Scope
Reference
KMCHG-029
Description
The Huddersfield Blueprint is a ten-year vision to create a thriving, modern-day town centre. The vision for Huddersfield is that it will be a busy, family-friendly town centre that stays open for longer with a unique culture, arts and leisure offer and a variety of thriving businesses. The scale of investment and transformation, including high quality, innovative culture, arts and leisure offers will improve the attractiveness of the town centre as a place to live, providing new opportunities for residential development. Estate Buildings is located in the heart of the town centre and forms part of Station Gateway area, one of the six key areas to be regenerated through the Huddersfield Blueprint.
Kirklees Council is presenting an exciting opportunity to convert and acquire Estate Buildings, a listed and historically significant property in Huddersfield Town Centre, for residential use. Most of the property is Grade II* listed with nos. 3-7 Station Street being Grade II listed.
The Council is seeking a developer with proven experience in regenerating historic buildings for residential use, as well as an awareness of the associated risks and complexities.
The Council's vision is for Estate Buildings to be an aspirational place to live within the Town Centre. The homes delivered as part of this contract will be high quality, beautiful, spacious, energy efficient, and safe, and the development will foster a strong sense of place and community. It is expected that any housing units provided meet or surpass Nationally Described Space Standards.
In terms of housing mix and tenure, the Council is open to all proposals from bidders so long as they help to achieve the Council's Blueprint ambition of providing a high-quality housing offer that could potentially attract new residents in the Town Centre, in particular recent graduates of Huddersfield University and young professionals wishing to commute to larger, neighbouring city centres.
The successful developer will be required to submit a funding application, develop a complete design for the conversion of the asset into a residential property (apartments), obtain planning and listed building consents and complete the construction of the works following receipt of the appropriate level of funding for the development.
The contract for this requirement will be structured into three stages, ensuring the Council have control of the asset throughout the delivery phase up until the practical completion of the construction stage. These stages are, Option Agreement, Building Lease and Transfer of the Freehold.
The Council is following the Competitive Flexible Procedure (CFP) under the Procurement Act 2023 to maximise supplier engagement and allow for a more focused procurement process. There will be a two-stage process under this route to market. The Council are initially advertising the procurement opportunity with site and scope information and Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ) including Conditions of Participation. This stage requires interested parties to submit a qualification response form. The Council intends on using this stage to shortlist a maximum of 3 bidders through a compliance, financial and quality evaluation (further information is available in the tender documentation).
Bidders shortlisted will be invited to participate in stage 2, with the Invitation to Submit Final Tenders (ISFT) for their proposal of delivering the requirements on the site. The submission will be evaluated based on the evaluation criteria listed in the procurement documentation identified in the initial Invitation to Tender.
Total value (estimated)
- £11,000,000 excluding VAT
- £13,000,000 including VAT
Above the relevant threshold
Contract dates (estimated)
- 1 February 2027 to 1 March 2028
- Possible extension to 30 June 2031
- 4 years, 5 months
Description of possible extension:
The initial contract period identifies the anticipated term for the provision of all services under the option agreement to complete the necessary services (such as completion of a design, receipt of funding, planning approval and listed building consent etc) and attain the necessary approvals obligated under stage one of the contract.
The contract will be extended, with the Council entering a building lease for the redevelopment (construction) in the conversion of the building into residential use, should the developer satisfy all obligations and wish to exercise the option to enter the building lease to commence the construction.
Main procurement category
Works
CPV classifications
- 45000000 - Construction work
- 70111000 - Development of residential real estate
Contract locations
- UKE44 - Calderdale and Kirklees
Participation
Legal and financial capacity conditions of participation
Tender respondents will be assessed on their financial suitability as part of the stage one procurement process.
In line with the Invitation to tender and the Procurement Specification Questionnaire, bidders will be required to provide any one of the documents listed in questions 15(a) to 15(c)(ii) of the Procurement Specific Questionnaire in order to demonstrate financial standing as required under question 15. Failure to supply any one of the documents listed in questions 15(a) to 15(c)(ii) with a tender return may result in exclusion.
As identified in Part 3 (3a) of the 2) Estate Buildings [CFP - PSQ] Tenderer Submission - Tender Stage One document, responses to questions 15a to 15c will be subject to a financial evaluation to confirm financial suitability to undertake the requirements identified in this tender exercise. If a bidder identifies as part of their response to question 17 that they are relying on another supplier to act as a parent company guarantor, then the Council will undertake a financial evaluation of the accounts provided to the extent that has been identified below.
The financial evaluation will consider s response to question 15a to 15c (and question 17, where appropriate) with an evaluation of the metrics identified below being undertaken, using the identified formula for each metric.
Operating Margin, Operating Profit ÷ Revenue
Minimum Threshold - ≥5%
Cash Held / Net Debt, Cash & Equivalents ÷ Net Debt Minimum Threshold - Positive ratio
Net Interest Cover, EBIT ÷ Net Interest Paid
Minimum Threshold - ≥2.5x
Acid Test Ratio (Current Assets - Inventory) ÷ Current Liabilities
Minimum Threshold - ≥1.0
Net Asset Value Total Assets - Total Liabilities Minimum Threshold - Positive for the 2 years' worth of information provided
Creditsafe Credit Rating Assessment
Minimum Threshold - 49<
Bidders will not be scored or ranked as part of the financial evaluation undertaken. Instead, bidders are required to meet the minimum threshold for all identified above. In the event that a bidder does not meet the minimum threshold identified for any (or all) of the metrics, the Council will allow the bidder to provide justification as to the reason why. Any request for further information for this justification will be communicated by the Council via the 'messaging' function on the YORtender portal.
Any answers to Questions 15a to 15c and 17 which lead the Authority, acting reasonably, to conclude (considering the risk that the relevant answer suggests about your ability to properly perform the Contract) that it would be inappropriate to select your organisation on this occasion, may result in your exclusion from the remainder of the procurement process.
The Council also require the following minimum levels of insurance be in place at the point of contract award:
Employers Liability Insurance: £10,000,000
Public Liability Insurance: £10,000,000
Professional Indemnity Insurance: £5,000,000
Contractor's All Risks Insurance: £15,000,000
Non-negligence Insurance: £10,000,000
Submission
Submission type
Tenders
Tender submission deadline
18 March 2026, 5:00pm
Submission address and any special instructions
Bidders are required to access and respond to this tender opportunity via the YORtender portal. This can be accessed via - https://yortender.eu-supply.com/
To provide a response to this tender opportunity, an organisation must sign up to the YORTender portal (this can be done free of charge).
Tenders may be submitted electronically
Yes
Languages that may be used for submission
English
Award decision date (estimated)
31 August 2026
Award criteria
| Name | Description | Type | Weighting |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tender Stage One - Quality Criteria | Q1 Approach to Design and Construction in the Conversion of a Heritage Building to Housing Q2 Approach to Risk Management Q3 Sub-Contract Management Processes Q4 Delivering Social Value |
Quality | 100% |
Other information
Description of risks to contract performance
Please note Known Risks have been assessed as part of this procurement and in accordance with the Procurement Act 2023, the Council reserves the right to modify this contract where such changes meet the criteria for permitted modifications under Section 74 and Schedule 8 of the Act. This includes, but is not limited to:
• Site Investigation & Surveys - Missing, outdated or inaccurate surveys may require updated surveys to be undertaken.
• Additional Works - Additional works might be required on the back of further site investigation/surveys.
• Hazardous Materials - Such as Asbestos is high risk in existing structures and is ever-present in construction work. Further work might be required as a result of Hazardous materials being present on site.
Any such modifications shall be undertaken in compliance with the permitted grounds set out in Section 74 and Schedule 8 of the Act, including but not limited to modifications arising from unforeseeable circumstances or the materialisation of a known risk.
Conflicts assessment prepared/revised
Yes
Procedure
Procedure type
Competitive flexible procedure
Competitive flexible procedure description
Tender Stage 1:
Step 1 - Completeness and Compliance Checks
Step 2 - Excluded and Excludable Suppliers
Step 3 - Conditions of Participation
Step 4 - Quality Assessment (Project Specific Questions)
Step 5 - Identification of Shortlisted Bidders (Top 3 ranked following Step 4 assessment)
Step 6 - Shortlisted Supplier Due Diligence (1)
Step 7 - Shortlisted Supplier Due Diligence (2)
Step 8 - Notification of Tender Stage One Outcome
Tender Stage 2 (Invitation to Submit Final Tenders 'ISFT'):
At tender stage two, the three shortlisted bidders shortlisted from tender stage one will be invited to submit a final tender. Assessment of the final tender will follow the below process:
Step 1: Completeness and Compliance Checks
Step 2: Re-assessment of Excluded and Excludable Suppliers
Step 3: Quality and Social Value Approach Assessment
Step 4: Identification of Highest Ranked Bidder
Step 5: Due Diligence
Step 6: Award and De-briefing (shortlisted suppliers notified of outcome)
Tender Stage one will be assessed in line with the description included in the Award Criteria section of this tender notice. Assessment will be undertaken of bidders responses to the Project Specific Questions to identify the top 3 ranked bidders for the Council's shortlist.
Tender Stage two will be assessed in line with the following heading criteria:
Quality - 90%, consisting of;
Q1.1 Approach to Delivery of the Design Phase of the Requirement (20%);
Q1.2 Approach to Delivery of the Construction Phase of the Requirement (20%);
Q1.3 Organogram and Delivery Team (10%);
Q2.1 Programme (10%);
Q3.1 Development Appraisal and Viability (15%);
Q3.2 Funding Strategy (15%)
Social Value - 10%, consisting of;
Quantitative Social Value Proposal (5%);
Qualitative Social Value Proposal (5%)
The criteria for tender stage 2 assessment will be reconfirmed in the Invitation to Submit Final Tenders as part of the second tender stage. Weightings and heading criteria will not change ahead of second stage advertisement.
Documents
Associated tender documents
https://yortender.eu-supply.com/
All tender documents are available free of charge from YORtender at the following Website;
https://yortender.eu-supply.com/
Bidders may be required to sign up to the YORtender portal to provide a tender response. This can be done free of charge.
Contracting authority
The Council of the Borough of Kirklees
- Public Procurement Organisation Number: PXHZ-9111-QHMJ
The Town Hall, Ramsden Street
Huddersfield
HD1 2TA
United Kingdom
Email: procurement@kirklees.gov.uk
Website: http://www.kirklees.gov.uk
Region: UKE44 - Calderdale and Kirklees
Organisation type: Public authority - sub-central government