CONTRACT NOTICE – NATIONAL

1 Authority Details

1.1

Authority Name and Address

1.2

Address from which documentation may be obtained

1.3

Completed documents must be returned to:

2 Contract Details

2.1

Title

Catering Education Study

2.2

Description of the goods or services required

The Rural Development Programme is being delivered throughout Wales from 2014 -2020. It presents the opportunity for projects to be financially supported which benefit the community and rural economic growth.

The Vale of Usk Local Action Group (LAG) was established in January 2014 to oversee the governance, strategic direction and successful delivery of the Vale of Usk 2014-2020 Local Development Strategy which is funded via the Rural Development Programme (RDP) and Welsh Government. The Vale of Usk LAG territory covers the rural wards of Monmouthshire and Newport.

The key support areas are broken down into 5 themes. For the purpose of this brief the theme is:

“To identify pre-commercial rural enterprises, to engage through a rural mentoring network, business to business supply network, targeted towards sector specific beneficiaries”. In this case the Catering and Hospitality Sector.

The LAG invites applications for funding and has received an application to commission a comprehensive study into the development of sustainable catering education in the region.

Monmouthshire County Council on behalf of the LAG is seeking to appoint a suitably qualified and experienced consultant to undertake an innovative approach to this commission.

2. Context

The Vale of Usk is a high quality food tourism destination, Monmouthshire has the enviable status of food capital of Wales with a wealth of award winning food and drink producers in the Vale of Usk; numerous high profile chefs and Michelin-starred restaurants as well as the Abergavenny Food Festival.

Building upon this reputation this study seeks to understand the catering education needs in the Vale of Usk area, with a view to developing it as a centre for culinary and culinary education excellence.

While there is a reliance on the public sector as the main employer (33.3%), distribution , retail, hotels and restaurants come a close second with 27.4% of people employed in those named sectors – source Local Development Plan 2011 – 2021.

A scoping study is required which takes into account:

• The current national, regional and local strategic context of the education and food sectors;

• The current and future skills needs of the catering and hospitality sectors in the Vale of Usk and the wider South East Wales region;

• The current career trends amongst students e.g., are the intakes for catering and hospitality courses increasing;

• Current catering and hospitality education provision in both the education and apprenticeship sectors and any associated gaps in provision; and

• Any significant catering and hospitality capital projects that are on the horizon and the associated employment and skills needs.

NOTE: To register your interest in this notice and obtain any additional information please visit the Sell2Wales Web Site at http://www.sell2wales.gov.wales/Search/Search_Switch.aspx?ID=51088.

2.3

Notice Coding and Classification

2.4

Total quantity or scope of tender

3. Requirements

The applicant for the study wishes to work with a consultant who, through the application of a tried and tested methodology and a sound and demonstrable understanding of the catering and hospitality sector in Wales, is able to undertake the following activities:

• A scoping study which takes into account the following:

o The size of the catering and hospitality sector in the Vale of Usk and wider South East Wales region;

o The future employment needs of the sector;

o The skills needs of the sector and the preferred method of recruitment of trainees e.g. apprenticeship or college graduates;

o Current higher education and apprenticeship provision with associated opportunities for development; and

o The preferred career route and aspirations of potential students.

4. Key Outcomes.

The principal outcomes that would result from the study will identify:

• If any proposed catering and hospitality education provision should be wholly vocational in an education establishment or on-site education/training provision via a bespoke apprenticeship programme;

• The range of skills required for the catering and hospitality sectors;

• If there are more opportunities for some specific sectors rather than others e.g. baking versus butchery;

• If there is a need for a new education establishment or college is identified in the area whether there would there be the need for a single building and if so, where; if a cross campus establishment is required;

• The scale of the educational requirement in terms of the volume of people registering for training;

• The requirements for the future proofing of hospitality businesses;

• The willingness of hospitality providers to engage in the proposals and to encourage training placements; and

• The willingness of local producers to be engaged.

• The level of consultation undertaken

3 Conditions for Participation

3.1

Minimum standards and qualification required

6. Tenders

6.1. In responding to this tender request, consultants understand that the project will need an immediate start upon appointment and completed within the time frame designated. Resources must be available to comply with this condition

6.2. Consultants should note that Monmouthshire County Council is not obliged to appoint any contractors as a result of this tender process.

6.3. Tenders should specify a day-rate and a fully inclusive cost (i.e. day rate x number of days).

6.4. The consultant will be appointed on a fixed price contract, inclusive of all fees and expenses. Any assumptions made by the consultant in their costs should be stated clearly in their proposal.

6.5. The successful consultant will be required to maintain close contact with the Client at all stages of the Report, and regular meetings should be accounted for within the consultant’s project programme.

6.6. Overall cost will form part of the quotation evaluation, as indicated below.

6.7. The submission should provide a detailed CV and relevant experience of all members of the team who will undertake the preparation of the study. The submission should clearly state the tasks to be undertaken by the individual members of the team, the days allocated to those individuals broken down by task and the day rate charged by the consultants. Companies that tender quotations for the execution of this contract should provide the names of personnel to be assigned to the contract, their status in the organisation and their previous experience of dealing with contracts of a similar nature. Firms should also give details of a nominated contact point.

6.8. Sub Contracting. Should it be the intention of a bidder, at the outset, to involve and/or employ the services of such third parties then it is required that details of the intended subcontractor/s should be submitted along with the quotation /tender document.

In each case, such details should outline the experience and expertise of the relevant sub-contractor listing recent experience and clients in the relevant field. Should the need arise for the successful bidder, during the course of the contract, to engage or employ or use the service/s of a sub-contractor or third party then it should be noted that that would require the prior written consent of the client. The anticipated quotation is expected between £15k and £25K

4 Administrative Information

4.1

Type of Procedure

Single stage

4.2

Reference number attributed to the notice by the contracting authority

T2 001

4.3

Time Limits

4.5

Language or languages in which tenders or requests to participate can be drawn up

4.6

Tender Submission Postbox

5 Other Information

5.1

Additional Information

7. Submission of Tender

Your quotations, along with all relevant accompanying documentation, should be enclosed in a plain envelope clearly marked "Catering Education Study” in the top left hand corner addressed to:

Deserie Mansfield, Rural Programmes Coordinator, Monmouthshire County Council, County Hall, The Rhadyr, Usk. NP15 1GA

Or alternatively email deseriemansfield@monmouthshire.gov.uk

This notice has been sent as a region specific notice. If you did not receive an alert about this you are not based in the specific region selected by the buying authority. Questions on why this was sent as a region specific notice should be sent to the buying authority.

(WA Ref:51088)

Relates to the following project/programme financed by EU Community Funds: The project is funded by the Rural Development programme and the European Agricultural fund for Rural Development (EAFRD)

5.2

Additional Documentation

5.3

Publication date of this notice