Aylesford School and Sixth Form College — Tender for Catering Services.

The successful tenderer will be required to provide catering services at Aylesford School and Sixth Form College.

Aylesford School and Sixth Form College is a forward thinking, exciting and educationally challenging environment. All of the schools fundamental principles centre on the teaching and learning experience, with students at the core of all work. The School believe in academic rigour and the concept of improving on previous best. Aylesford School is proud of the school ethos, their teachers and students and the learning relationship that they nurture. Aylesford School prepare their students to access higher education or employment and guide and encourage them to be good citizens capable of adapting to adult life in the 21st century.

The tender project is seeking to appoint a contractor whose initiative and innovation will be welcomed for the provision of service within the existing facilities for the growing numbers of secondary and primary students on roll. Currently there are 760 students on roll (rising to approximately 839 in 2016/2017, 930 in 2017/2018 and 1 005 in 2018/2019) and 105 teaching and support staff, all of whom have a focus on the introduction of exciting new food concepts to satisfy a wide range of Secondary and Primary Student tastes and dietary requirements. The School would wish the successful contractor to review the current range of services offered and make recommendations accordingly.

The contract being tendered is for 3 years in duration from 1.8.017 until 31.7.2020 and will operate as a Guaranteed Performance Contract, with the successful contractor offering the School a guaranteed return/cost per annum for the provision of catering services. Sovereignty of the cash tariff is to remain with Aylesford School and Sixth Form College for the duration of this contract.

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

The contract offered covers the scope for the provision of all catering services within the School, which currently includes breakfast club, morning break, lunch, all hospitality and free issue requirements. Free School meals and hospitality will be charged based on consumption and at net food cost.

The value of the current contract, from April 2015 — March 2016 is circa:

Cash Sales: 105 000 GBP;

Free School Meal/Client Issue Sales: 28 500 GBP.

Further information is available within the PQQ Documentation.

Additional information: Interest in the pre-qualification 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 pre-qualification questionnaire and associated documents can be obtained at: http://www.litmuspartnership.co.uk/project/aylesford_school_catering_services

The closing date for receipt of the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire is 9.9.2016 (12:00). Tenderers 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 Pre-Qualification 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 Tenderer'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 OJEU 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.