London Universities Purchasing Consortium (LUPC) has announced an exciting, new opportunity for catering consultants within the higher education (HE) and wider not-for-profit sectors.
In collaboration with the other regional HE purchasing consortia, LUPC is tendering for the first national Catering Consultancy Services framework for the sector.
This broad framework will assist consortia members from across higher education, and LUPC members from wider not-for-profit membership organisations, museums, and galleries, with their in-house or outsourced catering requirements.
LUPC’s aim is to create a framework of high calibre consultants that can be appointed by HE purchasing consortia members in a quick and easy manner, using best-in-practice tender documentation.
The framework will cover the following catering consultancy services: catering reviews; facilities strategy, tender management; capital projects (design & planning/ investment); projects (project management, design and equipment); menu design; outlet branding; recruitment; compliance; and mystery shopper programmes.
The tender opportunity was sent on Friday 28th April to be published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU), with the aim of the framework going live in September.
FCSI expert advice
Foodservice Consultants, GY5 Limited have provided advice to LUPC on this tender, to ensure that the sector’s requirements are fully met and LUPC can deliver a relevant, high quality framework for both members and consultants alike. This precludes GY5 from bidding for a place on the framework.
Member organisations are also at the heart of the tender, providing input and guidance on the tender documentation and carrying out evaluation of the bids to ensure this new agreement fully meets the needs of the sector.
The tender involves a two stage process: consultants will be required to demonstrate their experience and technical ability at the PQQ stage. Bidders will then be shortlisted to the ITT stage, which will include responding to questions on, and pricing a ‘live site’ which is one of LUPC’s current member institutions’ actual requirements, as well as outlining how bidders will meet elements of the consultancy services detailed in the framework specification. The live site intends to appoint the successful bidder as part of this process.
During the ITT stage, bidders will have the opportunity to attend a Bidders’ Conference in London where they will be able to find out more about the university purchasing consortia, and to visit the live site to enable them to bid accurately on this contract.
In total, it is intended that 10 consultants will be awarded a place on the framework. In addition to LUPC, participating consortia include Advanced Procurement for Universities and Colleges (APUC); Higher Education Purchasing Consortium, Wales (HEPCW); North Eastern Universities Purchasing Consortium (NEUPC); North Western Universities Purchasing Consortium (NWUPC); Southern Universities Purchasing Consortium (SUPC); and The University Caterers Organisation (TUCO).
“There is a huge disparity in consulting methods in the UK and Ireland. This project provides an excellent opportunity to set new standards, invite innovation and recognise those professional consultants, who operate with integrity and true independence for this and other sectors,” says Julian Edwards from GY5.
Full details of the tender opportunity can be found on BravoSolution, the Sourcing Solution used by LUPC for their tenders, by looking under “View Current Opportunities” https://lupc.bravosolution.co.uk/web/login.shtml
Consultants already set up to receive alerts from OJEU contract notices will automatically receive notification of this tender opportunity.
Following the award of the Catering Consultancy framework, LUPC will be tendering for a national framework for Outsourced Catering Services later this year.
For more information:
Contact Suzanne Picken, senior contracts manager, LUPC, at s.picken@lupc.ac.uk.
