are aiming to open the procurement opportunity for applications in November 2026 and would like to invite interested providers to attend a Pre-Market Engagement Event via Microsoft Teams on:
Date: Tuesday 27 October 2026
Time: 13:00 - 15:00
The session will provide an opportunity for providers to learn more about the proposed framework, understand the councils' requirements, and ask questions ahead of the procurement process.
Agenda
Defining Alternative Education and Provision
Our Aims and Analysis
Contract Monitoring
Quality Assurance
Procurement Process
Social Value
Tender Timelines
Questions and Close
If you would like to attend, or have any queries regarding the event, please contact:
ChildrensCommissioningEnquiries@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk
We look forward to engaging with providers and welcoming your feedback as we develop the new framework.
CPV: E-learning services · Education and training services · Special education services · Tutorial services · Vocational training services
How this framework works
From the published notice- Framework period
- 4 yrs · up to 8 yrs from 1 Sept 2027
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedWhat 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).
- “CBC-2107-RFI-SK Alternative Education Framework re-commission (Request…” is a framework: the contest is a place on its panel, not a single contract.
Pipeline intelligence · planning stage: how this market runs before the tender is published
How Bedford Borough Council buys Special education services (CPV 8034), and who usually turns up
Bedford Borough Council’s published record next to the market for the same work. Compared with other frameworks and DPS only. Whole-market view: Special education services (CPV 8034) →
How the contest usually goes
Winner shares use published awards; bid and price charts use contested lots.
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.
Small firms have won here. Neither number says whether you qualify; it describes who has been winning. 47 known-size awards sit across 3 procurements, so one procurement can dominate this percentage.
i
How often local firms win similar work.
Winners with a registered address in the delivery region, out of awards with a known address.
Local means the winner is registered in the region where that award was delivered.
A local branch does not count if the registered address is elsewhere.
Most of this buyer’s recorded winners were registered in the region where that award was delivered. 92 known-location awards sit across 3 procurements, so one procurement can dominate this percentage.
i
How long buyers here take to decide after bids close.
Middle value in days from the bid deadline to the award date, on competitions that published both.
Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.
Half of these awards have an award date within 40 days of the bid deadline.
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.
Direct awards or one recorded bid are common here. Check the route before spending time on a bid.
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.
1 bid18% / 0%
2–318% / 0%
4–627% / 30%
7+36% / 70%
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.
On a framework or DPS, prices are agreed when work is called off.
Past prices are a guide, not a bid price.
Not comparable on a framework or DPS: the price is set later, on each call-off.
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.
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 80Estimate not published
This lot lists more than one class in CPV 80. The comparison uses that group.
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. The bar shows 58 past lots.
A forecast, not a list of bidders.
1 bid5%
2–333%
4–624%
7+38%
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.
No comparable awards for this lot yet.
A statistical guide from past awards, not a price to bid.
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.
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.
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.
Candidate suppliers for this notice have not been worked out yet, so this is not a verdict that nobody fits.
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- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Planned procurement
- Procurement threshold
- Unspecified in notice
- Regulatory regime
- Light touch regime
- Commercial structure
- Framework agreement
- Who may use this agreement
- Not stated in the notice; call-off rights may be limited to the establishing authority
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 9 Oct 2026, 12:26 BST
- Last source update
- 20 Oct 2026, 15:40 BST
- Authority reference
CBC-2107-RFI-SK- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-099135- Latest notice
- Preliminary market engagement notice (UK2)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-0784b3Find a Tender
How it was run
Official notice- Appointment period ends
- —
Timeline
9 Oct 2026 → 1 Sept 2027 · 5 dates- Planning notice published17 days ago9 Oct 2026, 12:26 BST
- Latest notice published6 days ago20 Oct 2026, 15:40 BST
- Today26 Oct 2026
- Market engagementin 1 day27 Oct 2026, 23:59 GMT
Central Bedfordshire Council and Bedford Borough Council are developing a new Alternative Education and Provision Framework, which is intended to commence on 1 September 2027.
We are aiming to open the procurement opportunity for applications in November 2026 and would like to invite interested providers to attend a Pre-Market Engagement Event via Microsoft Teams.
- Tender notice expectedin 21 days16 Nov 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Contract startsin 309 days1 Sept 2027, 00:00 BST
Notice history
4 events · 3 releases on Find a Tender · since 9 Oct 2026- Preliminary market engagement notice published9 Oct 2026, 12:26 BSTUK2
- Preliminary market engagement notice published14 Oct 2026, 12:33 BSTUK2
- Buyer details updated14 Oct 2026, 12:33 BST
- Preliminary market engagement notice published20 Oct 2026, 15:40 BSTUK2
Published amendments (2)
Email address changed to ChildrensCommissioningEnquiries@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk
Email address changed to ChildrensCommissioningEnquiries@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk The online event time has changed and will now take place from 13:00 to 15:00.
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Pipeline notice- Awards (0)
- No award published
- Contracts (0)
- No contract published
- Bid statistics
- No aggregate bid statistics published
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
2 public bodies on the noticeOther public bodies
- Central Bedfordshire CouncilProcess contact pointProcuring entityPublic authority - sub-central governmentBedford Borough Council is acting as a joint commissioning authority and participating contracting authority alongside Central Bedfordshire Council in the development and future procurement of the Alternative Education Provision Framework.
Official documents & specifications (3)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender