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  • Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010

Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010

Under the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010 we have, along with other public bodies in Scotland, a duty to publish annual public statements relating to our expenditure in the following areas:

  • Public relations
  • Overseas travel
  • Hospitality and entertainment
  • External consultancy

There are further duties to publish certain information relating to the purchasing of goods, the remuneration of employees, and the steps we have taken to improve efficiency, effectiveness, and economy in our performance as well as the promotion of sustainable growth. The statement covers the period April 2022 – March 2023.

Public relations

Area 2022-23 costs
Communications & Marketing £1,095,644
Digital Communications £15,275
Employee Engagement & Public Affairs £44,255
Advertising £56,159
Total Public Relations £1,214,335

Public relations costs reflect the total cost of communications for SEPA incurred in the promotion or publicity of SEPA or the services it provides.

Overseas travel

Type of cost 2022-23 costs
Flights/rail £9,162
Hotels £6,334
Expenses £1,018
Conference costs £1,209
Total overseas travel costs

£17,724

The above costs include travel to and from the UK; the full cost of travel in connection with the trip from departure until return, and not simply the cost of the journey itself.

Hospitality and entertainment

Type of cost 2022-23 costs
Hospitality £0
Catering £8,302
Room hire including catering £50,237
Gifts £60
Total hospitality and entertainment costs £58,599

Hospitality and entertainment include any gifts, meals, receptions accorded by a public body to its members or employee or third parties for whatever reason. The payment of travel and subsistence allowances and the reimbursement of expenses that are reasonably incurred in relation to service as a member or employee of a public body are excluded.

Hospitality includes the cost of gifts, receptions, and events. Catering includes the provision of lunches and refreshments for meetings and training on or offsite.

External consultants

Area 2022-23 costs
Flood £322,712
Regulation £114,016
Organisation and corporate £69,569
Total external consultants costs £506,297

Scottish Government guidance on consultancy used a definition of ‘external consultancy’ as “Investigating problems, providing analysis or advice, or assisting with the development of new systems, new structures or new capabilities within the organisation. The main areas of spend within this area include assistance with the creation of a new Job Evaluation Service, Stakeholder Engagement and Research & Development work.

Payments with a value in excess of 25k

Payments include all individual payment transactions, including payments for goods and services, grants or grant-in-aid to third parties and transactions with government departments or other public bodies. It does not however include information relating to remuneration or other payments made to an individual in relation to their service as a member or employee of a public body (including officeholders and company directors or secretaries), such as salary, bonuses, allowances, fees, pension, voluntary severance, compromise agreements or redundancy payments. The below table provides a full list of individual transactions in excess of £25,000, in alphabetical order of account name.

Supplier Description of spend Amount (£)
Aberdeen City Council (Business Rates) Office Rates 2022/23 Inverdee House, Baxter Street, Aberdeen 262,000
Acoem UK Ltd FIDAS 200 with WS500 -UMB and IADS Stnd fine dust monitors, Delivery 68,266
Affiniti Response Ltd Roof repairs as per tender exercise 30,377
Audit Scotland Additional Agreed Fees - 2020/21 audit 30,000
Audit Scotland Final instalment of 2021/22 audit fees 29,540
Bangor University SARS-CoV-2RNA support in analysis of Wastewater 32,940
British Geological Survey (NERC) 5 year Renewal of BGS Digital Data Licence 107,968
BT Global Services Future Flood & Incident Messaging Service Implementation Costs 94,498
BT Global Services Future Flood & Incident Messaging Service Implementation Costs 63,000
BT Global Services BT/HTK FY22/23 Annual charge for FWD system 163,131
BT Global Services Bt FWD Recurring charges April 2022 25,548
BT Global Services SEPA BT FWD Recurring Charges May 2022 PO 8001673 25,548
BT Global Services SEPA BT Recurring Charges June 2022 25,548
BT Global Services BT FWD recurring charges July 2022 25,548
BT Global Services SEPA BT Recurring Charges August 2022 25,548
BT Global Services SEPA BT FWD Recurring Charges September 2022 25,548
BT Global Services BT/HTK monthly charge for FWD system - October 2022 25,548
BT Global Services BT/HTK monthly charge for FWD system - November 2022 25,548
BT Global Services BT/HTK monthly charge for FWD system - December 2022 25,548
BT Global Services BT/HTK monthly charge for FWD system - January 2023 25,548
BT Global Services BT/HTK monthly charge for FWD system - February 2023 25,548
BT Global Services SEPA BT FWD Recurring charges March 2023 25,548
Bureau Van Dijk Electronic Publishing Limited Fame & Mint subscription renewal Sep 30, 2022 to Sep 29, 2023 25,200
Capita Business Services Ltd SWAN Equipment Maintenance - Support 01/10/22-30/09/25 27,747
Cavendish Nuclear Ltd EA WQC Framework III HNA Quality Waste Checking 51,338
cbec eco-engineering UK ltd WEF0044 Bronie Burn works supervision 27,755
CBRE Managed Services Ltd consultancy fees in relation to M&E consultancy project Aberdeen Labs 66,945
CBRE Managed Services Ltd MEP design services for replacement of VRF Heating System Stirling 39,760
CBRE Managed Services Ltd Roof Repairs Dumfries 77,880
CBRE Managed Services Ltd UPs battery, cap and fan replacement - in normal hours 63,638
CBRE Managed Services Ltd Roof facias repairs as per quotation 42,206
CBRE Managed Services Ltd 1249560 Battery & Cap Replacement Server Room UPS at ASB 41,783
CBRE Managed Services Ltd Law House - additional roof works 32,314
CBRE Managed Services Ltd Replacement of the CWS Booster Set and associated pipework 28,670
CDSM Interactive Solutions Ltd Thinqi LMS Licence and Support & Consultancy Year 2 of 3 13/05/22-12/05/23 33,594
Charterhouse Group Darktrace Maintenance Renewal 29/09/2022 to 28/09/2023 105,344
Conexia Limited T/A Veredus Stage Psychometrics 32,939
Deltares FEWS Scotland S&M - Financial Year 22-23 62,806
Deltares FEWS Scotland S&M - Financial Year 22-23 62,806
Dentsu UK Limited T/A Dentsu Creative Sub Contracted work - Web site rebuild 89,239
Dentsu UK Limited T/A Dentsu Creative Website rebuild project - Final invoice 28,715
DHI Water & Environments (UK) Ltd MIKE Marine Modelling Software Subscription 29,511
Diligent Boardbooks Limited Board and Leadershio collaboration pro package - Platform 26,365
Dumfries & Galloway Council Project payment for WEF104 Black Stank Burn Restoration 85,000
DWP Accom rent cost recovery where OGD MOTO is in place 28,757
East Dunbartonshire Council - Sundry Debtors WEF 0056 Kelvin Tribs restoration project 31,500
East Renfrewshire Council Capital Grants Received Levern Restoration 40,000
Ebsford Environmental Limited WEF0046 Gateside Mills Weir Groundworks August 108,703
Ebsford Environmental Limited Remainder of works complete less retention - Gateside Weir Removal 83,394
EDF Energy Consolidated electricity invoice - Dec 2022 - Jan 2023 34,085
EDF Energy Consolidated Electricity invoice Jan - Feb 33,191
EDF Energy Consolidated electricity charges July - Aug 2022 30,341
EDF Energy Consolidated electricity invoice Feb 2023 - March 2023 28,660
EDF Energy 1/10/22-31/10/22 a/c 2413510000 26,216
EDF Energy Consolidated Invoice 06/05/22-06/06/22 25,444
EDF Energy Consolidated electricity invoice Nov - Dec 2022 25,338
EDF Energy Consolidated electricity invoice Nov - Dec 2022 25,169
EDF Energy Electricity Charges - 06/08/22-05/09/22 25,138
EDF Energy Consolidated electricity 07 Apr 22 - 05 May 22 25,129
Edinburgh and Lothians Greenspace Trust Project payment for WEF0101 Burdiehouse Burn 35,275
Enviro Technology Services Ltd ET T100 UV fluorescent real-time SO2 analyser 61,200
Enviro Technology Services Ltd BAM1020 PM10 ANALYSER, LEAK CHECKER, FILTER TAPES, ENCL; INSTALL AND COMMISIONING; CARRIAGE 44,743
Enviro Technology Services Ltd ET T500 U CAPS NO2 ANALYSER, AUTO CALIBRATION ETC 37,236
Environment Agency Recharge calculated through M0U between SEPA and EA for Monitoring 288,852
Environment Agency PRW Monitoring Recharge 2021 252,217
Environment Agency PRW Monitoring Recharge 2021 44,208
Environment Agency - Bristol floodline services partnership costs 2022-23 82,655
Environment Agency IMR - Digital Services UK Coastal Flood forecasting services partnership 2022-2023 189,425
ESRI (UK) Ltd Enterprise Licence Agreement 125,768
Falkirk Council (Creditors Account) Partnership Project Contributions - Grangemouth Regulatory Hub Project 25,000
Falkirk Council (Creditors Account) Partnership Project Contributions - Grangemouth Regulatory Hub Project 25,000
Fife Council funding for delivery of the river Leven restoration project - phase 2 RIBA 5 1,573,473
Fife Council Project payment for WEF0060 river Leven and barriers 474,000
Fife Council funding for delivery of the back burn project RIBA phase 3 - resubmitted with correct cost 60,000
Fife Council contribution towards project management costs for the Back Burn and River Leven projects including discretionary budget 26,527
Food Standards Agency FS004 - Publication of RIFE 27 report 36,063
Forestry and Land Scotland Office Rent. Quarterly service charge occupancy & costs quarter 1 april 2022 - June 2022 103,112
Forestry and Land Scotland Office rent Quarterly service charge occupancy and costs quarter 2 July - Sept 2022 (Silvan House) 103,112
Forestry and Land Scotland Quarterly service charge occupancy and costs quarter 3 -Oct 2022 - Dec 2022 (Silvan House) 103,112
Forestry and Land Scotland Quarterly service charge occupancy and costs quarter 4. January - March 2023 (Silvan House) Includes rebate. 65,695
Glasgow City Council (Funding/Grants) Logistic Support Fees, Claim to receive agreed water environment Grant (Susan Dalzeil) 50,000
Glasgow Science Centre Grand funding for Our Amazing Air Learning Lab as per grant award letter 34,000
Halo Annual Renewal Contract No: 1001206 - 12 Months 26/03/22-25/03/23 Web App Included 40,097
Halo Halo Annual Renewal 101206 12 months 26.03.23 - 25.03.24 Enterprise Licence 40,097
HaskoningDHV UK Limited Contract no R20034PUR - Project payment for Gateside Mill Weir design & supervision 32,577
Haymarket Media Group Ltd ENDS Report Subscription Period April 2022 – April 2023 31,081
Hennessy IT Consulting Limited SEPA BAU Support March 22 28,717
Hennessy IT Consulting Limited SEPA Project delivery February 2022 27,085
Highland Council (Rates) Office Rates 2022/23 Graesser House, 5 Fodderty Way, Business Park, Dingwall 41,902
HP Inc UK Limited Home Delivery Bundles x 602 29,769
HP Inc UK Limited EM00061 - C-Service Bundle Batch x 285 28,239
HP Inc UK Limited SEPA Service - HP/Capito 47,937
Insight Direct UK Limited LENOVO 2.5 4-BAY THINKSYSTEM, LENOVO XCLARITY PRO PER ENDPOINT 80,561
Insight Direct UK Limited Nexus Core Network Infrastructure -DUAL RATE 10/25GBASE-CSR SFP MODULE 34,551
Insight Direct UK Limited bundle price for FA-X50R2-121TB and SS-S 50,501
Insight Direct UK Limited Lenovo maintenance renewal 2023-24 28,643
Insight Direct UK Limited Azure Monetary Commit, Dynamics 365 ECstmrSrvc, Power Apps and Power Apps Plan 198,532
Insight Direct UK Limited Azure overage 51,287
Insight Direct UK Limited AZUREOVERAGE-ESA3 AZUREOVERAGE 50,387
Insight Direct UK Limited Azure overage license 48,818
Insight Direct UK Limited SERIC PURE RENEWAL 2022-23 Ship Date: 12-APR-2022 48,151
Insight Direct UK Limited Azure overage (01/11/2022 - 30/11/2022) 48,134
Insight Direct UK Limited Azure overage (1/10/22 - 31/10/22) 39,345
Insight Direct UK Limited Azure Overage ESA3 Maintenance coverage 20.07.22 36,386
Insight Direct UK Limited Azure T&M: Consultancy and Pro Co-ord 41,825
Insight Direct UK Limited New backup solution implementation - Veeam 34,496
Insight Direct UK Limited Services 08/11/21-12/11/21 (PO8000129) Various Jan/Feb/Mar 2022 (PO8001029) 45,816
Jacobs U.K. Limited Lump sum fee & expenses 33,420
Jacobs U.K. Limited Lump sum fee & expenses 30,258
JBA Consulting Phase 3 Complete - Pluvial Flood Mapping 44,839
JBA Consulting Phase 11 review complete 41,004
JBA Consulting Phase 2 review complete project 2021s0761 39,174
JBA Consulting SEPA Pluvial Flood Mapping - Phase 1 review 38,059
JBA Consulting Phase 5 review complete 35,248
JBA Consulting Main Contract Costs Phase 7 review complete 28,868
JBA Consulting Main Contract Costs - Phase 9 review complete 28,670
JBA Consulting GPU purchase 27,322
JBA Consulting Main Contract Costs - Phase 10 review complete 25,993
John Laidlaw & Son Ltd Brockhoperig and Ancrum Hut Replacement and Cableway Upgrades Valuation 2 30,442
John Laidlaw & Son Ltd Brockhoperig and Ancrum Hut Replacement and cableway upgrades 27,709
John Laidlaw & Son Ltd Brockhoperig and Ancrum Hut Replacement and cableway upgrades 27,087
Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) Support Co. contribution to UK Aeriius Tool, Build to go live 99,000
Kisters AG WISKI hosted in Kisters Cloud 01/06/2022 – 31/12/2022 , 24/7 support for cloud environment 84,185
Kisters AG WISKI hosted in Kisters Cloud until May 23, 24/7 support for cloud environment 84,185
Kisters AG WISKI hosting 01/01/23-31/03/23 and 24/7 Support 42,093
Kisters AG Wirless 4G Dat Logger x 100, 50 x Antenna for 4G 74,225
Kisters AG telemetry hardware update, update support services 27,890
Kisters AG Software support and maintenance for Wiski suite of software (excluding API system) for the period 01/11/2022 – 30/10/2023 43,043
Kisters AG Maintenance Contract CUCO-KAG-000056 01/11/22-30/10/23 WIKI System 43,043
Knight Frank LLP Rent Strathallan House - 28/05/2022-27/05/2022 95,038
Knight Frank LLP Strathallan House Rent 28 Aug 22 to 27 Nov 22 95,038
Knight Frank LLP Strathallan House 28-NOV-2022 to 27-FEB-2023 95,038
Knight Frank LLP Strathallan House 28-FEB-2023 to 27-MAY-2023 95,038
Labquip NDT Ltd BRS1 Titan -500 XRF Unit 25,305
Labquip NDT Ltd titan 500 rhodium 4W thin window x-ray tube based 50kV handheld XRF analyzer 25,305
Labware Ltd 17% Maintenance Agreement for an unlimited user LIMS Licence, 12 months maintenance for an NWA licence 57,738
LECO Instruments (U.K.) Ltd PKG CN828 W/TSCRN PC, installation & training, freight charges 51,960
McGowan Environmental Engineering Ltd Project payment for WEF0044 Bronie Burn Ground works 139,689
McGowan Environmental Engineering Ltd Certified amount of valuation no 3 - Project payment for WEF0044 Bronie Burn Ground works 37,871
Merck Life Science UK Limited UFC901024 - Amicon Ultra-15 Filter Units 24/pk 27,230
Merck Life Science UK Limited UFC901024 (Z740202-24EA) Amicon Ultra-15 Filter Units for High Speed with High Recovery 24/pk 27,230
Meteorological Office Invoice from : 01-APR-22 to 30-JUN-22 Scottish Flood Forecasting 106,499
Meteorological Office Scottish Flood Forecasting 01.07.2022 to 30.09.2022 106,499
Meteorological Office Met Office deliverables under SFFS MOU for 22/23 (Qtr 3) 106,499
Meteorological Office Met Office deliverables under SFFS MOU for 22/23 (Qtr 4) 106,499
Microports.Net Limited T/A Folding Space SEPA automated Redation Manager 31,071
NCC Group Security Services Limited Incident Response Retainer, Call-off days 45,516
NIVUS GmbH Flow measurement transmitter type NivuFlow Stick etc 34,272
NIVUS GmbH 4 Set Flowmeter, type NivuFlow Stick 34,272
North Lanarkshire Council Garrel Burn Restoration Project. Project payment for WEF0043 230,000
North Lanarkshire Council Office Rates 2022/23 Angus Smith Building, 4 Parklands Avenue, Eurocentral ML1 256,760
Ogtech Gas Viewer - OGI portable gas detection camera & Freight 57,017
Ogtech Gas Viewer OGI portable gas detection camera 55,617
PerkinElmer Informatics Inc Software Maintenance - Business 85,005
Police Digital Service IBMi2 Analytic Renewed from 01/04/2022 39,690
QA Ltd Skills Licence (Excluding 3rd Party) 27,142
Sapphire Technologies Limited Check Point collaborative enterprise support standard renewal 1 year, smart event, smart reporter and compliance blades for 10 gateways, egress protect renewal 1 year, titus classification for office and files, saphhire SSA renewal, Qty 2 pulse secure ren 49,826
Scrimsign (Micro-Electronics) Limited 2023 Maintenance cover for signs with the CPI uplift of 10.7% applied to contract price 35,831
Scrimsign (Micro-Electronics) Limited bathing water totem display 47,904
Shelborn Asset Management Limited Rent Due - 26th July 22-25 October 2022 - ASB ML1 4WQ 204,015
Shelborn Asset Management Limited Rent Due - 26th October 22 - 25 January 2023 - ASB ML1 4WQ 204,015
Shelborn Asset Management Limited Rent Due (+) (28 May 2022 to 27 Aug 2022) M6 Maxim Office Park, Motherwell 201,000
Softcat Technical Assistance - January 2022. February 2022, March 2022 91,667
Softcat Technical Assistance - April 2022 30,556
Softcat Technical Assistance - May 2022 30,556
Softcat Technical Assistance - June 2022 30,556
Softcat PRTNR SUP 8X5XNBD 28,614
Softcat Sophos Anti-Virus Software- 36 Months, Professional Services Essential EDR Training 39,581
Softcat MS Licence Year 2 - April 2022- March 2023 609,478
Softcat MS Licence 2 Years 609,478
Softcat Citrix Cloud Workspace Service Premium Plus User/Device Year 3 (01/04/2023 to 31/03/2024) 89,502
Softcat SharePoint Change & Adoption Services - August 2022 30,556
Softcat Monthly Invoice Jul - Dec 22 Milestone Schedule - 3 month extension 30,556
Softcat SEPA TECH ASSURANCE/SP & ADOPTION Sept 2022 30,556
Softcat Veeam availability suite universal licence. Includes enterprise plus edition features - 1 year renewal subscription 26,023
Softcat Veeam P-VASUL-01-SU1AR-00, 1year 25,034
Spectrometry Vision Limited Platinum service contract for various instruments 57,720
Stirling Council / No 7 Rates A/C. OFFICE Rates 2022/23 Strathallan House, The Castle Business Park, Stirling 119,472
STV Central Ltd STV advertising campaign 27/03/2023 to 12/04/2023 29,173
The Leith Agency T/A Cello Signal Limited Insights/research Leith Digital Strategist, Leith Strategist Support 57,480
The MathWorks Ltd Matlab Software Renewal 61,596
The River Dee Trust WEF Project for WEF0039 Garlogie Dam Grant Payment for WEF restoration 400,000
The Scottish Government - Perm Sec Laptop Loan - Annual Charge 30,634
The Scottish Government - Perm Sec SCOTS Costs 30,358
The Scottish Government - Perm Sec Utilities, Hard services, Soft services, Rents, Rates 01/04/2022 - 30/06/2022 45,913
The Scottish Government - Perm Sec Utilities, Hard services, Soft services, Rents, Rates 01/07/2022 - 30/09/2022 45,913
The Scottish Government - Perm Sec Quarter 3 ( 01 October - 31 December 2022) - Rents / Quarter 3 (01 October - 31 December 2022) - Rates 33,822
The Scottish Government - Perm Sec Quarter 4 ( 01 January - 31 March 2023) - Rents 26,626
The Scottish Government - Perm Sec ITECS Support re cyber attack 193,910
The Scottish Government - Perm Sec CGPSS: Fee for provision of contracting procurement services in Q1 FY2022-23 30,219
Tweddell & Slater Limited Project payment for Esks Structural Surveys 38,568
Tweed Forum WEF project payment for WEF0052 Biggar restoration project 95,000
UK CEH Enterprise Limited renewal of licence 828 for internal business use of UKCEH datasets, and renewal of licence 900 giving permission to sub-licence SEPA products derived from UKCEH data for the period 1/4/22 to 31/3/23. 53,470
UK Health Security Agency - CRCE (Glasgow) Radiochemical Analysis Environmental Radioactivity Monitoring Programme : Q1 January to March 2022. 91,796
UK Health Security Agency - CRCE (Glasgow) Q2 April 2022 to June 2022 - Radioactivity Monitoring Programme 91,796
UK Health Security Agency - CRCE (Glasgow) Environmental Monitoring Costs July to September 2022 Q3 91,796
UK Health Security Agency - CRCE (Glasgow) Radiochemical Analysis Environmental Radioactivity Monitoring - Oct to Dec 2022 73,111
Unit 4 Business Software Bristol Unit4 Enterprise Resorse planing and Localisations 01/05/22-30/04/23 53,638
University of Glasgow environmental flexible regulation eden catchment 91,625
University of Glasgow Grant Payment for Promoting the management of water resources by farmers 91,625
University of Stirling Grant for New SEWeb for a digital future project 320,000
University of Stirling Dalgety Bay Drone Survey - Nos 6,7,8,9 & 10 28,850
University of Stirling Chapelcross Habits Survey - Fieldwork 35,330
University of Stirling Rosyth Habits Survey - Field Work 29,133
Validium Group SEPA Listening Exercise - service in place May - July 2022 35,640
Vodafone Corporate Ltd Consolidated invoice for 1154 mobiles April 2022 45,090
Vodafone Corporate Ltd iPhone handsets 51,248
Vodafone Corporate Ltd Consolidated invoice for 1178 moniles - October 2022 46,363
Vodafone Corporate Ltd 1172 mobiles usage 45,277
Vodafone Corporate Ltd Consolidated invoice for 1170 mobiles - January 2023 - A/c 601475950 45,153
Vodafone Corporate Ltd Handsets 28,621
Vohkus Limited Catalyst 9300 48-port poe+network advantage 205,142
Vohkus Limited 51 x 3 Year Term Licence DNA Advantage 103,122
Vohkus Limited Catalyst 9300 48-port poe+network advantage c9300-4 60,336
Vohkus Limited 3 Year Term License C9300 DNA Advantage 48 Port x 15 30,274
Wolf Laboratories Ltd ZIQ7015T0C - Milli-Q IQ 7015 - Water purifier Merck Life Science / Millipore Milli-Q IQ 7015, Country Box, Storage tanks, Remote Dispencers, Connectors, cleaner, Milli-Q, Filter Merck, StartPAK 29,800
XMA Limited Apple Ipad 4G LTE 64GB 10.2 WiFi 5 Ipad OS Grey 4yr XMA warranty 95,983
XMA Limited TOUGHBOOK G2, 10.1" WUXGA (1920 x 1200) multi-touchscreen + digitizer, Intel Core i5-10310U, Intel UHD Graphics, 16GB DDR4, 512GB OPAL NVMe SSD, Bluetooth 5.1 + EDR, Intel WI-Fi6 AX201, Windows 61,488
XMA Limited EIZO FlexScan EV2460-BK LED display 60.5 cm (23.8") 1920 x 1080 pixels Full HD Black, - USB DP HDMI MM 34,676
Xylem Analytics UK Ltd RiverSurveyor M9. Portable nine-beam, bracket, cable, rods & batteries 38,324
Xylem Analytics UK Ltd FlowTracker2 Handheld Display unit. FlowTracker2 Handheld ADV,Wading Rod, USGS & Delivery 37,800
Xylem Analytics UK Ltd RiverSurveyor Mr, battery charger 35,413
Xylem Analytics UK Ltd RiverSurveyor M9, 2.4 GHz Telemetry / External Power Module, Radio & Antennae 34,530
Xylem Analytics UK Ltd RS Portable 5 beam 3.0 MHz acoustic Doppler current profiler & Carriage 28,067
  Total costs £16,803,340

Staff paid more than £150k p.a.

None.

Shared services

In 2022/23, we provided accommodation for NatureScot in our Stirling building, Joint Nature Conservation and NatureScot in our Aberdeen Building and NatureScot in out Ayr building. The accommodation and associated services (including reception) are delivered by SEPA and we received a contribution towards our costs from these bodies of £207,259 in 2022/23.

In 2022/23, we contributed £776,473 to the costs of 8 buildings: we paid the Scottish Government £212,824 for accommodation in Perth and Thurso, we paid Forestry Commission £375,031 for accommodation in Edinburgh. In addition, we paid Scottish Natural Heritage £31,985, Loch Lomond & Trossachs National Park Authority £47,723, DWP £97,110 for Shetland and the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration £11,800 for Lochgilphead.

We continue to provide lone worker support through our 24-hour 7 day a week call centre to a number of other public sector organisations.

Partnership contributions (expenditure)

SEPA has committed to “partnership” being its principal way of delivering its outcomes.

SEPA supports partnership working projects, such as Scotland’s Environmental and Rural Services (SEARS) and participates fully and actively in the Rural Affairs, Food and Environment Delivery Board. Additionally, SEPA administers the Water Environment Fund on behalf of Scottish Government.

SEPA has continued to explore opportunities for shared services and shared accommodation to reduce costs, build on our record of partnership working, and reduce our impact on the environment, and supports a number of other organisations by contributing to an extensive range of projects. In 2022-23 SEPA incurred costs of £4,840,371 that related to Partnership Contributions. 25 organisations received contributions of more than £25k totalling £4,618,641. The table below provides a breakdown:

Partnership Contributions Description 2022-23 Costs (£)
Brodies Solicitors Water Environment Fund 26,639
cbec eco-engineering UK ltd Water Environment Fund 29,627
Dumfries & Galloway Council Water Environment Fund 85,000
East Dunbartonshire Council Water Environment Fund 31,500
East Renfrewshire Council Water Environment Fund 40,000
Ebsford Environmental Ltd Water Environment Fund 197,153
Edinburgh and Lothians Greenspace Trust Water Environment Fund 35,275
Environment Agency Contribution to Project 28,766
Environment Agency IMR - Digital Services Contribution to Project 189,425
Falkirk Council Contribution to Project 25,000
Fife Council Water Environment Fund 2,157,000
Glasgow City Council Water Environment Fund 50,000
Glasgow Science Centre Contribution to Project 68,000
HaskoningDHV UK Limited Water Environment Fund 44,756
Joint Nature Conservation Committee Support Co. Contribution to Project 99,000
McGowan Environmental Engineering Ltd Water Environment Fund 182,609
North Lanarkshire Council Water Environment Fund 230,000
The River Dee Trust Water Environment Fund 400,000
Tweddell & Slater Limited Water Environment Fund 56,808
Tweed Forum Contribution to Project 30,000
Tweed Forum Water Environment Fund 105,000
UK centre for Ecology and Hydrology (UK CEH) Contribution to Project 35,990
University of Glasgow Contribution to Project 91,625
University of Stirling Contribution to Project 338,886
Whose Land Scotland Water Environment Fund 40,583
Total Partnership Contributions   4,618,641

In 2022/23, SEPA received funds of £2,753,000 from Scottish Government as contributions towards Water Environment Fund projects.

Sustainability

Sustainable SEPA

It is SEPA’s ambition to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2035. We have developed a two-year SEPA Net Zero route map to start us on this journey.

By March 2023, we had reduced our greenhouse gas emissions by 58% from 2006-2007. A fundamental component of our routemap is to involve our people in helping us meet our target. We have started to roll out a bespoke Carbon Literacy training course for our staff which is accredited by the Carbon Literacy Project and enables them to achieve certification. This will be a key part of our work to become a regenerative organisation.

Our contribution to Sustainable Development Goals:

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all United Nations member states in 2015, provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future. At its heart are the 17 sustainable development goals. The Scottish Government’s National Performance Framework is Scotland’s way to localise the sustainable development goals. The National Performance Framework sets out 11 national outcomes and explains which sustainable development goals each outcome contributes to. The examples below show how our work helps deliver five of the national outcomes and ten sustainable development goals.

Sustainable Cities & Communities - We provide advice to avoid development in areas of flood risk so that we are not increasing risk to people. We warn people so they can take action when flood is likely.

Reduced Inequalities - We regulate activities that could pollute water, air or land to keep communities safe. We apply the polluter pays principle to ensure that the costs are borne by those that impact our environment most.

Industry Innovation and Infrastructure - We adopt Best Available Techniques when regulating industry to protect the environment in the best way possible. We are working with regulators and industry in Grangemouth to enable competitive strength to grow whilst transitioning to net zero.

Responsible Consumption & Production - We are working with partners to deliver digital tracking of waste. This supports more efficient use of resources. We regulate waste management activities to protect communities and encourage recycling.

Good Health & Wellbeing - As Scotland’s principal environmental regulator, we regulate activities that could pollute water, air or land. Life on Land - We administer the Water Environment Fund, to restore rivers. We create new green river corridors in urban areas which can be used for active travel and recreation.

Climate Action - We monitor, forecast and report water scarcity and provide advice to water users to protect the water environment. We reduce our own greenhouse gas emissions and aim to become a regenerative organisation by 2030.

Life Below Water - We monitor and report water quality at Scotland’s 89 bathing waters so people can enjoy them safely. We deliver River Basin Management Plans to protect and improve our rivers, lochs, estuaries, coastal areas and groundwater.

Partnerships for the Goals - We undertake work with international partners so that we can help them to build their capacity to protect and improve the environment.

Clean Water & Sanitation - We provide regulator-to-regulator capacity building with Malawi’s key environmental institutions to help them to develop more resilient environmental systems.

Efficiency

The Scottish Government sets efficiency savings targets for public bodies each year. We must identify how to make these savings in order to achieve a balanced budget in future years. This year we met our target of identifying organisational efficiencies of at least 3% of our grant-in-aid funding. The 2022-2023 budget was balanced using non-recurring staff vacancy savings. Our annual expenditure was within the resource budget set by Scottish Government.