The Procurement Board met to discuss awarding contracts for construction projects, and to approve going out to tender for a Technical and Highways Works Framework, and for junction improvements. The board was scheduled to discuss awarding contracts to Conlon Construction Limited for construction at Springwood Primary School, and to Schofield and Sons Ltd for re-roofing works at Little Hulton Children's Centre. The board was also scheduled to discuss going out to tender for the Cleggs Lane/A6 Manchester Road Junction Improvement Scheme.

Springwood Primary School – Additional Accommodation, Modular Building

The board was scheduled to discuss a recommendation to approve awarding a contract to Conlon Construction Limited to design and deliver a new single-storey modular building at Springwood Primary School.

The report pack stated that the local authority's Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) strategy is to provide a continuum of provision for high needs pupils. The proposal is to expand the existing school via the delivery of a new build standalone block, which will include:

• four specialist class bases
• multi-purpose rooms
• a sensory room
• an extended external play area
• a new link pathway

The report pack noted that in October 2024, the Procurement Board approved awarding Conlon Construction a contract to progress the design to RIBA¹ Stage 4 (pre-construction).

The report pack stated that four companies submitted a tender under a two-stage design and build process, and that these were evaluated in accordance with the criteria set out in line with the mini competition tender documents. The evaluation scores were as follows:

The report pack stated that Conlon Construction Ltd have accreditation with the Living Wage Foundation and are committed the City Mayors Employment Charter. The report pack also stated that as part of their tender bid they have completed the social value TOMs² which has been independently evaluated by the Social Value Portal team. The commitments are for the duration of the whole project and will be monitored to ensure that these are met throughout the whole of the contract. The value of the commitments is £2,501,780.

The commitments listed in the report pack included:

• Local direct employees and local people through the supply chain
• Liaison with Salford to support the latest NEET³ employment scheme available.
• Aim to employ disabled employees from commencement to completion of the project.
• Focus on Springwood Primary School, including a visit from Conlon Mascot, Charlie Conlon.
• Provide training opportunities for a local T-Level student on the Springwood Primary project.
• Provide a minimum of 1 apprentice week per programme week
• Work closely with local schools and colleges to deliver work experience opportunities for local students and offer a minimum 6 weeks work experience for students from Eccles or Pendleton Sixth Form College
• Provide mentoring and providing expert business advice to local SMEs⁴ and VCSEs⁵, such as quarter Age Concern
• Provide a minimum of 16 volunteer hours throughout the duration of the project.
• Focus on local employment in wards adjacent to the project
• Focus on spend through the local supply chain
• Identify a local homelessness support group such as Emmaus or the Booth Centre and provide them with some necessary resources based on their requirements.
• Liaise with Springwood Primary School to agree on the most appropriate local community project to quarter support.
• Donations specific to this contract will be committed

Approval to go out to competition for the Technical & Highways Framework 2026-2034

The board was scheduled to discuss a recommendation to grant authority for the Technical and Highways Works Framework 2026-2034 to be procured in accordance with the Council's Contract Procedure Rules through an open tender.

The report pack stated that the existing Technical and Highways Works Framework has been in place since January 2022, and that works to the value of £24.4m have been successfully delivered via the framework as of March 2025. The report pack also stated that the framework expires in February 2026 and as it may not be extended, a new framework is required to replace it.

The report pack noted that in compliance with the Procurement Act 2023 and following a detailed evaluation of the available options, an open framework with a maximum eight-year duration is proposed. This would be re-opened following a minimum initial period of three years, allowing new contractors to be brought in and potentially, inactive contractors to be removed, ensuring a competitive market is maintained.

The report pack stated that a Market Engagement process has been conducted which was published on the Chest. Providers were asked to participate in this process to inform the final scope and contract arrangements within the Lots and to engage with providers prior to the tender going out. A second Market Engagement Day was conducted to inform contractors of the council's vision for the new framework and how it could work.

The report pack stated that the performance of the current framework has been evaluated to inform the composition of the replacement framework. This has resulted in three of the six Lots being withdrawn; Vehicle Restraint Systems, Drainage and Coring and Site Investigations, as it has been established that it would be more advantageous to seek a separate term-service arrangement. One additional Lot is to be added for Specialist Surface Treatments, opening up a useful route to procurement for specialist maintenance solutions.

The council is seeking to appoint a number of suppliers to act as Principal Contractors where appropriate within each Lot to deliver works on behalf of SCC. Any works falling outside of the specified scope of the framework will be procured outside of this arrangement.

Details of the Lots are as follows:

The report pack stated that the lower threshold for Lot 1 was £150k on the previous framework, but that a new lower limit of ~£205k is proposed, which has been calculated using the Building Cost Information Service (BCIS) indices against the threshold level of £100k which was set in 2004.

The report pack stated that in order to monitor the performance of the contractors appointed to the framework, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) will be put in place to measure performance against Quality, Time, Environmental and Social Value.

A6 Manchester Road, Cleggs Lane, Armitage Avenue Junction Improvement Scheme - approval to go out to tender

The board was scheduled to discuss a recommendation to grant approval to issue the Cleggs Lane/A6 Manchester Road Junction Improvement Scheme to tender using the Bolton Council 2024/28 Highways Framework Contract, Lot 1.

The report pack stated that the purpose of the scheme is to upgrade the existing traffic signals to allow for a direct crossing without central reservations, along with upgraded cycle facilities including shared footways and toucan crossings, allowing cyclists to cross at the junction.

The report pack stated that the junction is on a key bus corridor, cycling route, and has a high level of footfall, and that it has been identified as a site of interest by the Road Safety Team who are monitoring it due to a high number of recorded collisions.

The report pack stated that between August 2019 – August 2024 there have been seven reported collisions, all of which were of slight severity.

The report pack stated that the next stage of development for the scheme is for the works to be competitively tendered to obtain a price, and that it is proposed that this will take the form of a restricted mini competition using the Bolton Council 2024/28 Highways Framework Contract, Lot 1, General Civil Engineering Works up to £2.0m.

The report pack stated that the tender process will be overseen by SCC's procurement team, and that tender bids will be evaluated to determine the most economically advantageous tender on a 45% Price, 15% Social Value and 40% Quality basis.

The report pack stated that tenderers will be asked to describe what Social Value will be delivered during the implementation of this project and to demonstrate how they will develop, monitor and report upon Social Value, and that tenderers will be asked to submit their Social Value submission based on SCC TOMs criteria through the Social Value Portal.

Little Hulton Children’s Centre – Re-roof

The board was scheduled to discuss a recommendation to approve the award of the Contract for the replacement of the flat roofs at Little Hulton Nursery.

The report pack stated that an inspection was undertaken in April 2025 to evaluate the condition of the flat roof areas at Little Hulton Nursery, and that the inspection included the potential for upgrading the thermal performance of the roof and renewing the waterproofing system.

The report pack stated that the report identified that the roof deck appears to be in an adequate condition, but that the waterproofing layers on the roofs has reached the end of its serviceable life, which was evidenced by wet insulation found when core samples were taken.

The report pack stated that to prevent further damage and potential water ingress into the building the only viable option is to remove the existing waterproofing system, and that as the roof is being stripped and recovered it is a good opportunity to thermally upgrade the roofs by providing additional insulation.

The report pack stated that the works will include the redesign of the falls to prevent water collecting on the roof areas, and that the standard square rooflights will be replaced with glazed units that meet the current thermal and light transmittance standards.

The report pack stated that the building has an existing PV⁶ system that will be temporarily removed and set aside to allow unrestricted access to the waterproofing system, and that this will be reinstalled by an approved subcontractor.

The report pack stated that the roofing system to be installed will be covered by a 20-year guarantee that includes products and workmanship.

The report pack stated that the works for the project were tendered under the Council's e-tendering portal in accordance with the council's Contractual Standing Orders, and that tenders were let by competition under the Minor Building Works Framework Lot 1 via The Chest.

The report pack stated that four companies submitted tenders, and that these have been evaluated in accordance with the selection criteria.

The evaluation scores as follows:

The report pack stated that following the evaluation process the company that scored the highest in accordance with the selection criteria was Schofield & Sons Ltd with a tender of £158,262.56, and that their submission produced a score of 90.52% and represents the most economically advantageous offer to the Council which also supports social value.

The report pack stated that Schofield & Sons Ltd are a Salford based contractor who have Living Wage accreditation, and that they have submitted their social value TOMs for this project which has been independently evaluated by the Social Value Portal team, with a value of £28,992.39.

The report pack stated that the following commitments have been made:

• Direct employment of local employees on this contract
• Engagement of the local supply chain
  • Best Roofers Ltd M28
  • Broadoak Electrical M28
  • TP Tool Hire M30
  • Kenny Skip Hire M38
  • Jewson's / Travis Perkins, builders' merchants M44 / M30
• Reduction in CO2e through energy efficiency measures on site. This will be achieved by using a solar powered ECO welfare unit.