Provision of Hot School Meals Drumlea NS 19600F

AI-generated analysis of the documents. Check the official notice and any amendments for current submission details.

1. At a glance

2. Scope of Work

The contract requires the provision of catering services to supply hot meals to students at St. Mary's NS Drumlea, in full compliance with the Department of Social Protection's School Hot Meals Scheme. The service must be available each day of the school year for 34 students. The contract is for a term of one year, with potential for two one-year extensions.

The service delivery model must be one of the following:

• Meals Pre-Prepared Off-site and Delivered Ready to Eat: Meals prepared off-site, delivered hot to classrooms, and ready for immediate consumption. Food must be at classrooms at the start of the lunch break.
• Meals Pre-Prepared Off-Site and Heated in the School’s Designated Preparation and/or Servery Area: Meals prepared off-site, delivered, and heated on-site before being distributed to classrooms. Food must be ready for consumption at the start of the lunch break.
• Meals Pre-Prepared Off-Site and Heated in the School by use of an External Pod or Mobile Catering Unit: Similar to the above, but heating occurs via an external pod or mobile unit. Food must be ready for consumption at the start of the lunch break.
• Meals Fully Prepared On-Site: Meals prepared entirely on-site in the school's designated food preparation area and served to classrooms. Food must be ready for consumption at the start of the lunch break.

No alternative service delivery models or meal options will be accepted. The contractor must provide service on each of the 182 school days per year, excluding exceptional circumstances. The contractor is responsible for all costs associated with the service, including food, preparation, delivery, packaging, and any required fit-out or building works. A minimum of 10% of food by value must be certified organic in specified categories where possible.

Key operational requirements include:

• Meals to be at classrooms ready to eat at the beginning of the lunch break (12:20 pm).
• Compliance with the Department of Social Protection's School Hot Meals Scheme and relevant nutrition standards.
• Monthly status reports are required.
• Complaints must be fully resolved within 3-5 days.
• The contractor's Key Account Manager must be available within 1 week.

3. Background & buyer context

This procurement is for the provision of hot school meals to St. Mary's NS Drumlea, operating under the Department of Social Protection's School Meals Scheme. Funding for the scheme is provided annually by the Department of Social Protection and is subject to annual application and available budget. Consequently, any resulting contract is entirely dependent on the continued availability of this funding. The Contracting Authority reserves the right to cancel the competition or contract if funding is withdrawn. The procurement is being conducted under a Light Touch Regime (LTR) as the estimated value is below €750,000. The contract is intended to be awarded to a single service provider.

4. Eligibility & selection criteria

Tenderers must meet the following minimum requirements to be considered eligible:

• Turnover requirement: A minimum average annual turnover of €19,801.60 for each of the three financial years preceding the tender publication date.
• Insurance:
• Employer’s Liability: €13 million limit per claim.
• Public Liability: €6.5 million limit per claim.
• Product Liability: €6.5 million limit per claim and in aggregate.
• Motor Cover: Minimum €1.3 million for third-party property damage per accident.
• Crime Insurance: €100,000 per claim.
• Cyber Liability: €1 million per claim and in aggregate.
• Professional Indemnity: €6.5 million limit per claim (only relevant for Service Delivery Models 2, 3, or 4 involving fit-out works).
• Certifications: Registered Food Business Operators.
• Past experience: Not specified for this tender.
• Personnel: Key Account Managers (KAMs) must hold a Food Safety/HACCP qualification and have a minimum of 2 years' experience in a similar role.
• Geographic / facility constraints: Not specified for this tender, beyond the requirement to operate from the specified school location for certain service models.

5. Award criteria & scoring

The contract will be awarded to the most economically advantageous tender. The evaluation will be based on a combination of price and quality. Specific scoring weights and thresholds are not detailed in the provided extract, but the process involves a single-stage tender where eligible bidders (meeting selection criteria) are evaluated against award criteria. The fee per meal is fixed at €3.20 (VAT exempt).

6. Submission requirements

Tenderers must submit their tenders electronically via the eTenders.gov.ie platform. Key submission requirements include:

• Tender Response Document (TRD): Must follow the specified format and respond to each element in order.
• Pricing Schedule: To be completed as per Appendix 2.
• Declarations:
• Tenderer’s Statement (Appendix 3), signed and on letterhead.
• Declaration as to Personal Circumstances of Tenderer (Appendix 4).
• Tax Clearance Access Number and Tax Reference Number for online verification.
• Mandatory Site Visit: Tenderers must attend a mandatory site visit on 01/07/2026 at 11 am. Contact Mary Quinn ([email protected]) to arrange.
• Format: Tenders must be in English and compiled for reading using Word and/or PDF readers.
• File Limits: Maximum 250MB per file, 2GB total upload limit on eTenders.
• Submission: Must be submitted via the electronic tenderbox on eTenders.gov.ie by the Tender Deadline.

7. Key dates & process

8. Contract terms that matter

• Term: 1 year, with an option for up to two further 1-year extensions.
• Payment terms: Payment of €3.20 (VAT exempt) per student per day, paid 30 days in arrears. Fees are all-inclusive.
• Key SLAs/KPIs: Complaints to be resolved within 3-5 days. Key Account Manager availability within 1 week. Monthly status reports required.
• Liquidated damages: Not specified.
• Termination: Either party may terminate with 14 days' notice if a breach continues for 14 calendar days. The Contracting Authority may cancel the competition or contract if DSP funding is withdrawn.
• IP ownership: Not specified.
• Sub-contracting: Permitted, but the Prime Contractor remains fully responsible.
• Guarantees/Bonds: Not specified.

9. Risks, red flags & unusuals

• Funding Dependency: The entire contract is contingent on annual Department of Social Protection funding, which is not guaranteed. This introduces significant risk of contract cancellation or non-renewal.
• Mandatory Site Visit: A mandatory site visit is scheduled before the clarification deadline, requiring tenderers to commit resources early.
• Service Delivery Model Constraint: Only four specific service delivery models are permitted, with no flexibility for alternatives.
• All-Inclusive Fee: The €3.20 per meal fee is all-inclusive, covering all costs, including potential fit-out works, which may require careful pricing.
• LTR Procurement: While an Open Procedure is used, it operates under a Light Touch Regime, meaning some standard EU procurement regulations do not apply, offering flexibility but requiring careful attention to the specific CFT terms.
• Organic Ingredient Minimum: A minimum of 10% organic ingredients by value is required, necessitating robust supply chain verification.

10. SME fit assessment

This tender is structured to be accessible to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). The estimated contract value is relatively low (€59,404.80 over 3 years), and the minimum annual turnover requirement (€19,801.60) is modest. The service delivery models, particularly "Meals Pre-Prepared Off-site and Delivered Ready to Eat," can be managed by smaller catering operations. Consortiums or subcontracting are permitted, allowing SMEs to partner if they lack full capacity. The bid preparation effort is likely moderate, involving site visits, proposal development, and pricing. The primary risk for SMEs is the funding dependency and the all-inclusive nature of the fee, which requires accurate cost forecasting. There is no explicit indication of an incumbent provider or a strong Pwin signal for a specific firm.

11. Where to dig deeper

• Source RFT filename: CFT-Hotmeals-StMarysDrumlea-19600F-2026.docx
• eTenders CFT ID: Not explicitly stated in the provided text.
• Contact / Clarification Portal: Messaging facility on www.etenders.gov.ie.
• Key Attachments:
• Appendix 1: Requirements and Specifications
• Appendix 2: Pricing Schedule
• Appendix 5: Services Contract
• SDG02 TN-06 (Department of Education Technical Note Guidance)