Issue details

The Department for Education (DfE) have allocated funding to all Local Authorities to run a Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) programme throughout the Easter, Summer and Christmas 2021 school holidays.
Local authorities are to use the funding to make arrangements for holiday provision primarily aimed at children who are entitled to receive benefits-related free school meals.
Further details about the HAF Programme can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/holiday-activities-and-food-programme/holiday-activities-and-food-programme-2021
The programme will be fully grant funded and therefore there is no financial risk to the Council. Any funding not spent for this purpose will be returned to the Council and onward to the DfE.
A local consortium of providers who have been involved in the Easter provision and other similar holiday schemes have submitted a proposal and delivery plan for Summer and Christmas provision. The consortium has a Lead Provider who will be responsible for ensuring the DfE and our local standards are adhered to and implemented.
The services are categorised as “light touch” according to the Procurement Regulations 2015 and a light touch negotiated process commenced to discuss the Summer and Christmas provision. A number of requirements, in addition to those specified by the DfE, have been outlined by the Council to ensure learning from the Easter programme has been used to inform future provision
This proposal has been agreed by members of the local Holiday Activity Steering Group who will continue to work closely with providers to ensure the programme engages with and is accessible to children and young people eligible for free school meals across Bath and North East Somerset.
The Contracts Panel and Cllr Dine Romero and Cllr Richard Samuel have also been consulted and informed of the decision.