Food Vouchers for Vulnerable Families

Contract summary

Industry

• Other community, social and personal services - 98000000

Location of contract

East Midlands

Value of contract

£659,000

Procurement reference

LEICSCC001-DN515355-75422820

Published date

17 December 2020

Closing date

6 December 2020

Closing time

11:59pm

Contract start date

8 December 2020

Contract end date

19 February 2021

Contract type

Service contract

Procedure type

Negotiated without a call for competition

Contract is suitable for SMEs?

Yes

Contract is suitable for VCSEs?

No

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Description

The purchase of food vouchers, and the system to distribute the vouchers, for pupils eligible for free school meals over school holidays and other vulnerable families up to the end of the February half term 2021. Leicestershire County Council has been awarded funds from the Governments Covid Winter Grant which must be awarded to families with children for food, energy and utilities and can also be used to support other vulnerable families. This notice relates to the award of a contract without prior publication of a call for competition in the Official Journal of the European Union for the reasons of extreme urgency brought about by events unforeseeable for the contracting authority.
Explanation:
In line with PPN 01/20 which sets out that, in responding to COVID-19, contracting authorities may enter into a contract without competing or advertising the requirement so long as they are able to demonstrate the following tests have all been met:
1. There are genuine reasons for extreme urgency;
The Council received confirmation of the Governments Covid Winter Support Grant on 10th November 2020. In order to have system in place to distribute food vouchers to cover the Christmas holiday period the Council needed to place an order with an appropriate company by 8th December 2020
2. The events that have led to the need for extreme urgency were unforeseeable;
It is only in the months leading up to winter 2020 that there have been increasing concerns raised about the
provision of food over school holidays for those pupils who are eligible for free school meals particularly in view
of the financial difficulties faced by many as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
3. It is impossible to comply with the usual timescales in the Public Contract Regulations;
From the confirmation of the funding to the date by which a voucher system needed to be in place for the Christmas holidays there was no time to run a procurement process in compliance with the timescales set out in the Public Contract Regulations.
4. The situation is not attributable to the contracting authority.
Confirmation of the Governments Covid Winter Support Grant was received by the contracting authority on 10th November 2020.

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Award information

Awarded date

7 December 2020

Contract start date

8 December 2020

Contract end date

19 February 2021

Total value of contract

£659,000

This contract was awarded to 1 supplier.

Edenred (UK Group) Limited

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About the buyer

Contact name

Caroline Dickens

Address

County Hall
Leicester Road Glenfield
Leicester
LE3 8RA
England

Email

caroline.dickens@leics.gov.uk

Website

https://www.eastmidstenders.org/index.html