Board Report - Contract Authorisation Report for Paisley Halloween Festival
Renfrewshire Council · 23 April 2026
Back to Finance, Resources and Customer Services Policy Board — 23 April 2026 and its agenda
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PUBLIC ___________________________________________________________________ To: Finance, Resources and Customer Services Policy Board On: 23 April 2026 ___________________________________________________________________ Report by: The Director of Finance and Resources and the Chief Executive’s Service ___________________________________________________________________ Heading: Contract Authorisation Report for Paisley Halloween Festival – Parade & Town Centre Animation (RC-CPU-25-168) ___________________________________________________________________ 1. Summary 1.1 The purpose of this report is to seek approval of Finance, Resources and Customer Services Policy Board to award a Services Contract for Paisley Halloween Festival - Parade and Town Centre Animation (RC- CPU-25-168) to Cirque Bijou Limited (Co no. 05051525). 1.2 The recommendation to award Paisley Halloween Festival - Parade and Town Centre Animation Contract follows a procurement process that was conducted in accordance with the Open Procedure under the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015, as amended and The Renfrewshire Council Standing Orders Relating to Contracts 2026 for an above Government Procurement Agreement (Services) Contract. 1.3 A Contract Strategy was approved by the Head of Marketing and Communications on 14 January 2026 and the Interim Strategic Category Manager on 13 January 2026. ___________________________________________________________________ 2. Recommendations It is recommended that the Finance, Resources and Customer Services Policy Board:
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PUBLIC 2.1 Authorises the Head of Corporate Governance to award a Services Contract for Paisley Halloween Festival – Parade & Town Centre Animation (RC-CPU-25-168) to Cirque Bijou Limited (Co No. 05051525). 2.2 Authorises the Approved Contract value of £524,845 excluding VAT. 2.3 Notes it is anticipated start date of the contract will be 25 May 2026 until 30 November 2027 with the option to extend for a further 12 months at the sole discretion of the Council until no later than 30 November 2028. In the event that the Contract does not commence on 25 May 2026, the contract period shall run from the start date as stated in the Award Schedule to the Letter of Acceptance issued to Cirque Bijou Limited. The end date of the contract will remain fixed. _________________________________________________________ 3. Background 3.1 Renfrewshire Council has a requirement for a highly experienced and established creative company to develop and deliver a parade and town centre animation for Paisley Halloween Festival 2026 on Friday 23 and Saturday 24 October 2026, and Friday 29 and Saturday 30 October 2027 (with the Council Contract extension option for Friday 27 and Saturday 28 October 2028). 3.2 To initiate this procurement process, a Contract Notice was published on the Find a Tender Service via the Public Contracts Scotland advertising portal on 15 January 2026 with the tender documentation available for downloading from the Public Contracts Scotland – Tender portal from this date. 3.3 During the live tender period, seventeen organisations expressed interest to participate in the tender. By the closing date set for the return of electronic tender submission, 12 noon 16 February 2026, one organisation submitted a response, nine declined to respond, and seven organisations did not submit a response. The nine organisations which declined to respond cited capability and capacity as their reason for not participating in this tender. 3.4 As required by Regulation 60 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015, as amended all Tenderers were each required to complete a Single Procurement Document (“SPD”), which was to be submitted with their tender submission. The tender submission was evaluated against a pre-determined set of criteria within the SPD by representatives from the following Council services: Events Team, the
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PUBLIC Corporate Procurement Unit, Corporate Risk and Corporate Health and Safety. 3.5 The tender submission complied with the minimum selection criteria of the SPD and progressed to evaluation against the published Award Criteria which was based on a weighting of 80% Quality and 20% Price. 3.6 The tender submission scores relative to the award criteria are noted below Company Price (20%) Quality (80%) Total (100%) Cirque Bijou Limited 20.00% 64.63% 84.63% 3.7 The Tender Submission received by Cirque Bijou Limited met the criteria set out in the procurement documents and was within the Council’s set budget and was therefore deemed to be value for money. 3.8 Community Benefits were requested as part of the procurement process and Cirque Bijou Limited confirmed that the following Community Benefits would be made available to the Council for this Contract: Community Benefit Description No of People / Activity Work Experience Placement for an individual 16+ years of age 2 Industry Skills Transfer to Schools 2 ___________________________________________________________________ Implications of the Report 1. Financial – The Approved Contract Value is £524,845, excluding VAT, for the entire Contract period of 25 May 2026 until 30 November 2027, including the optional 12 month extension. The costs will be met from the Revenue General Service Budget. 2. HR & Organisational Development – None directly arising from this report. 3. Community/Council Planning – • Our Renfrewshire is thriving – Maximising economic growth, which is inclusive and sustainable
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PUBLIC • Our Renfrewshire is well – Supporting the wellness and resilience of our citizens and communities • Reshaping our place, our economy and our future - Demonstrating that Renfrewshire is a great place to grow up, it’s a place of opportunity for those that live and work here, and it’s a brilliant place for a day out • Building strong, safe and resilient communities - Improving lives and securing wellbeing through a stronger, inclusive and sustainable economy, being creative, imaginative and linking opportunities to enhance the benefits for Renfrewshire • Working together to improve outcomes - Ensuring Renfrewshire Council delivers Best Value for our citizens and customers, that we demonstrate we are a well governed, effective organisation 4. Legal - The procurement of this Contract was conducted in accordance with the requirements of the Renfrewshire Council Standing Orders Relating to Contracts 2026 and The Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015, as amended for an above Government Procurement Agreement Value Services Contract. 5. Property/Assets – None directly arising from this report. 6. Information Technology - None directly arising from this report. 7. Equality & Human Rights – None directly arising from this report. 8. Health & Safety – Cirque Bijou Limited’s Health and Safety credentials were evaluated by the Council’s Corporate Health & Safety team and met the requirements regarding Health & Safety. 9. Procurement – The procurement procedure outlined within this report ensures that the Council meets its statutory requirements in respect of procurement procedures, efficiency and modern government. 10. Risk – Cirque Bijou Limited insurance has been assessed and evaluated by the Council’s Risk team to confirm they meet the Council’s minimum requirements regarding insurance risk. 11. Privacy Impact - None directly arising from this report.
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PUBLIC 12. Climate Risk - The level of impact associated with provision of this service has been assessed using the Scottish Government Sustainability Test and is considered to be low risk. 13. Children’s Rights – This report demonstrates compliance with Article 31 (Rest, Play, Culture, Arts) as every child has the right to rest, relax, play and to take part in cultural and creative activities. 14. Cosla Policy Position – None directly arising from this report. _________________________________________________________ List of Background Papers (a) none ___________________________________________________________________ Author: Stuart McLean, Procurement Adviser, stuart.mclean@renfrewshire.gov.uk