Cockermouth School - Tender for Catering Services

The successful supplier will be required to provide catering services for Cockermouth School, Castlegate Drive, Cockermouth, Cumbria, CA13 9HF. Cockermouth School Academy is a high performing, truly comprehensive school located in a beautiful part of the country on the edge of the Lake District National Park, and is in the heart of its community. The school serves a large catchments area in the north-west of Cumbria.

Contract value: 1 200 000 GBP (3 year value).

Cockermouth School is looking for a provider who will work in true partnership with the school to deliver the catering service on site. The school has approx. 1 360 students years 7-13 and 180 staff. There is a main dining hall and a separate sixth form area.

The client's objectives in putting the catering contract out to tender are to:

• secure value for money services in terms of cost,

• provide an innovative, healthy food service,

• secure ongoing improvements in the produce supply chain, portion sizing, staffing levels and management support procedures,

• provide high quality, nutritious and attractive meals,

• support local food suppliers and reduce waste.

As a school who are continually seeking ways to improve and develop the ethos and environment for students and staff, to give them the facilities they deserve and need, to meet the challenges of the 21st Century, any consideration regarding inward capital investment as part of the supplier's tender submission would be welcomed. The client would wish for suppliers to look at making this investment within the existing dining area.

We understand that some catering staff will be members of LGPS and admitted body status would therefore be expected with regards to pension provision.

The contract will commence 1.4.2020 and will be for an initial period of 3 years with the option to extend for a further 2 years.

Additional information: Interest in the selection process should be expressed via email only to pqq@litmuspartnership.co.uk 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: https://litmuspartnership.co.uk/sq/cockermouth/

The closing date for receipt of the Selection Questionnaire is 18.10.2019 (12:00). Suppliers are required to ensure that documents are obtained and returned to The Litmus Partnership Limited, by email to pqq@litmuspartnership.co.uk 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 pqq@litmuspartnership.co.uk 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.