CPU 8324 Free School Meals Auto-Enrolment Project
NOTTINGHAM CITY COUNCILEstimated Value
£30,000 – £0
Deadline
1 April 2026
Published
16 April 2026
Type
Not specified
Overview
This project aims to develop and pilot an auto-enrolment approach for Free School Meals to increase take-up among eligible pupils, improve access to nutritious meals, and ensure schools receive the associated Pupil Premium funding. The contract awarded will provide specialist consultancy support to design, support implementation and evaluate the project, including data matching support, governance, stakeholder engagement and delivery oversight, helping ensure the project is delivered effectively, compliantly and with clear measurable outcomes.
AI Analysis
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The UK government wants to hire specialist consultants to help design and run a pilot project that automatically enrolls eligible pupils into free school meals. The consultant will help schools understand the scheme, match pupil data correctly, manage stakeholders (parents, schools, local authorities), and measure whether more children actually eat the meals and schools claim the funding they're entitled to.
Requirements
- Specialist consultancy experience in education policy or school meal programmes
- Proven ability to manage data matching and pupil records (with likely data protection/GDPR compliance)
- Experience engaging with multiple stakeholders including schools, local authorities, and families
- Ability to design and run pilot programmes with clear evaluation frameworks
- Understanding of Pupil Premium funding mechanisms and school administration
- Project governance and oversight capability
- Experience delivering measurable outcomes in public sector education projects
Key Tasks & Deliverables
- Design the auto-enrolment approach and process flow for free school meals
- Conduct data matching between eligibility records and pupil databases across participating schools
- Support schools and local authorities to implement the auto-enrolment system
- Manage stakeholder engagement with parents, school governors, and local authority partners
- Establish governance structures and decision-making frameworks for the pilot
- Provide oversight and assurance that the pilot is being delivered correctly and compliantly
- Evaluate the pilot results — measure take-up rates, nutrition outcomes, and Pupil Premium funding claimed
- Produce evaluation reports with clear measurable outcomes and recommendations
How to Read This Tender
- 1This is a consultancy contract, not a delivery contract — you're being asked to advise and oversee, not directly run school meal provision. Check the tender documents for the exact scope: Are you working with 10 schools or 100? Is this one region or multiple?
- 2Watch for 'data matching support' — this is sensitive work handling pupil records. You'll need to understand data protection law and likely work with a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA). Budget for compliance expertise if you don't have it in-house.
- 3Look for the pilot duration and timeline. Free school meals pilots often run 12-24 months. The tender will specify how long you're contracted for and whether there's an option to extend if results are good.
- 4Pupil Premium funding is the financial hook — schools get extra money for disadvantaged pupils. The client wants to ensure schools actually claim it. Understand how this funding works in your region before bidding.
- 5The phrase 'measurable outcomes' is critical. The tender documents will demand specific metrics: How many more children eat meals? What's the uptake rate? Does nutrition improve? Make sure you can define and track these before you bid.
Tips for Small Businesses
- Consider a consortium bid — partner with a local authority consultant or education data specialist. Data matching expertise is highly valuable here, and you may not have it alone. Schools and councils are familiar with joint bids.
- Social value is likely to be scored in the evaluation. Highlight how your work will benefit disadvantaged children, reduce food poverty, or improve school community engagement. Document any past projects helping vulnerable groups.
- Subcontracting opportunity: If you're strong on stakeholder engagement but weak on data systems, subcontract the technical data matching to a specialist. The client cares about results, not how you structure your team, as long as capacity is proven.
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NOTTINGHAM CITY COUNCILKey Dates
Published
16 April 2026
Submission deadline
1 April 2026
Notice type
Contract
Source
contracts finder
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