Find a TenderClosedTender notice
Published 20 Aug 2026, 17:15 BST

Official UK procurement notice

Ely Youth Zone · UK public procurement notice

Official notice

Authority: Cardiff Council (Central government)

WorksCompetitive flexible procedureAbove thresholdSME suitable
Published estimate£8,650,000≈ £2.9m / year · £10,380,000 inc. VAT
Submissions closed 15 Sept 2026
Contract term 3 yrsends 28 Feb 2030 · up to 31 May 2030 with extensions · starts 1 Mar 2027

What is being bought

Published requirement description

Cardiff Council (the Council) has identified a plot of land at Cowbridge Road East (the Site) as the preferred location for the delivery of a new youth centre facility (Youth Zone).

The Site is currently occupied by housing and a partly demolished social club which the Council is in the process of acquiring which it will then remediate in order to enable delivery of the Youth Zone. Further information on the Site location can be found in the Stage 2 Report (Appendix A of the Scope) made available with this Tender Notice.

Whilst the Council will be the contracting authority for the purposes of this procurement, the delivery of the Youth Zone will be co-commissioned by OnSide, a registered charity and company which raises funds to deliver and operate a national network of state-of-the-art Youth Zones in the UK’s most disadvantaged areas. OnSide (or a subsidiary of its group) is expected to be the tenant of the Youth Zone once delivered. Further information on OnSide is set out in the associated tender documents.

The Council wishes to appoint a developer to finance, design and construct the Youth Zone which this notice relates to. The Youth Zone is anticipated to be in the region of 1,650m2 and further details on the specification requirements for this output can be found in the Scope. The successful supplier will not be required to provide the associated Fixtures, Furniture and Equipment for the completed output – for the avoidance of doubt, this is not within the scope of this procurement process.

The Council has set a budget for this project and further details on this are set out in the ITP and ITPDN made available with this Tender Notice.

The Council will be making staged payments towards the cost of delivering the Youth Zone. These staged payments are not subject to negotiation. Further details on the staged payments and the intended contractual structure/approach are set out in the Heads of Terms.

Once delivered to satisfactory completion, the Council intends to enter into a lease with a newly created OnSide charity entity for the Youth Zone for a term of 125 years. To ensure that the Youth Zone is fit for Onside’s requirements, the OnSide charity will be a counterparty to the contractual arrangements to be entered into with the successful supplier subject of this procurement and will be able to exercise rights under it to have input/control on delivery.

The lease to be entered into separately with the Council and the OnSide charity (once the output is delivered) will not involve the Council placing any legally enforceable obligation on the OnSide charity to provide any services to the Council or the wider public in respect of the Youth Zone – it will be an independent matter as to how to utilise and operate the Youth Zone for the Youth Zone charity.

This Tender Notice is for the award of a public contract through a competitive flexible procedure in accordance with section 20(1) and (2)(b) of the Procurement Act 2023.

The competitive flexible procedure may include negotiation at any stage.

The Council reserves the right to rely on Section 24 of the Procurement Act 2023 to refine award criteria.

The Council reserves the right to rely on Section 43 of the Procurement Act 2023 to directly award a contract.

The Council intends to shortlist up to 3 suppliers with the highest scoring Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ) responses to participate in the subsequent stages of the competitive flexible procedure. The 3 shortlisted suppliers will be invited participate in the dialogue and negotiation phase and then submit tenders. The supplier with the most advantageous tender will be invited to participate in the preferred bidder stage to confirm commitments in its tender.

The Council will use an online portal at www.proactisplaza.com/SupplierPortal ↗ (the Portal) to make associated tender documents available to suppliers.

Suppliers requesting to participate in this procurement competition are also required to submit their completed PSQs through the Portal.

The following associated tender documents are being provided with the publication of this tender notice to provide further information about the procurement and are available on the Portal:

  • Tender Notice
  • Heads of Terms
  • PSQ
  • PSQ Guidance Document
  • Invitation to Participate (ITP)
  • Invitation to Participate in Dialogue and Negotiation (ITPDN)
  • Stage 2 Report – Cardiff Youth Zone
  • Schedule of Accommodation

The following associated tender documents will be made available later through the Portal to bidders shortlisted to participate in the tender stages of this competitive flexible procedure:

  • Invitation to Tender (ITT), including evaluation questions and evaluation methodology
  • Build License
  • PCSA
  • Development Agreement
  • Lease
  • Indicative General Arrange Plans
  • Scheme Specific Onside Youth Zone – Specific Technical Requirements
  • Preliminaries & General Conditions
  • Topo Survey – Warner Surveys
  • Services trace
  • Ground Investigation: Phase I Desk Study & Preliminary UXO Threat Assessment
  • Drainage CCTV Survey
  • Air Quality Assessment
  • Flood Consequence Assessment
  • PCSA Cost Document Template
  • Fixed Cost Template

Selected reports and additional information relating to the site and the Scheme will also be made available later through the Portal to suppliers shortlisted to participate in the tender stages of the competitive flexible procedure.

  • How the procedure runs: The Council intends to shortlist up to 3 suppliers with the highest scoring Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ) responses to participate in the subsequent stages of the competitive flexible procedure. The 3 shortlisted suppliers will be invited participate in the dialogue and negotiation phase and then submit tenders. The supplier with the most advantageous tender will be invited to participate in the preferred bidder stage to confirm commitments in its tender. The Council will use an online portal at www.proactisplaza.com/SupplierPortal (the Portal) to make associated tender documents available to suppliers. Suppliers requesting to participate in this procurement competition are also required to submit their completed PSQs through the Portal.
  • No preliminary market engagement: Undertaking PME would not be expected to materially improve the Authority's requirements, procurement approach, or market participation. The Youth Zone project has been extensively developed with support from professional advisers, and there is a clear understanding of the project. The procurement relates to a type of construction project for which there is an established and competitive market of suitably qualified contractors with relevant experience in delivering comparable projects. The Authority is therefore satisfied that sufficient competition can be achieved without prior market engagement. Conducting PME would extend the procurement timetable and increase resource requirements without delivering proportionate benefits, reducing procurement risks, or providing information that is not already available to the Authority. It has therefore determined that proceeding directly to the procurement process represents the most proportionate and efficient approach.

CPV: Architectural, construction, engineering and inspection services · Construction work

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · value published
Lot #1Renewal 3 yrsSMEPublished value£8,650,000
Contract period: 1 Mar 2027 – 28 Feb 2030 (3 yrs) · up to 31 May 2030 with extensionsValue: £8,650,000 exc. VAT · £10,380,000 inc. VAT
Delivery: WalesEligibility: SME eligible
Extensions: Extensions may be permitted to any unforeseen delays and must be approved by the Contracting AuthoritySecond stage: 1–3 candidates invited to tender
Pre-qualification & selection criteria (PQQ)3
  • Economic & financial standing

    Please see the PSQ and PSQ Guidance Document for details of the conditions of participation for this procurement

    The PSQ is available to download via the Portal.

    Suppliers wishing to apply to participate in the competitive flexible procedure must submit a completed PSQ by [insert time and date of deadline].

  • Technical & professional ability

    Please see the PSQ and PSQ Guidance Document for details of the conditions of participation for this procurement

    The PSQ is available to download via the Portal.

    Suppliers wishing to apply to participate in the competitive flexible procedure must submit a completed PSQ by [insert time and date of deadline].

  • Condition of participation

    Please see the PSQ and PSQ Guidance Document for details of the conditions of participation for this procurement.

    The PSQ is available to download via the Portal.

    Suppliers wishing to apply to participate in the competitive flexible procedure must submit a completed PSQ by [insert time and date of deadline].

    shortlisting

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: 75%Price: 24%Social value: 1%
Published sub-criteria (11)
  • Programme: 5%
  • Design: 15%
  • Delivery: 15%
  • Funding Strategy: 15%
  • Legal: 20%
  • Community Well-being Benefits Qualitative submission (Evidence of Delivery): 4%
  • Delivery Plan: 1%
  • PCSA fixed cost against capped budget and breakdown of activity: 8%
  • Guaranteed Maximum Cost: 12%
  • Community Well-being Benefits Quantitative submission: 4%
  • Response to Socially Responsible Procurement Policy: 1%
Published award criteria (11)
  • PCSA fixed cost against capped budget and breakdown of activity
  • Guaranteed Maximum Cost
  • Programme
  • Design
  • Delivery
  • Funding Strategy
  • Legal
  • Community Well-being Benefits Quantitative submission
  • Community Well-being Benefits Qualitative submission (Evidence of Delivery)
  • Delivery Plan
  • Response to Socially Responsible Procurement Policy
Conditions of participation3
  • Economic & financial standing

    Please see the PSQ and PSQ Guidance Document for details of the conditions of participation for this procurement

    The PSQ is available to download via the Portal.

    Suppliers wishing to apply to participate in the competitive flexible procedure must submit a completed PSQ by [insert time and date of deadline].

  • Technical & professional ability

    Please see the PSQ and PSQ Guidance Document for details of the conditions of participation for this procurement

    The PSQ is available to download via the Portal.

    Suppliers wishing to apply to participate in the competitive flexible procedure must submit a completed PSQ by [insert time and date of deadline].

  • Condition of participation

    Please see the PSQ and PSQ Guidance Document for details of the conditions of participation for this procurement.

    The PSQ is available to download via the Portal.

    Suppliers wishing to apply to participate in the competitive flexible procedure must submit a completed PSQ by [insert time and date of deadline].

    shortlisting
What this means for your bid
  • Price carries 24 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 2.4 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
Competitive flexible procedure
Legal basis
UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
Procurement category
Works
Notice status
Closed
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, CPTPP)
Recurring procurement
Unspecified in notice
First published
20 Aug 2026, 17:15 BST
Last source update
15 Sept 2026, 10:39 BST
Award evaluation window
Submission end – 29 Jan 2027
Authority reference
ERFX1008898
FTS notice number
2026/S 000-079661
Latest notice
Tender notice (UK4)
Classification (CPV)
Architectural, construction, engineering and inspection servicesConstruction work
Delivery area
Wales (UKL22)
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-06e911 Find a Tender
How it runs

The Council intends to shortlist up to 3 suppliers with the highest scoring Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ) responses to participate in the subsequent stages of the competitive flexible procedure. The 3 shortlisted suppliers will be invited participate in the dialogue and negotiation phase and then submit tenders. The supplier with the most advantageous tender will be invited to participate in the preferred bidder stage to confirm commitments in its tender.

The Council will use an online portal at www.proactisplaza.com/SupplierPortal ↗ (the Portal) to make associated tender documents available to suppliers.

Suppliers requesting to participate in this procurement competition are also required to submit their completed PSQs through the Portal.

How it was run

Official notice
Run through: ProContract (Due North) · Who buys & how to bid on ProContract
Supplier login requiredElectronic submission allowedLanguage: EN, CY
Access & registration note: Free · short registration with manual review; public opportunity list
Requests to participate (first stage)
15 Sept 2026, 12:00 BST
Submission deadline
15 Sept 2026, 12:00 BST
Clarification deadline
2 Sept 2026, 12:00 BST
Submission channel
Official e-sourcing portal
Electronic submission
Allowed
Accepted languages
en, cy
Detailed submission instructions & authority contactsFrom official release

supplierlive.proactisp2p.com/Account/Login ↗

Submissions must be by way of completion and submission of a completed PSQ response electronically via the Portal.

The PSQ must be submitted in accordance with the requirements set out in the PSQ Guidance document and ITP by the submission deadline (referred to above). The Council reserves the right not to accept PSQ responses that are received after the deadline. Suppliers are encouraged to submit their submissions well in advance of the stated date and time in order to avoid issues such as technical difficulties with the electronic system that may be due to the high volumes of traffic attempting to submit applications on the same date at the same time.

Timeline

20 Aug 2026 → 1 Mar 2027 · 6 dates
  1. Tender notice published67 days ago
    20 Aug 2026, 17:15 BST
  2. Clarification questions by54 days ago
    2 Sept 2026, 12:00 BST
  3. Latest notice published41 days ago
    15 Sept 2026, 10:39 BST
  4. Submission deadline41 days ago
    15 Sept 2026, 12:00 BST
  5. Today
    27 Oct 2026
  6. Award decision expected byin 94 days
    29 Jan 2027, 23:59 GMT
  7. Contract startsin 124 days
    1 Mar 2027

Notice history

2 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 20 Aug 2026
  1. Tender notice published
    20 Aug 2026, 17:15 BST
    UK4
  2. Tender notice published
    15 Sept 2026, 10:39 BST
    UK4
Published amendments (1)

We have made some minor amendments to the proposed sub-criteria and weightings for the ITT that we would like to make suppliers aware of.

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

Cardiff Council

Contracting authorityPublic authority - sub-central governmentWelsh devolved regulations apply GB-PPON: PVHP-5769-YHRQ County Hall, Cardiff, Wales, CF10 4UWContact name, email

Official documents & specifications (3)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Tender pack and attachments

  • Bidding documents and specificationstenderBidding documents and specificationsAccess: The following associated tender documents will be made available later through the Portal to bidders shortlisted to participate in the tender stages of this competitive flexible procedure: • Invitation to Tender (ITT), including evaluation questions and evaluation methodology • Build License • PCSA • Development Agreement • Lease • Indicative General Arrange Plans • Scheme Specific Onside Youth Zone – Specific Technical Requirements • Preliminaries & General Conditions • Topo Survey – Warner Surveys • Services trace • Ground Investigation: Phase I Desk Study & Preliminary UXO Threat Assessment • Drainage CCTV Survey • Air Quality Assessment • Flood Consequence Assessment • PCSA Cost Document Template • Fixed Cost Template Selected reports and information relating to the site will also be made available later through the Portal to suppliers shortlisted to participate in the tender stages of the competitive flexible procedure.

Notices published for this procedure

  • Tender notice tenderTender noticeUK4Tender notice on Find a Tender
  • Tender notice tenderTender noticeUK4Tender notice on Find a Tender