Purpose

To seek approval for the award of the Tennis Facilities Management and Community Tennis Development Concession Contract following a compliant open procurement process.

Decision

RESOLVED:

To approve the award of the Tennis Facilities Management and Community Tennis Development Concession Contract to Provider A for an initial period of five years commencing on 1 October 2026, with the option to extend for a further two years, at the Council's discretion.

Reasons For Decision 

On 17 March 2026, the Director of Environment and Climate Change approved the commencement of an open procurement process for the Tennis Facilities Management and Community Tennis Development Concession Contract following approval of the Procurement Business Case. 

This report seeks approval to award the contract following completion of the procurement exercise.

Alternative Options Considered and Rejected

1. The options appraisal undertaken as part of the approved Procurement Business Case concluded that procuring the service through a competitive concession contract represented the preferred option. This approach enables the Council to appoint an experienced operator to manage the borough's tennis facilities and deliver community tennis development services while generating a concession fee for the Council and transferring operational, financial and demand risks to the provider. Following completion of the procurement, the recommended tender has demonstrated the best overall value for money and is therefore recommended for contract award.
2. Alternative options considered included extending the existing arrangement without competition, bringing the service in-house, dividing the contract into separate lots and ceasing the service. These options were discounted as they would either fail to demonstrate best value, increase operational and financial risks to the Council, reduce commercial viability or compromise the integrated management of the tennis facilities and Tennis Development Plan.
3. The option of bringing the service in-house was considered in detail during the Business Case stage but was not recommended due to the Council's lack of specialist expertise, increased staffing and operational costs, additional liabilities and the financial risks associated with operating a commercially driven tennis service. At present, the concession model continues to represent the most efficient and cost-effective delivery model.
4. The Business Case considered whether court management and tennis development should be separated into different lots. The Council was aware that previous market feedback, including during the 2019 procurement, indicated that some operators had a preference for court management without the wider tennis-development obligations. For the current procurement, however, the services were considered operationally interdependent and capable of being delivered more efficiently through a single integrated concession, avoiding additional interfaces between providers and loss of economies of scale. No feedback supporting separation of the services was received during the current procurement.
5. The Council nevertheless recognises the limited market response to the procurement and the fact that a single compliant tender was received. Post-tender feedback is therefore being sought from organisations that accessed the procurement but did not submit a tender. The findings will be recorded as lessons learned and used to inform consideration of the scope, commercial model and potential lotting of any future procurement, with the aim of ensuring that the service remains contestable and capable of attracting effective competition.
6. Whilst insourcing is not considered appropriate at this time, the Council will continue to review delivery arrangements throughout the life of the contract as part of its contract management responsibilities. Should future strategic priorities or market conditions change, the Council may consider alternative delivery models when the contract approaches expiry. Appropriate contract management, performance monitoring and knowledge sharing throughout the contract will ensure that sufficient information is available to support any future service review.