Case Studies

Educo are specialist catering consultants who work with schools to improve the school meal experience. Educo work exclusively for the school to ensure that a complex and valuable school meal catering contract provides security for the school and best value for a healthy and nutritional diet.

Educo have been working with schools for over ten years working with primary, secondary and academy schools. Educo are currently responsible for monitoring millions of school meals per annum.

Educo also work with schools enhancing and managing the fabric of the kitchen. Educo review the suitability of equipment and will map out and plan the kitchen repairs or expansion allowing for additional meals or a new Sixth Form and Staff offer being provided. Kitchen development can often be funded by the caterer and repaid through the enhanced service income, so preserving the school’s capital budget.

Educo’s approach to improving the quality and financial performance of school meal catering is based around a three step interlinked process:-

A clear specification of the catering service required by each individual school to ensure the right bespoke service.
A thorough, competitive and OJEU compliant tender process to award the catering contract to a relevant, commercial catering company. Educo ensure the school is fully protected by the adoption of the Educo catering contract, setting out the relationship between the school and the catering contractor to ensure best practice for both food delivery and financial procedures.
Thereafter the partnership between the school, Educo and the caterer is ongoing with regular meetings to evaluate meal and service developments for the duration of the catering contract. Educo also undertakes a monthly assessment of the school catering contract and regular on site audits of the service with follow up action plans to ensure the catering service remains alive, relevant and keeping well ahead of developing best practice.

Whilst the process works best if all three strands are accepted, some schools have taken just the meal service audit and catering contract management option if they are already “locked in” to an existing long term catering contract.

Educo expect the appointed caterers to work with our client schools on a nil cost basis or occasionally if required an agreed “commercial subsidy” i.e. a known financial cost to the school which is aligned with a profit share arrangement. The appointed contractors work with the specially designed Educo Catering Agreement which affords the schools all the protection they require to motivate and incentivise the catering contractor. Additionally all appointed caterers are required to provide monthly, transparent accounts and financial data to help monitor overall financial performance. All sites are subject to, spot check audits on their service.

Click here to download Educo Case Studies 2014