Hot Meals under the School Meals Scheme to Scoil Mhuire

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 hot meals to students at Scoil Mhuire NS. The service must comply with the Department of Social Protection’s School Hot Meals Scheme. The school operates 182 days per year, and the contractor must provide service on each of these days. The service is for 215 students.

The mandatory service delivery model is "Meals Pre-Prepared Off-site and Delivered Ready to Eat." This means meals are prepared off-site and delivered hot to each classroom, ready for consumption by the start of the student lunch break at 12:35 pm.

Key activities and requirements include:

• Meal Preparation: Meals must be prepared off-site.
• Delivery: Meals must be delivered hot to classrooms, ready to eat at the beginning of the lunch break.
• Compliance: Full compliance with the Department of Social Protection’s School Hot Meals Scheme and relevant nutrition standards is required.
• Organic Ingredients: A minimum of 10% of food by value (€) must be certified organic in categories including cereals, fresh beef, lamb, pork, poultry, fish, vegetables, and dairy products, where possible.
• Service Days: Service must be provided on all 182 school days per year.
• Student Numbers: Service for 215 students.
• Pricing: The fee is €3.20 (VAT exempt) per student per day, which is all-inclusive of all costs and expenses.
• No Preparation Area: The school has no designated food preparation or servery area.
• Site Visit: A mandatory site visit is required to assess delivery logistics and potential site modifications.

3. Background & buyer context

This procurement is for the provision of hot meals to Scoil Mhuire NS under the Department of Social Protection’s School Meals Scheme. The scheme aims to provide a nutritious meal to pupils attending certain schools. The contract is being procured as a services contract under an open procedure, as the estimated value is below the EU threshold of €750,000. The contract is dependent on the annual allocation of funding from the Department of Social Protection, and the Contracting Authority reserves the right to cancel the competition or contract if funding is unavailable. The current contract is for a term of one year, with potential for two one-year extensions.

4. Eligibility & selection criteria

• Turnover requirement: Tenderers must demonstrate a minimum average annual turnover equal to or greater than €125,216.00 for each of the three financial years immediately preceding the tender publication date.
• Insurance: The successful Tenderer must hold the following insurances for the term of the contract:
• 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 limit 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 if Service Delivery Models 2, 3, or 4 were used, which they are not for this tender).
• Certifications: Tenderers must be 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 of experience in a similar role.
• Geographic / facility constraints: Not specified for this tender, beyond the requirement to deliver to the school in Milford, Co. Donegal.

5. Award criteria & scoring

Criterion Weight (%) Sub-criteria