Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 16
16
DfE awarded single-supplier contract for free school meals without sufficient capacity evidence.
Recommendation
In 2020 the Department for Education’s (DfE) management of the free school meals voucher scheme during the covid-19 pandemic, was an instance where further information would have been valuable to help manage the risks of the project. DfE awarded a contract through a CCS framework on which there was a single supplier. However, it had limited evidence on the supplier’s capacity to deliver the voucher scheme to the pace and scale required.32
Government Response
A response document is linked to this report, dated 8 March 2024. Response attribution to this conclusion has not been verified. Read the response document ↗