Salford City Council has launched a £300 million Technical and Highways Works Framework, creating opportunities for civil engineering contractors, highways maintenance businesses and specialist infrastructure providers across Greater Manchester.
The framework covers five categories of work, including minor and major civil engineering, road surface treatments, bridges and structures, and landscaping. It is identified as particularly suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with different lots allowing contractors to pursue projects appropriate to their experience and capabilities.
The tender deadline is 4 November 2026 at 3pm, so interested suppliers should now be reviewing the procurement documents and preparing their submissions. For bid writing support, contact Thornton & Lowe today.
Salford Technical and Highways Works Framework: key details
The framework will support Salford City Council's highway infrastructure and associated works programmes, providing access to contractors for projects of different values and levels of complexity. The key details are:
- Contracting authority: Salford City Council
- Procurement reference: S1232
- Estimated value: £300 million excluding VAT (£360 million including VAT)
- Initial framework period: 1 April 2027 to 31 March 2030
- Open framework scheme end date: 31 March 2035
- Number of lots: Five
- Procurement procedure: Open
- Enquiry deadline: 28 October 2026, 3pm
- Tender submission deadline: 4 November 2026, 3pm
- Estimated award decision: 18 January 2027
The framework is intended for use by Salford City Council, with the authority planning to reopen it at years three and six. This creates the prospect of further appointment opportunities during the wider framework scheme. Suppliers can review the official Salford Technical and Highways Works Framework tender notice for the published procurement details.
What are the five framework lots?
The framework covers five areas of highways and associated infrastructure work. Each lot has its own scope, allowing contractors to identify the opportunities that best match their specialisms.
Lot | Work category | Estimated value excluding VAT |
|---|---|---|
1a | Minor Civils | £100m |
1ab | Major Civils | £90m |
2b | Specialist Surface Treatment | £20m |
3c | Structures and Bridges | £30m |
4d | Landscape and Associated Works | £60m |
Lot 1a: Minor Civils
This lot covers smaller highway improvement and maintenance projects, including road and footway resurfacing and minor network management improvements. The council anticipates using the lot to support its Highway Infrastructure Asset Management Plan (HIAMP), with individual works generally valued at up to £150,000, subject to the BCIS index provisions.
This could be particularly relevant to regional highways contractors experienced in resurfacing, minor infrastructure alterations and routine civil engineering works. Suppliers will be ranked according to their tender scores, with the highest-ranked available supplier offered work first.
Lot 1ab: Major Civils
The Major Civils lot covers the design and delivery of more substantial highway alterations and improvements. Projects may range from road safety interventions and new pedestrian crossings to active travel corridors and major junction remodelling. The scope spans the project lifecycle, making it relevant to contractors capable of managing design coordination, construction delivery and the associated technical requirements. For larger projects, the framework provides for further competitions between appointed suppliers.
Lot 2b: Specialist Surface Treatment
Lot 2b covers specialist highways surface treatment works. The requirements include the labour, supervision, plant, materials, traffic management, testing and temporary works needed to deliver the relevant projects.
Unlike some of the other lots, Lot 2b operates through further competition only. This means successful framework suppliers will still need to compete for individual work packages, making their ongoing bidding capability particularly important.
Lot 3c: Structures and Bridges
This category covers the construction, maintenance and strengthening of highway structures. Relevant assets include bridges, footbridges, retaining walls, subways and signal gantries. The notice provides for ranked awards on works below £75,000, subject to BCIS index adjustments, with further competitions for larger projects within the applicable framework limits. Suppliers should consider how they will demonstrate structural engineering competence, relevant project experience and effective management of safety and technical risks.
Lot 4d: Landscape and Associated Works
The final lot covers hard and soft landscaping projects, including associated maintenance periods following completion. It may be relevant to landscaping contractors, public realm specialists and businesses delivering environmental or highway-related improvement works.
As with the structures lot, the notice provides for ranked awards on smaller projects and further competitions above the applicable threshold. The broad mix of civil engineering, structures and landscaping work gives businesses several routes into the framework, depending on their existing services and delivery experience.
Is the Salford highways framework suitable for SMEs?
The procurement notice identifies SMEs and voluntary, community and social enterprises (VCSEs) as particularly suitable across all five lots. This is encouraging for smaller contractors that may not routinely pursue large national infrastructure frameworks.
The distinction between minor and major civil engineering works is especially relevant. A regional business specialising in smaller road maintenance projects may have a more suitable opportunity under Lot 1a than under the major civils category. Similarly, specialist surfacing, structural maintenance and landscaping contractors can focus on their areas of expertise.
The notice doesn't impose an overall maximum number of framework suppliers. However, businesses must still satisfy the requirements contained in the procurement documentation and demonstrate their suitability for the chosen lots. SMEs should consider their existing experience, workforce capacity, geographical coverage and ability to respond to individual work packages before deciding which categories to pursue.
How will contracts be awarded through the framework?
This framework combines supplier ranking with further competitions. For certain lower-value works, the council intends to approach suppliers in ranking order, offering the requirement to the highest-ranked supplier first. If that supplier cannot undertake the work, the opportunity may pass to the next-ranked business. For larger or more specialised requirements, the council will conduct further competitions between relevant framework suppliers.
The exact arrangements vary by lot. For example, Lot 1a covers minor works up to £150,000, subject to the relevant index provisions, while Lots 3c and 4d identify a £75,000 threshold for ranked awards. Lot 2b uses further competition exclusively.
This distinction matters because securing a framework place does not automatically guarantee contracts. Suppliers may still need to demonstrate their competitiveness when individual requirements arise. The original framework submission can also affect ranking, making a strong initial tender important even where later competitions are available.
How will Salford evaluate tenders?
The published notice specifies the following award criteria:
- Price: 50%
- Quality: 35%
- Social value: 15%
Price accounts for half of the available marks, but quality and social value together carry equal weight. Contractors will therefore need to demonstrate both competitive pricing and an effective approach to delivering highways work.
The detailed tender questions will determine the precise evidence required. However, suppliers should consider several important areas when preparing their responses.
- Relevant highways experience: Demonstrate previous delivery of comparable projects, including the type, scale and complexity of works undertaken.
- Health, safety and traffic management: Explain how construction activities will be managed safely, particularly where work takes place on live highways or near pedestrians and road users.
- Programme and resource management: Show how labour, equipment, subcontractors and materials will be coordinated to meet project requirements.
- Quality assurance: Provide evidence of inspection, testing, supervision and procedures for maintaining appropriate standards.
- Social value: Develop commitments that are relevant to the framework and can be delivered and measured, rather than relying on generic statements.
Thornton & Lowe's construction bid writing services help contractors develop structured responses, present relevant project evidence and address demanding quality and social value questions.
Preparing a competitive Salford highways tender
Contractors should begin by reviewing the specifications for their preferred lots and confirming that the requirements match their capabilities. For regional SMEs, selecting the most suitable category is particularly important. Pursuing multiple lots may be worthwhile where the business has relevant experience, but each submission should demonstrate the capabilities needed for the work involved.
Previous project examples should be selected carefully. A contractor bidding for structures and bridges, for instance, should prioritise evidence of comparable technical works rather than relying exclusively on general construction experience.
Businesses should also consider the framework's ongoing award arrangements. Strong performance during the initial competition may influence supplier ranking, while further competitions will require continued investment in preparing competitive responses.
With social value representing 15% of the total score, applicants should give it appropriate attention. Relevant commitments might concern local employment, apprenticeships, skills development or responsible delivery, provided these align with the tender requirements.
Thornton & Lowe can support suppliers with reviewing the specification, developing evidence-based method statements and checking responses for compliance before submission.
How to apply for the Salford Technical and Highways Works Framework
The procurement is being administered through The Chest, the public sector eProcurement portal used by participating authorities in the North West. Suppliers can access the competition through The Chest using reference DN780443.
The deadlines are:
- 28 October 2026, 3pm: Enquiry deadline
- 4 November 2026, 3pm: Tender submission deadline
Businesses should allow sufficient time to register, download the relevant documentation, complete pricing schedules and prepare the required responses. The tender documents should also be checked for any clarifications or amendments issued before submission.
Bid writing support for highways contractors
The Salford Technical and Highways Works Framework offers opportunities for both established civil engineering businesses and smaller specialist contractors working across Greater Manchester. Its combination of ranked awards and further competitions makes the initial tender an important step towards securing future work. Applicants will need to demonstrate relevant experience, robust delivery arrangements and competitive commercial proposals.
Thornton & Lowe supports highways and civil engineering contractors with framework applications, quality responses and bid writing services, helping businesses present their capabilities clearly and strengthen their approach to tendering. If you're planning to bid for the Salford framework, contact Thornton & Lowe to discuss how we can help prepare your submission before the November deadline.
