Provision of Education & Social Care Transport 2 DPS
Framework Description
Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council's Provision of Education and Social Care Transport 2 DPS buys passenger transport for education and social care. It has five lots by vehicle size and type, from 4–8 seat cars to 50-plus seat coaches and wheelchair-accessible vehicles. It runs until 7 August 2029, with an option to extend by up to 24 months to 7 August 2031, depending on performance and annual reviews.
Context & Use Case
The council uses the DPS to place home-to-school and social care transport, using taxis, minibuses, buses and wheelchair-accessible vehicles, by running competitions among admitted operators in the relevant lot. Routes vary in size and passenger needs, so vehicle-based lots let the council match each contract to suitable operators. The council manages the DPS through eTenderWales.
Scope of Services
Lot 1: 4–8 seat vehicles Lot 2: 9–16 seat vehicles Lot 3: 17–49 seat vehicles Lot 4: 50+ seat vehicles Lot 5: wheelchair-accessible vehicles
Lots
Lot 1: 4-8 seat vehicles; Lot 2: 9-16 seat vehicles; Lot 3: 17-49 seat vehicles; Lot 4: 50+ seat vehicles; Lot 5: Wheelchair accessible vehicles
Who Can Apply
Taxi and private hire firms, minibus and coach operators, and providers of wheelchair-accessible transport. As a DPS, it is open to applications at any time before 7 August 2029, by completing the Supplier Qualification Questionnaire (SQQ) on eTenderWales.
Buyer Benefits
Vehicle-based lots make sure each route goes to an operator with the right vehicle, and an open DPS lets the council add operators when routes are hard to cover. Performance reviews tied to the extension give the council a lever on service quality, while regular competition controls costs.
Next Steps
Register on eTenderWales, find the Education and Social Care Transport 2 DPS (Find a Tender notice 024896-2024) and complete the SQQ for the lots that match your fleet. Prepare operator and vehicle licences, DBS checks for drivers and escorts, insurance and safeguarding policies. Once admitted, respond promptly to route competitions.
How Athena Can Help
Transport operators win council routes on reliability, safeguarding and price. Athena's SQQ completion support prepares your Merthyr Tydfil application for the right vehicle lots, checks it before submission on eTenderWales and can find other Welsh councils' transport DPSs open to you.
For route competitions, our transport tender pricing helps you price routes profitably, and our bid writing and review service runs a Bid Health Check on your first competition responses, so weak answers are fixed before they cost you routes.
