School catering services

Description

The successful supplier will be required to provide catering services for St James CofE Primary School, Birmingham. St James CofE Primary School has 419 pupils (2018-19 roll), who are entitled to 180 UFSM and 133 FSM. As a Church of England school serving our multi-faith community, we believe that we approach children's learning from a unique starting point, believing that each person is made in the image of God and therefore precious. This means that we are accountable to our whole community and available to it. We do not negatively differentiate between pupils for any reason and we embrace diversity as a rich resource. We see the nurture of every child who wants to come to our school as our central role, whatever their needs. (Further information is provided in the SQ Document.) The catering service provision at the school has been operated by CityServe and has not been market tested for many years. To ensure best value principles are applied the Headteacher and School Governors have made a decision to tender the catering service. The client wishes to offer healthy eating options within the menu with minimal use of disposables. The menu should be based on the use of fresh ingredients and bakery products. The client is looking for a catering partner who can provide a wide and appealing menu to meet the needs of a multi ethnical customer base. There are other objectives which the client wishes to achieve as a result of this tender process: 1) The provision of a healthy balanced menu that meets nutritional guidelines and is enjoyed by our children; 2) Better value for money to be provided to the school ensuring that the children are provided with a variety of quality food with reasonable portion sizes and takes into account a diverse cultural background of the children; 3) Innovation and flexibility with the ability to ‘move with the times’ and recommend new service initiatives; 4) An effective marketing campaign should be implemented including the organisation of a series of theme days throughout the year — a minimum of 2 each term; 5) There needs to be total transparency with accounts that are clear and easy to understand; 6) To ensure that all hospitality is provided strictly at net cost of ingredients; 7) Provide a pre-order service for the school staff. There are currently only 2 different school meal choices each day. The client is looking to increase the choice and variety to attract more users of the catering service and in particular for the KS2 children who currently do not use the service. The client wishes the successful supplier to be responsible for all cash sales and to introduce a system of online payment for meals, similar to ParentPay and operated by the supplier. The chosen supplier will have as a minimum The Soil Association Food for Life Silver Catering Award and aspire to reach Gold standard within 12 months. The school has a modern and well-equipped production kitchen. The school does not anticipate the need for any financial investment in the kitchen, but would be looking for advice and discussion regarding any requirements and decide how and who pays for it. The new contract will commence on 1.1.2020, for an initial 3-year term with the option of additional 2 x 1 year extensions. The staff are currently employed by CityServe to manage and oversee the catering service and therefore TUPE Regulations including pension rights will apply to this contract. The current value of the contract is approximately 125 000 GBP per annum, which includes children and adult meals.