As the new academic year progresses, we provide our thoughts on what schools and Trusts should consider in their foodservice planning over the coming months
We’re taking a look at what schools and Trusts can do operationally to become more efficient.
One key, often large school budget, is foodservice. Whether this spend is on an in-house or contracted catering provision, let’s take a look at what schools can do to drive cost-savings in this area.
6 ways you can improve efficiency/value for money across your foodservice spend this year
If the catering is outsourced, savings are likely to be made either through renegotiation following a best value benchmarking review or by putting your contract out to tender.
Cost-plus contracts should not provide a blank cheque to operators. There are several ways of guaranteeing or capping costs and incentivising the contractor to not overspend (which many contracts perversely encourage), but to meet or exceed the budget without compromising on service standards.
Taking catering services in-house can be a way to reduce costs, but should only be done following a robust options appraisal. Short-term savings can be quickly eroded without proper management systems, procurement expertise and staff development
If the catering services are already in-house, then it’s advisable to get an independent review of how efficiently you’re operating against best-in-class. It can be easy to become complacent when the catering is in-house and also to lose sight of innovations within the wider sector, fresh ideas and ensuring the service evolves in line with expectations.
There are also tech-driven systems, specifically designed to support schools with their in-house foodservice and can reduce the overall food procurement costs by up to 20%. Our kitchen management and food procurement system, Litmus Edge, does just this and is unlike anything else on the market. It not only offers the most innovative kitchen management, menu and food safety/allergen tools on the market, but it also gives schools the flexibility to either access our renowned network of specialist suppliers – offering highly competitive pricing, quality ingredients and exceptional service – or manage their own existing supplier arrangements, all within one platform.
Schools also need to factor in the Procurement Act 2023 which is due to come into force in February, which will have a significant impact on those working in public procurement. The main outcomes from the proposed Procurement Bill are that there will be just two categories of competitive procedures (as opposed to the current five): Open Procedure and Competitive Flexible Procedure. There is also a proposed shift in the way tenders should be assessed and awarded. The Bill requires tenders are awarded to the ‘most advantageous tender’ and contracting authorities can take a view on what best value means to them such as environmental, social value or qualitative.
Furthermore, contracts valued over £5 million must be formally performance assessed every 12 months through at least three KPIs.
These are by no means the only changes; as you can imagine, the introduction of a new Bill brings new ways of working, complications and it’s critical that public sector organisations ensure they meet the new standards and rules when they come into play. Sign up to our free webinar to help get prepared for the changes here.
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Discover how we saved one Multi-Academy Trust c£200,000
“We’ve worked with Litmus Partnership since we began in 2016 – and in fact, our Founder worked with Litmus even before that – so the years of working together speaks for itself. Litmus have become a trusted and invaluable part of our team and have completely overhauled our operation for the better. They understand Multi-Academy Trusts, the challenges we face and are always robust in their recommendations. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend working with Litmus.” Tim Monelle, Director of Trust Services, Lighthouse Schools Partnership.