United Kingdom29 days leftOpen

Management of Cambridge City's leisure estate

Tender Overview

ORGANIZATION

Cambridge City Council

LOCATION

East Anglia, United Kingdom

VALUE

£18,000,000

DEADLINE

March 03, 2026 at 12:00

CATEGORY

Other

CPV CODE

45212100

REFERENCE

002417-2026

Project Timeline

Contact Information

View Original

Original Tender Description

The Authority is seeking to appoint a suitably experienced long-term operator to undertake management services of the following Facilities as the Authority's agent: Abbey Leisure Complex (CB5 8NT), Cherry Hinton Village Centre (CB1 9EJ), Jesus Green Lido (CB4 3AX), Kings Hedges Learner Pool (CB4 2XH), Parkside Pool and Gym (CB1 1LY), Splashpads at Abbey Leisure Complex, Kings Hedges Learner Pool and Coleridge Recreation Ground (CB1 3QW), Paddling pools at Cherry Hinton Hall (CB1 8DW), Lammas Land (CB3 9EY) and Sheep's Green learner pool (CB3 9EY), Fitness suite and studio, 4 court sports hall, 3G pitch and 2 netball court MUGAs at Trumpington Community College (CB2 9HB), Any additional leisure or sports facilities that may be built within the Authority's administrative area (that may also be part of educational sites), or that become the Authority's responsibility during the Contract Period. Once appointed, the operator will manage the Facilities as an Agent to the Authority and will have day-to-day responsibility for doing so. Please refer to the Specification which sets out the Authority's Core Requirements (Sections 1 and 2), Service Requirements (Section 3), Asset Management Requirements (Section 4) and Performance Management and Reporting Requirements (Section 5). For all Facilities, the Agent will be responsible for lifecycle replacement and all day-to-day repairs and maintenance of fixtures and fittings. The Authority / Academy Trusts will be responsible for all fixed structural assets at the Facilities. The Agent will additionally take responsibility for lifecycle replacement of all plant and equipment at the Facilities.
⚠️

MANDATORY EXCLUSION GROUNDS

  • No specific mandatory exclusion grounds are explicitly stated in the provided information.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

  • Must be a suitably experienced long-term operator.
  • Must be capable of acting as an Agent to the Authority.
🔧

TECHNICAL CAPABILITY REQUIREMENTS

  • Ability to undertake management services for Cambridge City's leisure estate, including specific facilities (Abbey Leisure Complex, Cherry Hinton Village Centre, Jesus Green Lido, Kings Hedges Learner Pool, Parkside Pool and Gym, Splashpads, Paddling pools, Trumpington Community College facilities).
  • Capability to manage any additional leisure or sports facilities that may be built or become the Authority's responsibility during the Contract Period.
  • Capability for day-to-day operational responsibility for all facilities.
  • Responsibility for lifecycle replacement and day-to-day repairs and maintenance of fixtures and fittings.
  • Responsibility for lifecycle replacement of all plant and equipment.
  • Ability to meet the Authority's Core Requirements (Sections 1 and 2) as set out in the Specification.
  • Ability to meet the Service Requirements (Section 3) as set out in the Specification.
  • Ability to meet the Asset Management Requirements (Section 4) as set out in the Specification.
  • Ability to meet the Performance Management and Reporting Requirements (Section 5) as set out in the Specification.
💰

FINANCIAL REQUIREMENTS

  • No specific financial requirements (e.g., minimum turnover, financial ratios) are explicitly stated in the provided information.
📋

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

  • Submit bid by the deadline: 2026-03-03 12:00:00.

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PDF
Official PDF Version
PDF002417-2026_official.pdf
Summary:
Cambridge City Council seeks an experienced long-term operator to manage its leisure estate, including day-to-day operations, lifecycle replacement, and maintenance of various facilities as an agent, for an estimated £15M over 10-15 years.

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67
Good

Tender Quality Score

This tender outlines a significant long-term service contract for leisure estate management but is critically incomplete due to the absence of all tender documents, including the detailed specification and evaluation criteria. This severely hinders fair competition and transparency.

Score Breakdown

Legal Compliance100/100

The tender specifies an 'Open' type and 'Competitive flexible procedure,' which aligns with general procurement principles. However, the explicit absence of mandatory exclusion grounds, detailed eligibility/financial requirements, and crucially, evaluation criteria, poses significant legal compliance risks regarding transparency, equal treatment, and proportionality.

No specific mandatory exclusion grounds explicitly stated.
Absence of detailed eligibility and financial requirements.
Clarity40/100

The general description of the services and the specific facilities to be managed is clear. The division of responsibilities between the Agent and the Authority regarding asset management is also well-defined. However, the core requirements (Sections 1-5) are only referenced as part of a 'Specification' document that is not provided, rendering the actual requirements unclear to potential bidders.

Key requirements (Core, Service, Asset Management, Performance Management) are referenced by section numbers in a missing 'Specification' document, leading to ambiguity.
Completeness83/100

This is the most significant weakness. The tender is fundamentally incomplete as 'DOCUMENTS (0 total)' indicates that no tender documents, including the essential 'Specification' repeatedly referenced in the description, are attached. This also means evaluation criteria, terms and conditions, and a draft contract are missing.

All tender documents are missing, including the 'Specification' document.
Missing evaluation criteria and methodology.
Fairness60/100

The absence of all tender documents, particularly the evaluation criteria, creates a substantial risk to fairness and equal treatment. The eligibility requirement 'Must be a suitably experienced long-term operator' is vague and, without objective criteria, could lead to subjective assessment, potentially favoring an incumbent or specific companies.

Absence of evaluation criteria makes fair assessment impossible for bidders.
Vague eligibility criteria ('suitably experienced long-term operator') without objective metrics could lead to subjective interpretation and potential bias.
Practicality40/100

The contract duration of 120 months (10 years) is very long, offering stability to the Authority but potentially limiting competition due to the significant long-term commitment required from operators. The extensive scope, including future facilities, requires a highly capable and adaptable operator. The clear division of asset responsibilities between the Agent and Authority is practical.

The 10-year contract duration, while offering stability, might deter some potential bidders due to the long-term commitment and associated risks, potentially limiting competition.
The broad scope, including future facilities, requires significant operational flexibility and capacity from the operator.
Data Consistency100/100

There is a critical inconsistency between the tender description, which repeatedly references a 'Specification' document containing core requirements, and the 'DOCUMENTS (0 total)' section, which indicates no documents are attached. This makes the provided information contradictory and unusable for bidders.

The tender description references a 'Specification' document that is explicitly stated as missing in the 'DOCUMENTS' section.
Sustainability0/100

The automated checks indicate a lack of focus on green procurement, social criteria, or innovation. This suggests that broader sustainability objectives are not integrated into the tender requirements.

Absence of green procurement criteria.
Absence of social criteria.

Strengths

Clear description of the services required and the specific facilities to be managed.
Estimated value and contract duration are disclosed.
Clear division of asset management responsibilities between the Agent and the Authority.
Open procedure type promotes competition (if documents were available).

Concerns

Critical absence of all tender documents, including the 'Specification' and evaluation criteria.
Lack of specific mandatory exclusion grounds and detailed financial requirements.
Vague eligibility criteria ('suitably experienced long-term operator') without objective metrics.
Potential for subjective evaluation due to missing criteria, impacting fairness.
Absence of green, social, and innovation criteria.

Recommendations

1. Immediately publish all tender documents, including the full Specification, terms and conditions, and a draft contract.
2. Clearly define objective eligibility and financial requirements to ensure fair and transparent competition.
3. Provide detailed evaluation criteria and methodology to allow bidders to understand how their offers will be assessed.

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B
Tender Quality Score
67/ 100 · Good

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