The PROVISION OF Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Programme 2026-2029

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            "name": "Cheshire East Council",
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                "description": "Exciting New Cheshire East HAF Opportunity We are pleased to share exciting news from the Cheshire East Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Team. The HAF programme has been extended for a further three years, running from April 2026 to March 2029. As we look ahead, we are preparing to launch a new procurement opportunity that will enable us to work with a broad range of providers to deliver high-quality holiday experiences for children and young people across Cheshire East. About the HAF Programme The HAF programme is designed to support: * Children and young people in receipt of https://www.cheshireeast.gov.uk/schools/school-meals/free_school_meals.aspx * School-aged children from Reception to Year 11 (and up to age 18 for those with SEND) * Provision during Easter, summer, and winter school holidays * Access to enriching activities * Access to healthy meals Our Vision for the Future We aim to ensure the HAF programme is: * Widely accessible across Cheshire East * Inclusive and welcoming to children and young people of all abilities * Offering a vibrant and varied range of holiday experiences * Featuring diverse activities that cater to a broad spectrum of interests and needs, including sport, drama, art, nature, science, crafts, and IT We are keen to engage with as many providers as possible to help us realise this vision. Join Us at Our Engagement Events To support the procurement process, we will be hosting two online events: HAF Programme Pre-Tender Information Event Date: Wednesday 19 November Time: 4.00pm-5.00pm Purpose: To learn more about the upcoming procurement, ask questions, and explore how you can be involved. HAF Programme Clarification Drop-In Event Date: Wednesday 10 December Time: 4.00pm-5.00pm Purpose: An informal opportunity to ask further questions about the tender process. To register for either or both events follow the link below: https://forms.office.com/e/b07KpJ3n89 Please check your email for your invitation to the event. The email will come from cehaf@cheshireeast.gov.uk If you do not receive your link to the event within 2 days please contact cehaf@cheshireeast.gov.uk For more information about the current HAF programme, please visit: https://www.cheshireeast.gov.uk/schools/holiday-activities-and-food-programme-haf.aspx",
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        "title": "The PROVISION OF Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Programme 2026-2029",
        "description": "Cheshire East Council is seeking to commission a number of providers to deliver face to face school holiday activities for young people in Cheshire East. The holiday activities and food (HAF) programme is a 'Department for Education' (DfE) initiative enabling local authorities to coordinate a programme that provides school age young people between the ages of 4 - 16, and up to age 18 for eligible SEND young people, with healthy food and enriching activities during the summer and winter holidays. These school holiday activities provide young people with: * positive and safe things to do and places to go * the opportunity to spend time with friends, to develop personally and socially, and reduce isolation * the chance to undertake new activities and have new experiences Cheshire East Council is flexible in its approach to service delivery, always seeking solutions that will offer quality outcomes and value for money and working with delivery partners who share our values and commitment to the success of this area of support. Cheshire East Council's Corporate Plan sets out clear priorities, and all providers will be required to contribute towards the corporate objectives and improve outcomes for the residents of Cheshire East. Tenders will be accepted under two LOTS - * LOT 1 is for providers who are offering general HAF provision. * LOT 2 is restricted to applications for specialist provision e.g., SEND, Teenagers. LOT 2 provides access to higher individual session costings to reflect the additional costing/provision that may be needed to support these groups of young people. Providers who are providing inclusive SEND provision within their wider offer (incurring no additional costs), please select LOT 1. For LOT 1 and LOT 2 provisions providers are expected to deliver the entirety of their programme in line with grant conditions. This includes exciting, enriching and physical activities for young people, which are expected to be face-to-face. Provisions need to be inclusive and meet additional needs where appropriate within the scope of their funding/expertise. Providers are also expected to provide nutritional education and food education in addition to supporting families with appropriate sign posting to other services and or making referrals where appropriate. October and February half term provision: Although the Department for Education has confirmed grant funding for the period April 2026 to March 2029, the associated grant conditions have not yet been received. Grant conditions may potentially allow, subject to funding availability and DfE approval, the delivery of a small-scale programme during the October and February half-term holidays. If approval for these periods is received, we would allow providers to offer programmes up to 10% of their total offer for each additional holiday.",
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                "description": "General HAF Provision Providers who are providing inclusive SEND provision within their wider offer (incurring no additional costs), please select LOT 1. Further detail in APPENDIX A - Specification Please refer to Procurement Documents by expressing an interest in Project ID DN796612 at https://www.the-chest.org.uk/",
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                    "weightingDescription": "a) The Quality scores will be weighted, and all compliant bids will be ranked in order of overall quality scores. b) If a tenderer meets all the criteria in the Response Document, the Council will endeavour to offer an award for the value proposed by the provider i.e. the full range of activity sessions offered within tenders. However, the contract values offered will be determined by the Council's requirements for the objectives of this HAF programme, irrespective of the number of providers. The final decision on this will be at the absolute discretion of the Council. c) The Council reserves the right not to make an award to a bidder scoring less than 50% overall. d) The total estimated budget for this procurement is PS4,920,000 over 6 years (subject to funding) with PS2,460,000 for the initial 3-year period. It is possible that bids for this tender will in total, exceed this value. See f) below. e) All budget values in d) above are subject to confirmation of funding from the DfE f) In the event that the total value of all bids exceeds the budget envelope, the council will amend the number of sessions in line with the quality scores achieved and/or in line with the priorities laid out for this procurement. g) Session costs will be scrutinised to ensure value for money is achieved for the Council. h) The priority for the Council remains offering choice for children and families, as well as maximum geographical coverage. i) The overall objectives of this HAF programme are (in no particular order): - i. Wide geographical coverage ii. A wide range of activity types iii. Universal provision iv. SEND provision v. TEEN provision",
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