Project launch
Swindon sounds the market for a partner to replace the Wyvern Theatre
By Staff Writer | 04-09-2026
Swindon Borough Council has opened preliminary market engagement for a design, build, operate and delivery partner for a new entertainment venue to replace the Wyvern Theatre, which the council says is nearing the end of its life. The estimated value is 40,000,000 pounds excluding value added tax, the contract period runs from 1 August 2027 to 31 July 2055, and organisations must register their interest by midday on Friday 11 September 2026. The planned procurement notice was published at 4:09pm on 3 September 2026.
The council frames the requirement in the notice:
As the Wyvern Theatre nears the end of its life, Swindon Borough Council are looking to bring forward a flexible modern entertainment venue that replaces and is an enhancement on the Wyvern Theatre, meeting Swindon's cultural, technical and audience needs.
Swindon Borough Council, planned procurement notice
The purpose of the exercise is stated in two parts. The council wishes to understand the level of interest from the market in acting as a design, build, operate and delivery partner for the proposed venue, and it will use what it learns to design a competitive procurement process that meets both its own requirements and the needs of the market.
How the engagement will run
The engagement is being conducted on the council's behalf by its specialist event venue consultants, In Partnership With Ltd, and interested organisations are asked to contact that firm before midday on 11 September 2026 for background information and to register. Participation requires the signing of a confidentiality agreement. The discussions will be one to one, held by video call between suppliers and the consultants, in the window from Monday 7 September to Friday 18 September 2026.
The council reserves the right to reduce the number of participants if the number of organisations expressing an interest is such that the exercise could not reasonably be concluded by 18 September 2026. The engagement milestone on the notice carries a due date of 18 September 2026 and a status of scheduled.
A contract period of twenty eight years and a single partner for design, build and operation are both on the notice; the form of contract that will carry them is not.
What the notice records
The main procurement category is works, with services as an additional category, and the procurement is above threshold. The value of 40,000,000 pounds is stated excluding value added tax, with a gross figure of 48,000,000 pounds. The single lot has a status of planning and a contract period of 1 August 2027 to 31 July 2055.
The notice does not identify a site for the new venue, a capacity, a construction programme or a date for the closure of the existing theatre. It does not say whether the 40,000,000 pound figure is a construction estimate, a whole life estimate or a contract value for the operating period, and it does not describe the commercial model under which an operator would be paid or would pay the council. It does not name a procurement procedure, because that is what the engagement is meant to inform, and it gives no date for the tender notice that would follow.