Purpose

Lincoln Castle, Lincoln Museum, and Battle of Britain Memorial Visitors Centre operate public cafés that serve a wide range of visitors, including local residents, families, school groups, and tourists. As open public spaces, the cafés form an important part of the visitor experience and contribute to the sites’ overall offer, supporting revenue generation that helps sustain heritage operations. With the previous exception having expired, neither site currently has a formal supply arrangement in place, which creates operational and reputational risks given the need for consistent, safe, and good-quality food and beverage provision.
To ensure continuity of service, value for money, and a compliant procurement approach, the council has reviewed available routes to market and identified the Crown Commercial Service Buying Better Food & Drink Framework, delivered through Entegra, as the most appropriate solution. This framework allows access to multiple wholesalers, consolidated ordering, sustainability reporting, and the ability to nominate and onboard local suppliers over time, a key benefit for
strengthening Lincolnshire’s food economy and supporting a
more locally distinctive café offer.
An annual call-off contract via this framework is estimated at
£100,000 per year. Benchmarking undertaken against the two main wholesalers available through the framework demonstrated a 12% saving, evidencing strong value for money and confirming that the CCS/Entegra route provides a more cost-effective and operationally efficient solution compared to alternative options. Using this compliant framework route also enables rapid mobilisation, ensuring the cafés can continue serving the public without further interruption while laying the groundwork for the integration of local suppliers as the service develops.

Decision

Approval is requested to award the Provision of Café Provisions Contract to Entegra
Approval for authorisation for delegation of responsibility for the Head of Service to sign the contract.

Alternative options considered

Running a Full Open Procurement Process
A full tender exercise was considered; however, this option was rejected on the basis that it would introduce unnecessary delay to re-establishing provisions for the three cafés, which are public-facing and trading daily. The cafés currently have no formal provision in place following the expiry of the previous exception, and a full procurement could take several months to complete. Additionally, it is unlikely that an open competition would yield greater value for money than the savings already identified via established wholesalers on the CCS/Entegra framework, where benchmarking has demonstrated a 12% cost reduction. This route therefore presented higher administrative burden, slower mobilisation, and no financial advantage.
Direct Contracting with Individual Wholesalers Outside a Framework
Engagement of a single wholesaler through a standalone contract was explored. This option was rejected because it would not provide access to the range of suppliers, consolidated ordering, sustainability tools, or the ability to onboard local SMEs in the same way that the CCS/Entegra model offers. Direct contracting would also require additional contract management effort and may expose the council to price volatility without the purchasing leverage and support offered through the framework’s aggregated buying model.
Continuing Under an Exception
Extending or re-issuing a procurement exception was considered but quickly ruled out. Exceptions are intended for short-term, urgent, or unforeseen needs and are not appropriate for recurring, planned operational requirements such as café provisions. Continuing with an exception would not be compliant with procurement regulations and would fail to provide the long-term consistency and governance required for a supply chain of this scale and value.
Working Solely with Local Suppliers
An approach based entirely on local suppliers was considered but deemed unfeasible at this stage. While the intention to onboard local Lincolnshire producers remains an important objective, the heritage sites require a comprehensive and consistent supply solution from day one, including products that local suppliers may not yet be able to provide in full range or volume. The CCS/Entegra framework enables a balanced approach, offering immediate access to national wholesalers while providing a mechanism to add local suppliers over time.