The Litmus Partnership: Wyre Forest School ~ Catering Tender

UK-Worcestershire: School catering services.

Section I: Contracting Authority

   I.1) Name, Addresses and Contact Point(s):
       Wyre Forest School
       Habberley Road, Kidderminster, Worcestershire, DY11 6FA, United Kingdom
       Tel. +44 1276673880, Email: tenders@litmuspartnership.co.uk
       Main Address: https://www.wfs.worcs.sch.uk/
       NUTS Code: UKG12

   I.2) Joint procurement:
      The contract involves joint procurement: No          
      In the case of joint procurement involving different countries, state applicable national procurement law: Not Provided
      The contract is awarded by a central purchasing body: No

   I.4)Type of the contracting authority:
      Body governed by public law

   I.5) Main activity:
      Education

Section II: Object Of The Contract

   II.1) Scope of the procurement

      II.1.1) Title: Wyre Forest School ~ Catering Tender            
      Reference number: Not Provided

      II.1.2) Main CPV code:
         55524000 - School catering services.


      II.1.3) Type of contract: SERVICES

      II.1.4) Short description: The successful Supplier will be required to provide Catering services for Wyre Forest school.
We are a broad-spectrum special needs school for children aged 3 to 19. We also have Russell House, a 16-bed weekly residential unit. We have only been in our building since April 2015. Before this the school was on two sites following the Wyre Forest restructuring in 2011 (Bewdley Road site, formerly Blakebrook, and Comberton Road site, formerly Stourminster).

      II.1.6) Information about lots
         This contract is divided into lots: No
            
      II.1.7) Total value of the procurement (excluding VAT)
          Value: 678,933.5
                  
         Currency:GBP            

   II.2) Description

      II.2.2) Additional CPV code(s):
      Not Provided

      II.2.3) Place of performance
      Nuts code:
      UKG12 - Worcestershire
   
      Main site or place of performance:
      Worcestershire
             

      II.2.4) Description of the procurement: The successful Supplier will be required to provide Catering services for Wyre Forest school.
We are a broad-spectrum special needs school for children aged 3 to 19. We also have Russell House, a 16-bed weekly residential unit. We have only been in our building since April 2015. Before this the school was on two sites following the Wyre Forest restructuring in 2011 (Bewdley Road site, formerly Blakebrook, and Comberton Road site, formerly Stourminster).
We share our campus with Baxter College. We also have a vocational hub and a Sixth Form which prepares children for life after school. Offsite we run the award-winning Blossom Tree Café in Springfield Park.
We work tirelessly to meet the needs of all the children, so they develop and progress academically, socially, emotionally and physically. Our values of enthusiasm, resilience, honesty, teamwork and trust shine out from all that we do. We have an exciting curriculum which is broad and balanced and make the use of our specialist facilities, including soft play, dark room, sensory rooms, vocational hub, hydropool, gym and riding for the disabled. We are also a communication specialist school and use sign-a-long, PECS and communication passports. We are passionate about the benefits of outdoor education from Forest Schools and The John Muir Award to outdoor pursuits, working the land and exploring the Wyre Forest. This work is crucial in building emotional resilience, teamwork and independence.
The contract covers the scope for the provision of all catering services within the School, including hospitality and free issue requirements.
The duration of the contract offered is three years commencing on 1 January 2026, concluding on 31 December 2028, with the opportunity to extend by up to an additional two years at the discretion of the governing body. There are 190 academic days each year, plus 5 teacher training days which require no catering service. There are currently 371 students and 304 staff, however this number is anticipated to increase to circa 427 during the period of the contract, with the addition of a number of extra classrooms.
The contract is offered on a ‘guaranteed performance’ basis. Currently Meal Deals of salad, main and pudding are at a maximum of £2.53 for pupils and staff £2.90, charged on consumption with margin applied. Currently circa 210 – 230 lunches are served each day, with circa 160 being plated and served via the classrooms, the remainder via the dining room service point. The School has a variety of dietary requirements that need accommodated, including allergies, sensory and individual pupil preferences.
The residential centre is open for meals Monday to Thursday during term time only and commence a week after the main School, consequently serving for 185 days.
It is appreciated that a level of investment may be identified as a requirement of your bid, and therefore bidders are encouraged to provide detailed information of any equipment felt necessary. Bidders must provide the equipment make, model and cost and a justification of how this equipment will assist in fulfilling the proposal and potential of the service. All investment suggested must be fully justified within the Service Development and Finance sections of your Bidder Response. The level of investment provided will be at the School’s discretion, subject to the method of obtaining the investment for the required equipment.
The quality of food provision will be critical and indeed your organisation must be flexible enough to source bakery, meat, fruit and vegetables and dairy products through local suppliers. It is expected that menus will feature and utilise products in season.
Please see SQ Document for more information.

      II.2.5) Award criteria:
       Not Provided

      II.2.11) Information about options
         Options: No
         

      II.2.13) Information about European Union funds
         The procurement is related to a project and/or programme financed by European Union funds: No
         

      II.2.14) Additional information: This is a Contract Award Notice - this contract has already been awarded.


Section IV: Procedure

IV.1) Description

   IV.1.1)Type of procedure: Restricted


   IV.1.3) Information about a framework agreement or a dynamic purchasing system
      The procurement involves the establishment of a framework agreement: No       
      A dynamic purchasing system was set up: No

   IV.1.6) Information about electronic auction
      An electronic auction has been used: No

   IV.1.8) Information about the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
      The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement: Yes

IV.2) Administrative information

   IV.2.1) Previous publication concerning this procedure
       Notice number in the OJEU: 2025/S 000-004999
      
   

   IV.2.9) Information about termination of call for competition in the form of a prior information notice
      The contracting authority will not award any further contracts based on the above prior information notice: No

Section V: Award of contract

Award Of Contract (No.1)

   Contract No: Not Provided    
   Lot Number: Not Provided    
   Title: Not Provided

   A contract/lot is awarded: Yes


   V.2) Award of contract

      V.2.1) Date of conclusion of the contract: 17/09/2025

      V.2.2) Information about tenders
         Number of tenders received: 3
         Number of tenders received from SMEs: Not Provided          
         Number of tenders received from tenderers from other EU Member States: Not Provided          
         Number of tenders received from tenderers from non-EU Member States: Not Provided          
         Number of tenders received by electronic means: Not Provided

      V.2.3) Name and address of the contractor

      The contract has been awarded to a group of economic operators: No
         
         Contractor (No.1)
             abm Catering Ltd, 04168334
             Eagle Court, 63-67 Saltisford, Warwick, CV34 4AF, United Kingdom
             NUTS Code: UKG1
            The contractor is an SME: No

      V.2.4) Information on value of the contract/lot (excluding VAT)
         Initial estimated total value of the contract/lot: 530,000          
         Total value of the contract/lot: 678,933.5
         Currency: GBP

      V.2.5) Information about subcontracting
         The contract is likely to be subcontracted: No
         
Section VI: Complementary information

   VI.3) Additional information: To view this notice, please click here:
https://litmustms.co.uk/delta/viewNotice.html?noticeId=983838167
   VI.4) Procedures for review

      VI.4.1) Review body
          Wyre Forest School
          Habberley Road, Kidderminster, Warwick, CV34 4AF, United Kingdom
          Tel. +44 1276673880, Email: tenders@litmuspartnership.co.uk

      VI.4.3) Review procedure
         Precise information on deadline(s) for review procedures: Not Provided

      VI.4.4) Service from which information about the review procedure may be obtained
         Not Provided

   VI.5) Date of dispatch of this notice: 01/10/2025