STEPNELL LIMITED
Company number: 00402934
Reporting period:
1 April 2026 to 30 September 2026
Report filed on:
2 November 2026
Approved by:
T B Wakeford
Contracts and payments
Do any of this business's construction contracts with its suppliers include retention clauses? Yes
Payment statistics
Average time taken to pay invoices: 29 days
Total value paid:
- within 30 days: £24,134,265 (38%)
- in 31 to 60 days: £36,295,423 (57%)
- in 61 days or more: £3,159,617 (5%)
Invoices paid:
- within 30 days: 67%
- in 31 to 60 days: 30%
- in 61 days or more: 3%
Late and disputed:
- total value of payments due in the reporting period which have not been paid within the agreed period: £2,742,474
- payments due in the reporting period which have not been paid within the agreed period: 4%
- not made in the reporting period due to a dispute: 2%
Payment terms
Shortest standard payment periods
14 days
Longest standard payment period
60 days
Standard payment terms
Our standard payment terms are month following month of invoice, however, we have some suppliers on 30 days as we are on a number of frameworks that stipulate payment of our supply chain within 30 days.
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
Retention clauses
How does this business use retention clauses?
Retention clauses are used in specific circumstances:
In general our construction contracts contain retention clauses as we seek to sit back to back with our main contracts. Certain frameworks that we are on forbid us to hold retention on our supply chain as retention is not held on us as the main contractor in theses instances
Does this business only use retention clauses in construction contracts above a specific contract sum?
No
Does this business use a standard percentage rate in retention clauses?
No
Does this business apply retention clause practices that are no more onerous than those applied to it on the same project?
No
Releasing money under a retention clause
Process for releasing money this business has deducted or retained under a retention clause
The supply chain member applies for release of retention via our payment portal-PAYAPPS . The surveyor on the job certifies this, if he is in agreement with the value, and the certificate for payment is then passed to finance so payment can then be made by the accounts team
Is the money released in stages?
Yes:
Retention we have held on our supply chain is generally released in two parts, 50% upon practical completion of the main contract and the remaining 50% on receipt of the Making Good Defects Certificate from our client.
Amount retained from suppliers in the reporting period
Amount retained stated as a percentage of the money retained from this business by its clients
81%
Amount retained stated as a percentage of the total construction payments made by this business
1%
Dispute resolution process
Invoices from a supplier that are disputed are placed into query with that supplier following their invoice query process. Our purchase ledger,procurement and site teams will then work with the supplier to resolve the query as efficiently as possible.
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.
Yes, this business has signed up to: Fair Payment Code
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.
Yes
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