Academy trusts now required to report on carbon emissions in their annual accounts

The ESFA has confirmed with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) that academy trusts are within the scope of the Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) regulations.  

Should your academy trust consume in excess of 40,000kWh of energy per annum and you meet two out of three of the following criteria, then these regulations apply to you:

• Income greater than £36 million
• Balance sheet greater than £18 million
• 250 employees or more

What do I need to do?

Should you meet the criteria, you will need to publish in your annual accounts for 2019/20, your UK energy use for gas, purchased electricity and transport fuel plus your associated greenhouse gas emissions.  You will also be required to publish your emissions intensity metric and calculation methodologies used plus a narrative on measures you have taken to improve energy efficiency.

When do I need to do this by?

This information is required to form part of your annual accounts for 2019/20 which generally have to be submitted to the ESFA by 31 December 2020 and to Companies House by 31 May 2021. There won’t be a lot of time to collate the necessary information as most academy trusts won’t be in a position to collate this data until after they receive their October 2020 energy bills, providing the data for the full financial year. 

Still unsure about what is required or if it’s applicable to your Trust?

The Utilities Procurement Group (UPG) can help you with this, from answering any questions to writing the report for you. UPG’s reports are comprehensive and are written in a format that is easy to understand. UPG can help you to eliminate any risk of not complying or missing the deadline

Contact UPG if you would like a no obligation initial chat on:

Telephone: 0345 4022 461

Email: [email protected] or 0345 4022 461

Who are UPG?

UPG specialise in public sector energy services for the education sector, working specifically with academy trust groups, schools, colleges and universities. UPG are the sole service provider for CPC’s Utilities Supplies & Services Framework, where they proactively help many of our members with their energy needs including: procurement, bill validation, reporting, energy management and sustainability advice. UPG aim to take away the complexity and hard work for customers, making their energy journey easier and more efficient.