Provision of Catering Services/PME/PRO/2026

The OU will soon be embarking on a tendering exercise for its catering services, during the early part of 2027. The OU is the largest on-line university in the UK teaching up to 200,000 students per year, it is not a typical university as most student’s study part time in their own homes or in their place of work supported by locally based tutors. Walton Hall, is the headquarters of the OU, catering services provide café, restaurant and meeting / hospitality services to the academics, 200 post graduate students, support staff and tenant teams based at the Milton Keynes campus. Over the past 5 years the campus has undergone considerable changes in work patterns, from an original site population of over 3,500 to now operating peak days Tuesday to Thursday at 1,100, and Mondays and Fridays significantly lower. This may increase in the future years as the OU continues with its strategy to lease its buildings to external organisations. Aims and Objectives of catering services

• Create a financially sustainable service to the OU, its employees and visitors.
• Create a service that incorporates the latest and future trends in food service.
• Create a service that maintains a high level of creativity, quality and variety (this may require some remodelling of staffing and service area)
• Availability 8.00am – 4.00pm 5 days per week excluding public holidays & Christmas closure.
• Offer a consistent perception of value for money to users.
• Be flexible and agile in its ability to respond to changing site population in the coming years.

Overview of Requirement The OU would like to hear from catering suppliers willing to participate in an Early Market Engagement exercise in the field of Catering Services. The purpose of this request is to:

• Understand industry developments
• Assist the OU in drafting requirements for the future procurement opportunity
• Gauge the level of interest in the project from the market