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Oakwood Park Grammar School - Catering Tender

Oakwood Park Grammar School

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

Award

06 Aug 2026 at 14:34

UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Award

27 May 2026 at 11:35

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Tender

19 Dec 2025 at 16:05

UK4 - Tender Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Oakwood Park Grammar School is procuring school catering services for its site in Maidstone, Kent. The requirement covers breakfast, morning break, lunchtime and after-school catering throughout the academic year, together with hospitality services when requested. The school has 1,086 pupils, aged 11 to 16, and 86 teaching and support staff, including a co-educational sixth form. The service is expected to use fresh, locally sourced ingredients prepared on site, with flexible menus suited to the pupils. The appointed caterer is also expected to provide a tightly managed service, support and develop catering staff, and work in partnership with the school to introduce improvements and added value. The procurement is classified as school catering services.

The procurement has been awarded to Culinera Limited, an SME. The award date was 27 May 2026, followed by a standstill period ending 5 June 2026. The contract was signed on 31 July 2026 and is active. Its value is £1,938,355 excluding VAT, or £2,326,026 including VAT. The initial contract period runs from 1 August 2026 to 31 July 2029, with an option to extend for up to two further years, to 31 July 2031. The route was an open Competitive Flexible Procedure with a two-stage PSQ and ITT process. Six bids reached the final stage. Evaluation weighted quality at 65% and price at 35%; candidates needed at least 60% at stage one. Expressions of interest closed on 23 January 2026.

This award demonstrates established demand from an individual grammar school for a full-service education catering operator able to manage breakfast, breaks, lunch, after-school provision and ad hoc hospitality. A credible competitor would need experience delivering reliable, tightly controlled catering in a school environment, with the operational capacity to serve more than 1,000 pupils and school staff across the academic year. Strong capability in fresh food preparation, locally sourced ingredients, flexible menu design and dietary responsiveness would be relevant. The buyer also values service development, creative added-value proposals and a partnership approach. Suppliers must be able to demonstrate annual turnover of at least £1 million and hold employers’ liability and public liability insurance of £5 million each. The opportunity was suitable for SMEs and VCSEs.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Oakwood Park Grammar School - Catering Tender

Notice Description

Oakwood Park Grammar School (OPGS) is a boys' grammar school with academy status located in Maidstone, Kent, serving boys from ages 11 - 16 with a co-educational 6th form. At OPGS, we hold firm on our responsibility to deliver a broad and balanced curriculum, an exceptional standard of teaching and learning and a wider range of extra-curricular opportunities. We have high standards of behaviour and our pupils are 'polite and courteous,' contributing significantly to our consistently positive learning environment. Further information regarding the School can be obtained here: https://www.opgs.org/ Tender information: The successful tenderer will be required to provide excellent catering services to Oakwood Park Grammar school, which has 1086 pupils and 86 teaching and support staff. The contract term being tendered for 3 years, from 01/08/2026 - 31/07/2029. There is an option for a further extension period for up to two additional years to 31/07/2031. The contract offers an excellent opportunity to review and propose enhancements to the current catering services at the School. This includes but is not limited to; breakfast, morning break, lunchtime and after school services, over the academic year, plus hospitality services upon request. The school is keen to secure a high quality catering service including fresh locally sourced ingredients prepared on site, with a menu design that is flexible to suit the requirements of the school's specific students. The school is proud of its 'family ethos' and expects both a tightly managed service and a management style delivered by the successful contractor that supports, encourages and develops the catering staff. The school is not obliged to accept the lowest price submitted for this tender, rather the school is keen to secure 'best value' from this contract and to deliver 'best value' to its students. Innovative and creative ideas as to how the services can be developed and value added, will be welcomed. The school seeks a contractor that is keen to work in partnership and who will deliver to its highest abilities, at all times. Competitive Flexible Procedure This procurement will be run under the Competitive Flexible Procedure. This will follow a two stage approach, with stage 1 being the Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ). Here a minimum of 5 candidates (or less, in the event less than 5 meet the minimum criteria) and a maximum of 10 candidates, will progress to stage 2. Any selection of tenderers will be based solely on the criteria set out for the procurement and a minimum score of 60% must be achieved. Selected tenderers will then be invited to stage 2, the Invitation To Tender (ITT). Here, the evaluation of tender response will be set as 35% price and 65% quality. Value of contract: The annual value of the current contract is PS304,752 (the total sales including fsm, in the last contract year) Therefore the value of this contract is PS1,523,760 (above total x 5 as this contract is for a maximum of 5 years) The contract shall be a guaranteed performance contract with any hospitality requirements billed separately. Additional requirements and information: *The school has a minimum requirement for a contractor's employers' liability and public liability insurances of PS5 million *The minimum annual turnover that your company must have achieved to be considered for this opportunity is PS1 million *There are not incumbent catering staff currently within the Local Government Pension Scheme *The catering services are currently contracted to Independent Catering

Lot Information

Lot 1

Renewal: There is an option for a further extension period for up to two additional years to 31/07/2031.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-05fac5
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/074807-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Tender, Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Open
Procurement Method Details
Competitive flexible procedure
Tender Suitability
SME, VCSE
Awardee Scale
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

55 - Hotel, restaurant and retail trade services

CPV Codes

55524000 - School catering services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£1,523,760 £1M-£10M
Lots Value
£1,523,760 £1M-£10M
Awards Value
£1,938,355 £1M-£10M
Contracts Value
£1,938,355 £1M-£10M

Notice Dates

Publication Date
6 Aug 20262 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
23 Jan 2026Expired
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
27 May 20263 months ago
Contract Period
1 Aug 2026 - 31 Jul 2029 3-4 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Complete
Awards Status
Active
Contracts Status
Active

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Oakwood Park Grammar School
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
MAIDSTONE
Postcode
ME16 8AH
Postcode Area
Rochester
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLJ South East (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLJ4 Kent
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLJ45 Mid Kent
Delivery Location
TLJ4 Kent
Local Authority
Maidstone
Electoral Ward
Fant & Oakwood
Westminster Constituency
Maidstone and Malling

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

Culinera Limited

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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The Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS) is a framework designed to increase transparency and access to public procurement data in the public sector. It is widely used by governments and organisations worldwide to report on procurement processes and contracts.

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