Wolgarston High School
“In January 2025 we contacted ACE Advice because we had a number of issues at one of our High schools, Wolgarston High School. Initially, Dave Croshaw spent a day at the school reviewing the catering services and commercial status. Dave provided an initial report along with his findings. Based on this report, the Trust decided to market test the catering service at Wolgarston with the support of Dave and ACE Advice. The process started in March 2025 to find a catering partner to start in September 2025. We have engaged ACE Advice to support Wolgarston School through mobilisation and contract conclusion, they will also provide monitoring services in the first year of the contract. Some may say the procurement of this advisory service is money that could have been better spent elsewhere but, the invaluable knowledge, expertise and support we have received through this whole process has saved significant amounts of our time and effort and more importantly has ensured we remain fully compliant with procurement law.”
Voyage Education Partnership
“We asked ACE Advice to help us find a new cleaning contract for our academies, and the experience was really positive. After an initial chat with Ian Henderson, we worked closely with Julie James, who guided us through each step with clarity and confidence. Julie’s professional approach and practical advice made the whole process straightforward. We’d be happy to work with ACE Advice again in the future”
The Bishop of Hereford’s Bluecoat School
“We engaged ACE Advice as we needed advice on the poor performance of our current catering supplier. With their support, the school entered into a monitoring review period, followed by a market test and tender process, all of which were expertly led by the team. We are highly satisfied – we couldn’t have gone through this process without their support. It’s clear just how much work went into providing such a high-quality service. Our consultant, David Croshaw, was incredibly knowledgeable and guided us through the entire process from start to finish. Thanks to his support, we were able to terminate the previous service, achieve a huge cost saving and appoint a much-improved caterer”
Stanburn Primary School
School Catering Consultancy in Practice: “ACE Advice supported Stanburn Primary School with a catering tender. We had a successful Selection Questionnaire – six caterers completed the tender return, and three schools presented to the Stanburn School panel. ACE did all the work and Stanburn chose their preferred caterer. The contract started in August with the first service in September. They are brilliant! Worked hard with staff, hit the ground running, made many changes to menus at our request, still sending support in, listen to concerns, have a fix-it mentality, already had a healthy eating workshop for Year 2 (haven’t had one with any previous caterers). Best decision!”
Cannon Lane Primary School
We have been extremely pleased with the service and support we received throughout the cleaning tender process. The process was handled professionally and efficiently and we always felt well supported and were kept well informed.
In particular we would like to thank Dawn, who has been fantastic throughout. She has been incredibly helpful, approachable and responsive, always happy to answer our questions and guide us through each stage of the process. Her support has made the whole experience feel straightforward and well managed.
We are really pleased with the outcome and are looking forward to working with our cleaning provider. Thank you for all your help and support throughout, it has been a pleasure working with you.
St Gregory’s Catholic College
“We engaged ACE Advice to support St Gregory’s Catholic College with a full, open market procurement of our catering service. I was extremely impressed with the support we received throughout the process. Dave Croshaw’s extensive knowledge and experience of the education catering market was invaluable; he understood the operational, commercial and contractual issues in detail, challenged bidders appropriately and provided clear, practical advice and support at every stage. I am confident that his input was crucial to us securing the best possible contract and provider. ACE Advice provided a responsive and supportive service throughout, and Dave was always willing to work through issues with us and explain the implications of the different options available. I would have no hesitation in recommending Dave and ACE Advice to other schools and trusts, and in fact we have already recommended them to a trust with which we work closely.”
Newham Community Learning