School meals fears over public private partnerships
Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) and legislative pressures are causing serious concerns among local authority caterers.
According to a group of local authority caterers talking at the Catering Forum on the cruise ship Oriana yesterday (Friday), the Government's introduction of PPPs is locking local authorities out of providing catering in schools.
The group added that as more and more services were transferred over to private catering companies through the scheme, they were being left with fewer services to provide. They also feared that they were losing staff to the bigger private companies as they were transferred across with the contract through the TUPE system.
The local authority caterers were also angry that legislation forced upon them was distracting them from providing a proper service. Many said that legislation such as Best Value was starting to cripple the industry.
Also high up on the local authority caterers' list of gripes was their poor image both within the industry and among their customers. Many said they felt as if they were viewed by the rest of the hospitality industry as the "lowest form of life".
Recruitment, training and the retention of staff were also seen as major issues for the authorities, as were budget and subsidy reductions.