Prison Retail Market Engagement

The HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) Prison Retail Service provides approximately 80,000 prisoners the means to order goods (fresh and frozen food, ambient food and non-foods (e.g. toiletries)) using their own funds. The contract is a key operational service in maintaining a stable environment and supports the HMPPS decency agenda, which focuses on [normalising] aspects of prison life to prepare eligible prisoners for release.

The current solution is provided as part of a nationally managed service providing wholesale goods, logistics/fleet and management of multiple workshops (17 in total), located within prisons utilising 520 prisoners to pick, pack and despatch an estimated 66,000 orders a week.

This project is looking at the re-procurement of the service and looking to hear from interested parties capable of providing the wholesale goods and/or the management of multiple workshops

Additional information: The primary objective of the service is to meet the demands of the paying consumers, providing a range of goods at prices comparable to that of convenience store retailers and responsive to the changing population demographics and external influences (e.g. healthy eating campaigns). The service aims to deliver orders in a timely, efficient manner while ensuring that prison security policies (national or local) are never contravened. Financially a key aim of the service is that it is self-financing and that the service overheads are covered through the cost of sales. The service must not exploit the customer (prisoner) population and instead should be seen as an opportunity both to play a key role in the operation of a prison environment and also providing opportunities for re-skilling and resettlement on release (e.g. job interviews, offers of work). The information contained in this notice is indicative of current thinking and subject to change. ATTENTION: the value of this opportunity provided reflects the spend which is managed through the contract (the cost, overheads and margin AND sales), this is due to the self-financing nature of the service. The Project will be holding an open market engagement event at the Ministry of Justice ,5 Wellington Place, Leeds LS1 4AP on Thursday 16th May 2019 starting at 10am (registration from 9:30am). This is a follow up to the previous supplier engagement event held January 2018 and will be an opportunity for us to: 1. provide high level information on the project and our requirements; 2. openly answer questions (creating a common understanding of the project); 3. create networking opportunities for suppliers;

The morning will feature a presentation with open Q&A and the afternoon will be reserved for a small number of 1-2-1 meetings with interested suppliers. Details for requesting a 1-2-1 session together with a data capture questionnaire will be published on Bravo. Suppliers are encouraged to monitor the PQQ folder . The project will, throughout the engagement process up to the formal procurement commencing, publish materials via Bravo, FAQs and other information to maintain transparency in engaging with the market. Suppliers are encouraged to monitor the PQQ folder (note: the PQQ function is being used for secure communication and is NOT an invitation or commitment to tender).

The closing date registering to attend this event is 14 /05/19

If you wish to register please e-mail [email protected]