Reason for the decision
- The current contractual agreement for concessionary travel cards
is due to expire on 31st March 2027 and the extension period for
the contract must be triggered by 20th March 2026. There are no
alternative frameworks currently available for these services and
insufficient time for a full procurement. Without the extension
KCC’s will be unable to deliver statutory concessionary
travel services to approximately 280,000 users county wide.
Background – Provide brief additional context
- Kent County Council (KCC) in its role as a Travel Coordinating
Scheme Authority delivers three concessionary travel schemes, the
English National Concessionary Travel Scheme (ENCTS), the KCC
Travel Saver (TS) and the KCC 16+ Travel Saver (16+TS).
- Delivery of these schemes relies on specialist services for card
production and recording of trips to calculate reimbursements to
operators. The current provider is Euclid Ltd procured through a
PCR 2015-compliant Framework (using a direct award to the supplier;
contract Reference SC21087). This agreement expires on 31st March
2027 and cannot be extended.
- In addition, from early 2025 Public Transport became aware that
the processing of applications for the ENCTS scheme, which is
currently undertaken by Agilisys, would fall outside of the scope
of the new Contact Centre arrangement and would need to be managed
elsewhere. This is not a task which can be bought fully “in
house” (to Public Transport) and would be a natural extension
of the work undertaken by Euclid given that this is a function that
they fulfil for other Local Authorities. It is therefore proposed
to include this within the scope of the extended Concessionary
Travel Cards Service.
- Due to daily operational demand s for new or replacement passes
and the statutory nature of ENTCS, any delay or gap in contracted
provision is not viable and has significant reputational
risk.
Options (other options considered but discarded)
- Procure a new contract under Procurement Act 2023
- Use of existing framework
- Use of other frameworks
- Delivering these functions in house
How the proposed decision supports the Council’s Strategic
Statement
- Levelling Up Kent - Inclusive transport across all
divisions
- Sustainability – reducing the number of vehicles used in
the transport of children and adults to reduce emissions.
- Congestion – reducing the number of vehicle numbers to ease
congestion on Kent roads.
- Communities – supporting them to grow by ensuring access to
work, education and local amenities.
Decision type: Key
Reason Key: Expenditure or savings of more than £1m;
Decision status: Recommendations Approved
Notice of proposed decision first published: 09/02/2026
Decision due: Not before 17th Feb 2026 by Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport
Reason: Not before 17 February - Semit-urgent decision process
Lead member: Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport
Lead director: Andrew Loosemore
Department: Growth, Environment & Transport
Contact: Email: shane.bushell@kent.gov.uk 03000413552.
Consultees
Decision progressed through semi-urgent
process so Cabinet Committee consultation not possible.
Financial implications: - There are no financial implications beyond existing revenue in Public Transport. The contract costs are: • Estimated spend for the initial term: £1,513,855.00 • Estimated spend for the 5-year initial term + 2-year extension: £2,166,907.00 • The value of the 2-year extension is: £653,052
Legal implications: - The Council is required to deliver the statutory function of the ENCTS inclusive of card production that this contract facilitates in accordance with Transport Act 1985 and Concessionary Travel Act 2007. Failure to deliver the card component of the concessionary scheme may result in a failure to deliver a statutory service, legal challenge and reimbursement to service users. The extension of this contract would ensure the continuation of all the concessionary travel schemes in operation for around 280,000 pass holders across the county.
Equalities implications: - An EQIA has been undertaken and there are no known issues identified.