Shropshire County Council is seeking to procure a Mixed Economy provider to play a central role in its evolving highways maintenance delivery model.

This model moves away from a traditional single-contractor approach and instead combines in-house delivery with strategic partners and specialist providers, enabling the Council to retain control over local, reactive services while leveraging external expertise, scale and innovation, according to the Government’s Find a Tender service.

This approach is now well established in Shropshire and has delivered demonstrable benefits, including significant reductions in defect backlogs, improved repair quality, and materially lower unit costs for activities such as pothole repairs, alongside increased public satisfaction and national recognition as leading practice.

The proposed contract will build on this success by introducing a long-term delivery partner capable of undertaking a core suite of maintenance and minor works activities, whilst supporting wider service resilience through winter maintenance, emergency response and surge demand. The Council is seeking a collaborative partner that can bring innovation, efficient treatment solutions, and robust data and technology integration to further improve asset performance and reduce whole-life costs.

Through this pre-market engagement, the Council aims to shape a longer-term (5+ year) contract that maximises flexibility, supports local supply chains, and further matures a Mixed Economy model that aligns delivery to strengths, combining local responsiveness with specialist capability to deliver best value for residents and the network.

(Picture: Shropshire County Council)