Official UK procurement notice
Grounds Maintenance · UK public procurement notice
Authority: Tunbridge Wells Borough Council (Local council)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionProvision of grounds maintenance services in the borough of Tunbridge Wells, including parks, sports fields, cemeteries etc.
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedLot #1Awarded
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Direct award
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Notice status
- Awarded without competition
- Procurement threshold
- Unspecified in notice
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Direct award (no call for competition)
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 28 May 2025, 09:35 BST
- Last source update
- 28 May 2025, 09:35 BST
- FTS notice number
2025/S 000-027935- Latest notice
- Transparency notice (UK5)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-05277cFind a Tender
- Why no open competition
- Additional Repeat Extension Partial Replacement
- Published justification
The Direct Award is being made using the exemption in Schedule 5 Procurement Act 2023 para.19 (3):
(3)The condition in this sub-paragraph is met if, treating the new contract as a modification of the existing contract, the new contract would be a modification of the existing contract of a kind described in-
(a)paragraph 4 of Schedule 8 (unforeseeable circumstances)
Para. 4 of Schedule 8:
4(1)A modification is a permitted modification if-
(a)the circumstances giving rise to the modification could not reasonably have been foreseen by the contracting authority before the award of the contract,
(b)the modification would not change the overall nature of the contract, and
(c)the modification would not increase the estimated value of the contract by more than 50 per cent.
The specific requirements contained in the Government's English Devolution White Paper of 16 December 2024, including the scale / extent and pace of the requirement for Local Government Re-organisation (consisting of the invitation from the Minister for Local Government and English Devolution to submit interim plans by 21 March 2025 and full proposals by 28 November 2025), was not something that a diligent contracting authority could have foreseen.
The re-organisation creates immediate uncertainty in terms of which service areas will be provided by which unitary authorities, how the current administrative boundaries will be affected and how that authority may want to approach ongoing service provision. There is also uncertainty around the timing of changes and the implications (when decision-making powers may be affected including the power to enter into contracts of this nature (without consent)). The contracting authority is therefore reluctant to enter into any long term commitment for this service during this period of uncertainty.
The contracting authority does not consider that an extension of the term would alter the overall nature of the contract as the same services are to be provided on the same terms.
The increase in the estimated value of the contract is less than 50%.
Notice history
2 events · 1 release on Find a Tender · since 28 May 2025- Transparency notice published28 May 2025, 09:35 BSTUK5
- Contract signature expected31 Dec 2026, 23:59 GMTscheduled
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tivoli Group Ltd1 Jan 2027 – 31 Dec 2029 | £4,682,400 | — | Standstill |
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Bidders & participating suppliers
1 commercial party on the notice- TIVOLI GROUP LIMITEDAwarded supplier
Official documents & specifications (1)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Transparency notice Transparency notice on Find a Tender