Little Heath School - Tender for Catering Services.

The successful Supplier will be required to provide catering services for Little Heath School (the Client).

Little Heath School is a voluntary-aided co-educational comprehensive secondary school. The school is located in the Little Heath area of the Reading suburb of Tilehurst, in Berkshire. Founded in 1963, the school is managed by West Berkshire Local Authority, but serves communities in both West Berkshire and Reading. A mixed 11-18 school, it has approximately 1 650 students on roll, with almost 400 of these in the Sixth Form.

The tender project is seeking to appoint an experienced and innovative Supplier for the provision of a catering service for the students on roll and 200 teaching and support staff, with a focus on exciting new food concepts to satisfy a wide range of pupil tastes and dietary requirements. The Client would wish the successful Supplier to review the current range of services offered and make recommendations accordingly.

The contract being tendered is for three years in duration from 1.8.2017 to 31.7.2020 and will operate as a guaranteed performance contract, with the successful Supplier offering the Client a guaranteed return per annum for the provision of catering services. Sovereignty of the cash tariff is to remain with the Client for the duration of this contract.

The school year is based on a calendar of 195 days. The equivalent of 5 days are to be used for staff professional development which means that the school will be open to receive students for the legal minimum of 190 days.

The contract offered covers the provision of a full range of catering services within the school, which currently includes breakfast, morning break, lunch, some hospitality and all free issue requirements. Free School Meals and hospitality will be charged based on consumption and at net food cost. The school has biometric cashless catering in place.

Whilst the Client prioritises value for money as a key objective of the competitive tender process, the governing body is not obliged to accept the lowest price.

The Client expects the successful Supplier to enable the continued development of catering through the provision of an innovative, healthy food service, with fresh, seasonal, locally sourced ingredients being prepared on-site. The Client expects the successful Supplier to evidence, through their bid, how they shall support and complement its values and support the principles of Every Child Matters.

(Further information is available within the procurement documents.)

Additional information: Interest in the selection process should be expressed via email only to [email protected] clearly stating within this email which contract / notice you are referring to. Please also provide, as a minimum, a contact name, full company postal address and telephone number.

The Selection Questionnaire and associated documents can be obtained at: http://www.litmuspartnership.co.uk/project/little_heath_school

The closing date for receipt of the Selection Questionnaire is 24.2.2017 (12:00). Suppliers are required to ensure that documents are obtained and returned to The Litmus Partnership Limited, by email to [email protected] by the above closing date and time.

Documents in respect of economic / financial standing (where indicated in the Selection Questionnaire) shall be returned to The Litmus Partnership Limited, by email to [email protected] by the above closing date and time.

It will be the Supplier's responsibility to obtain any necessary documents in order to submit a response by the closing date and time.

The contracting authority reserves the right not to award any or part of the contract which is the subject of this Contract Notice and reserves the right to terminate the procurement process at any time.

The contracting authority will not be liable for any costs incurred by those expressing an interest in tendering for this contract opportunity.

The contracting authority will consider variant bids, evaluating them (so far as the variant or the evaluation of the variant is in the opinion of the contracting authority practicable) on the same basis as a conforming bid, but shall not be obliged to accept any such bid in preference to a conforming bid even if the variant bid scores more highly. No variant will be considered unless the bidder simultaneously submits a conforming bid.