Decision details

Meals on Wheels as a service is specifically referenced within the H&F business plan 1918-2022 stating "We’ll further provide meals-on-wheels to provide healthy choices and meaningful time spent with residents."

Reasons for urgency:

The Council currently has in place a one-year service contract directly awarded to Sodexo Ltd for the provision of a hot home meals and frozen food delivery service.

The contract was issued on 8 April 2018 and is due to expire on the 7 April 2019. Sodexho have expressed that they do not wish to continue delivering the service.

Harrow have expressed an interest in taking over the meals service from 8th April 2019.

It is recommended that the Leader of the Council:

1.         Approves a waiver under Contract Standing Order 3.1 of the requirement to use a suitable framework agreement or seek competitive bids under Contract Standing Order 10.2b and the requirement to produce a business case and procurement strategy under CSO 8.6.

2.         Approves a direct award of a two-year contract award to HCS from 08 April 2019 to 07 April 2021 for the provision of a hot home meals and frozen food delivery service.

3.         Notes that the direct award of a two-year contract will be at a total cost of £383,012 per annum.

4.         Notes that HCS have indicated there may be additional TUPE related cost which H & F may have to bear due to number of staff transferring from Sodexo to HCS being in excess of HCS’s requirement for running the new service and therefore agrees to delegate the decision to incur any additional cost to the Strategic Director of Public Service Reform and Adult Social Care in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Health.

5.         Notes that H & F will require HCS to take all reasonable steps to mitigate against possible redundancy including looking at the possibility of redeploying any staff that are excess to requirement within either of our organisations before giving any consideration to contributing to or meeting any redundancy costs. 

The current arrangements expire on 07 April 2019 and the Council currently has 137 (as at 11 February 2019) vulnerable residents who rely on receiving the meals on wheels service.  A waiver of the contract standing orders is required to allow the direct award of a new contract without competition. 

As described in the report.