NESTA
Company number: 07706036
Reporting period:
1 April 2025 to 30 September 2025
Report filed on:
14 January 2026
Approved by:
Ed Richards
Contracts and payments
Do any of this business's construction contracts with its suppliers include retention clauses? No
Payment statistics
Average time taken to pay invoices: 28 days
Total value paid:
- within 30 days: £6,599,605 (76%)
- in 31 to 60 days: £1,729,081 (20%)
- in 61 days or more: £392,040 (4%)
Invoices paid:
- within 30 days: 76%
- in 31 to 60 days: 17%
- in 61 days or more: 7%
Late and disputed:
- total value of payments due in the reporting period which have not been paid within the agreed period: £3,443,424
- payments due in the reporting period which have not been paid within the agreed period: 44%
- not made in the reporting period due to a dispute: 0%
Payment terms
Shortest standard payment periods
31 days
Longest standard payment period
Answer not provided
Standard payment terms
Standard Terms: The Charity operates a flexible, decentralised procurement model to ensure agility in our charitable work. We do not currently mandate a universal Purchase Order (PO) system or a single set of standard terms. Instead, we typically honour the specific terms requested by our suppliers on their individual invoices. For reporting purposes, we identify the most frequently occurring payment period within our supplier data as our standard term.
Payment Processing: We operate a centralised payment run every two weeks. Our policy is to include all approved and coded invoices in the run preceding their due date to ensure proactive settlement.
Flexibility and Exceptions: While we strive for 100% on-time payment, the following factors influence our reported statistics and contribute to the volume of payments technically flagged as 'late':
- Fortnightly Cycles: Invoices falling due between scheduled payment runs may occasionally be settled in the subsequent cycle.
- Impact of Short-Dated Terms: While we report our most frequently used terms as standard, a portion of our supplier base (such as legal and advisory services) issues invoices on a ""due on receipt"" or 14-day basis. Because we do not override these with a longer mandatory contractual term, these accelerated requests often result in a technical ""late"" flag if the settlement falls outside these short windows.
- Approval and Coding Requirements: Payment is only released once the relevant budget holder has formally approved the expenditure within our internal systems. This essential governance process is a primary driver for settlement times that may fall outside of non-standard, accelerated supplier terms.
- Accelerated Payments: We recognise the importance of cash flow for our partners and actively facilitate out-of-cycle payments upon request for critical services or to support smaller suppliers.
Were there any changes to the standard payment terms in the reporting period?
No
Were suppliers notified or consulted about these changes before they were made?
N/A
Maximum contractual payment period agreed
60 days
No further comment provided
Any other information about payment terms
No further comment provided
Dispute resolution process
In the event of a query regarding an invoice, suppliers are encouraged to contact their primary contact in the first instance. This allows for a direct review of the services or goods provided. Where necessary, queries are escalated to our Finance department for further investigation and resolution.
Invoices subject to a query are held from the payment cycle until the details have been verified by the relevant budget holder. Upon resolution, we aim to settle the invoice as efficiently as possible and can facilitate out-of-cycle payments where necessary to ensure the supplier is not further delayed by the timing of our standard fortnightly runs.
Other payment information
Has this business signed up to a code of conduct or standards on payment practices? If so, which?
For example, signatories to The Fair Payment Code must commit to paying 95% of their invoices within 60 days.
No, this business has not signed up to a code of conduct or standards on payment practices.
Does this business offer e-invoicing in relation to qualifying contracts?
This is where suppliers can electronically submit and track invoices. It's not just allowing suppliers to email them an invoice.
No
Does this business offer supply chain finance?
This is where a supplier who has submitted an invoice can be paid by a third-party finance provider earlier than the agreed payment date. The business would then pay the finance provider the invoiced sum.
No
Under its payment practices and policies, can this business deduct sums from payments under qualifying contracts as a charge for remaining on a supplier list?
No
During the reporting period, did the business deduct sums from payments as a charge for remaining on a supplier list?
No