Period Product provision to schools and post-16 education institutions across England.

Descriptions

In March 2019, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced that the DfE will lead a scheme to provide access to free sanitary products in all schools and colleges in England. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/spring-statement-2019-what-you-need-to-know On 16th April, Children and Families Minister Nadhim Zahawi confirmed access to free period products will also be fully-funded in Primary Schools. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/free-sanitary-products-in-all-primary-schools The DfE's 2018 omnibus survey found that 83% of secondary school leaders reported making free products available to pupils, with 41% doing so because of a reason related to pupils' inability to afford period products. Of the secondary school leaders who reported making free products available, 78% said provision was funded from school budgets, 26% used charitable donations and 17% said teachers funded products themselves. No-one should be held back from reaching their potential, which is why we have announced a scheme to provide access to free period products in schools and colleges in England, and that this will be fully funded by the government. The DfE will shortly be publishing a tendering opportunity to find a single national supplier who can: -Source an appropriate range of period products -Design and implement user interfaces and support services -Plan and execute a national delivery service We require a 'demand-led' service which must be available to approximately 22,000 institutions across England, with an accessible and easy to use means of interaction and product ordering. PLEASE NOTE: We have estimated the value of this opportunity to be in the region of £10-20m based on an anticipated level of take-up across the 1.7m eligible learners. The funding for this opportunity is contingent on user need, alongside the delivery and distribution methods used by any successful bidder . SUPPLIER PRE-TENDER BRIEFING: The DfE will be running an Open procurement in June 2019, which will follow the OJEU procedure. Prior to this, we will be running a Skype event at 11:30Am on Tuesday 28th May to provide an overview of our finalised requirements and highlight the upcoming procurement process. To register for this event, please contact PP.Procurement@education.gov.uk .