---
title: "School Meals Contract"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-0780b7"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-0780b7"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0780b7.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0780b7.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Planning"
buyer: "Reading Borough Council"
published: "2026-10-05"
---

# School Meals Contract

Buyer: Reading Borough Council  
Current stage: Planning  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-0780b7

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[Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0780b7.json)

## Summary

Reading Borough Council plans to procure a school meals service for schools in Reading. The contractor will provide meals to pupils, with paid meals sold to parents and free school meals funded through schools. The service is intended to meet the needs of school governors, schools, pupils and their families. The procurement covers school-meal services (CPV 55523100), delivered in Reading. The contract’s funding model combines income collected directly from parents for paid meals with school payments for Universal Infant Free School Meals and Pupil Premium free school meals. Schools will be invoiced directly for both funded meal categories, with calculations based on pupil uptake recorded on census day.

This is at the planning stage: Reading Borough Council has set out its intention to procure, but has not issued an invitation to tender. It expects to use a competitive flexible procedure and plans one lot. The estimated contract value is £14.7 million gross. The planned service period runs from August 2028 to July 2031, with a possible extension to July 2035. The council expects to publish a future notice in December 2027. It has planned a market-engagement event for 19 October 2026 to present its strategy and draft specification and gather provider feedback; it also includes group questions and answers and networking. Booking was expected by 12 October 2026. The funding figures described are £2.61 per pupil per day for infant meals and £523.28 per pupil per year for Pupil Premium meals.

The work is likely to suit school-meals caterers able to organise and deliver a service across Reading schools, serve pupils reliably, and work with schools, governors and families. Providers should be prepared to handle both parent-paid meals and school-funded free meals, including invoicing schools for the funded categories and basing calculations on census-day uptake. The buyer’s stated aim is a service that meets the needs of all four groups: governors, schools, pupils and their families. The planned engagement is a chance for providers to comment on the proposed strategy and draft specification and to raise questions before the procurement reaches tender. The stated information identifies no particular accreditation or technical qualification as a requirement.

## Notice

The objectives of this project are to have successfully procured a school meals service which meets the needs of governors, schools, pupils and their families by the deadline agreed with governors and schools. Funding for this contract is made up as follows: Paid Meals: Meal price collected from parents directly by contractor. Universal Infant Free School Meals (UIFSM): schools are allocated PS2.61 per pupil/per day and calculations are based on census day uptake. Schools are invoiced directly by the contractor. Pupil Premium Free School Meals (FSM): schools are allocated the meal price (currently PS523.28 per pupil per annum), and calculations are based on census day uptake. Schools are invoiced directly by the contractor.

### Planning Information

Date: Monday 19th October 2026
Time: 9.30am – 12 noon
Location: Churchend Primary Academy, Usk Road, Tilehurst Reading RG30 4HP
This market engagement event is designed to introduce the strategy and aims for procurement of the next School Meals contract for Reading Schools. The contract will start in August 2028 and at this stage we are seeking feedback from providers on the proposed strategy and draft specification. There will be opportunity for a group Q&A session and networking on the day.
To book a place please contact Sian Slade, School Meals Operations Manager - sian.slade@reading.gov.uk Please note that places are limited to two people per company.
The closing date for booking spaces is 13:00 Monday 12th October 2026
Even if you are unable to attend, please still email to register your interest, as a summary will be shared with all interested parties after the event.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/093791-2026 |
| Notice type | UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Not Specified |
| Procurement method details | Competitive flexible procedure |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Not specified |
| All stages | Planning |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 5 Oct 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | 1 Dec 2027 |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | 1 Aug 2028 - 1 Aug 2031 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £14,700,000 |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Planned |
| Lots status | Planned |
| Awards status | Not specified |
| Contracts status | Not specified |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | Reading Borough Council |
| Locality | READING |
| Postcode area | Reading |
| Postcode | RG1 2LU |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLJ South East (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLJ1 Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire |
| ITL 3 | TLJ16 Berkshire West |
| Local authority | Reading |
| Electoral ward | Abbey |
| Westminster constituency | Reading Central |
| Delivery location | TLJ11 Berkshire |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 15 - Food, beverages, tobacco and related products
- 55 - Hotel, restaurant and retail trade services

### Codes

- 15894210 - School meals
- 55523100 - School-meal services

## Release History

- 5 Oct 2026 at 12:52 - Planning - UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/093791-2026
- 5 Oct 2026 at 12:51 - Planning - UK1 - Pipeline Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/093788-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/093791-2026
  5th October 2026 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/093788-2026
  5th October 2026 - Pipeline notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents
- https://www.reading.gov.uk/

## Provenance

This Markdown file is an alternate public rendering of the D3 Tenders contract record. The canonical page is https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-0780b7. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0780b7.json.