A golden opportunity - blink and you've missed it

In the interests of saving money, CCC is "privatising"​ (i.e. putting out to tender) a number of local events - the Herne Bay Festival, the Herne Bay and Whitstable Classic Car Shows, and now the Canterbury Food and Drink Festival.

This may or may not be a well-conceived idea, but it is certainly being very poorly executed. Despite the fact that (presumably) this stems from a strategic decision taken some ago, CCC has left it till the last moment to advertise each of these opportunities.

On 3rd April 2013, CCC announced on their website that the Food & Drink Festival was up for grabs. The closing date was 19th April 2013.

Do they honestly think they'll get the best tenders by leaving so little time for anyone to prepare a bid? Or did they already have someone lined up, and were only going through the motions of competitive tendering because they're legally obliged to? What do you think?

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Council seeks food festival delivery partner

The city council is looking for organisations or individuals who think they have what it takes to build on the success of the Canterbury Food and Drink Festival in 2013.

The successful delivery partners will take the established festival brands and develop an exciting programme of events and activities to take them to the next level.

Managing and delivering this popular event that regularly attracts around 20,000 people each year, the successful organisation will actively work with the local business community to shape this popular event, continuing to attract shoppers to Canterbury and supporting the local economy.

The council is keen to make sure that events and activities that are important to the local community, economy and visitors, such as the food festival, are led by those that have the experience, specialisms and networks to ensure their future growth and success.

The council will be looking to contract a new delivery partner in May 2013. Expressions of interest are being sought through the south east business portal at www.businessportal.southeastiep.gov.uk , where the opportunities and individual requirements for the festival are set out. The closing date for expressions of interest is Friday 19 April.

The council’s Head of Culture and Enterprise, Janice McGuinness, said:

“Festivals are an excellent example of how culture, tourism and our local economy can enhance our communities by promoting and celebrating what’s great about where we live. Ensuring our festivals are rooted within our local communities is key to their future development and growth, and the council looks forward to working with the new delivery partners.”

CCC 3rd Apr 2013