Dstl Annual Report and Accounts 2019-2020
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Defence Science and Technology Laboratory Annual Report and Accounts 2019/2020 HC 779 Defence Science and Technology Laboratory Annual Report and Accounts 2019/2020 Presented to the House of Commons pursuant to Section 7(1) and 7(2) of the Government Resources and Accounts Act 2000. Ordered by the House of Commons to be printed on 24 September 2020. HC 779 Notes: On 1 July 2001, in accordance with the Statutory Instrument 2001 No. 1246, the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) was created as a result of the separation of the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (DERA); Dstl continuing as the Trading Fund. On 1 April 2017, in accordance with the Statutory Instrument 2017 No. 148, the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory Trading Fund Order 2011 (S.I. 2011/1330) was revoked; Dstl continuing as an Executive Agency within the ambit of the Defence vote but no longer operating as a Trading Fund. © Crown copyright 2020 This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned. This publication is available at www.gov.uk/official-documents Any enquiries regarding this publication should be sent to us at [email protected] ISBN 978-1-5286-2099-4 CCS0320331448 09/20 Printed on paper containing 75% recycled fibre content minimum Printed in the UK by the APS Group on behalf of the Controller of Her Majesty’s Stationery Office Contents 01 Performance 003-040 Overview 004 Chief Executive’s statement 004 Who we are and what we do 007 Our plans for the future – Our strategy 008 Barriers to achieving our objectives 016 Our performance summary 022 Performance Analysis 028 Our performance headlines 028 Measuring how we are doing 030 Managing the impact of our activities 035 02 Accountability 041-082 Corporate Governance 042 Directors’ Report 042 Statement of the Accounting Officer’s responsibilities 053 Governance statement 054 Remuneration and Staff 064 Remuneration policy 064 Senior management remuneration and pension entitlement 066 Our people 069 Parliamentary Accountability and Audit 076 Statement of Parliamentary Supply 077 Regularity of expenditure 078 Remote contingent liabilities 078 Losses and special payments 078 Fees and charges 078 The Certificate and Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General to the House of Commons 080 03 Financial Statements 083-117 Accounting Information 084 Statement of Comprehensive Net Expenditure (SoCNE) 084 Statement of Financial Position (SoFP) 085 Statement of Cash Flows 086 Statement of Changes in Taxpayers’ Equity (SoCiTE) 087 Notes to the accounts 089 Glossary 118 Dstl Annual Report and Accounts 2019/20 Contents 001 Dstl Annual Report and Accounts 2019/20 002 Performance Our Performance Report contains two sections: Overview 004 Provides information on Dstl, our purpose – what we do and why we do it and our key risks. The overview provides information showing how we performed in 2019/20. Chief Executive’s statement 004 Who we are and what we do 007 Our plans for the future – Our strategy 008 Barriers to achieving our objectives 016 Our performance summary 022 Performance Analysis 028 Explains how we measure our performance. It uses information from other parts of our Annual Report and Accounts and provides longer-term trend analysis. Our performance headlines 028 Measuring how we are doing 030 Managing the impact of our activities 035 These pages complement the detail in our financial statements, which begin on page 83. Dstl will continue to be at the forefront of UK defence, science and technology – putting the science inside UK Defence and Security, both today and in the future. Dstl Annual Report and Accounts 2019/20 Performance 003 Overview Chief Executive’s statement Gary Aitkenhead Chief Executive I am delighted to introduce our annual report and accounts for 2019/20 at the end of my second year as Chief Executive. In leading this talented organisation, I aim to provide clarity around Dstl’s purpose and role, as well as place Dstl at the forefront of UK defence science and technology (S&T), in short putting the science inside UK Defence and Security. We have delivered significant transformation following the creation of our strategy in 2018. We have grown income, strengthened strategic customer relationships, expanded our range of partners and increased capital investment in infrastructure and IT. Building on this momentum, we have launched phase two of our strategy, which clarifies and simplifies our S&T products and services and introduces a broader range of strategic capabilities to reinforce our S&T Planning. We have identified 22 key capability areas throughout the land, sea and air domains, from cyber to We continue human performance. We are in the process of developing technology working to roadmaps for each area so we are able invest in UK skills and to more purposefully make decisions our more-than 4,000 about investments and partnerships, staff members are with the overall objective of ensuring we invest in game-changing the life-blood of our technologies for the future. organisation. Dstl Annual Report and Accounts 2019/20 004 Performance Last year, we worked hard to capture 24/7 consultation to Government. Award. Paula Holbrook-Witt won a the spirit of the Dstl culture through For example, when the Syrian Civil Service Award in the Inspirational our values “innovative, impactful chemical weapons crisis drew the Leadership Award category for her and collaborative”. This has begun attention of the world, it was our work as Dstl’s Hearing Network Lead, to show real results, with our people experts who advised the Government. which has seen her passionately feeling more engaged and having Much closer to home, we also played champion the provision of workplace confidence in the future direction of a critical role in the UK’s response to, adjustments for hearing loss and wider Dstl. I am particularly pleased as this and subsequent decontamination of, awareness in Dstl. has contributed to the organisation the Salisbury and Amesbury Novichok maintaining its high performance. incidents. We deploy on exercise I am incredibly proud of the skills and and operations with British forces; passion of the people who are at the Our capabilities and expertise span offering operational analysis and heart of our organisation. It is their four areas: practical support. Of course, these expertise and knowledge that ensures Research – Original research and are just a few examples from the Dstl remains at the centre of the future concepts, creating new capabilities vast array of work that Dstl delivers. of UK Defence S&T, providing our for Defence and Security; Further high-impact S&T examples customers with innovative thinking and world-leading capabilities. Requirements and Evaluation – can be found throughout this report. S&T support to assess, evaluate and As part of a Government-wide We are working to invest in UK deliver current and next generation commitment to place more skills and our more-than 4,400 staff capabilities; contracts with small and medium- members are the life-blood of our Specialist Advice and Services sized enterprises (SMEs), we have organisation. Without them, there – Knowledge and facilities at been running an initiative, known would be no Dstl. Our workforce readiness to meet priority needs; as Searchlight, since April 2019. This remains skilled, passionate and, above ◼ Operational Support – Rapid and initiative is designed to bring in non- all, dedicated to our purpose. deployed S&T to meet the urgency traditional suppliers to ensure we are of operations. looking in the right places for that strategic advantage, and to invest Dstl delivers all this and more in in emerging technology and talent. collaboration with industry, academia Searchlight has introduced Dstl to and international partners. We are a new audience and will ensure we 9 SEPTEMBER 2020 the science inside UK Defence and continue to grow the proportion Security. Through scientific research, of our spend with SMEs. from the earliest concepts to working prototypes, we are honing applications Throughout the last year, it has been to real Defence challenges. When our a privilege to see our staff members troops deployed to Afghanistan, it was receive external recognition for our work that improved the vehicle their endeavours. Dr Norman Govan armour which saved soldiers’ lives. received an OBE for his many years of We drive requirements and evaluate expertise in the decontamination of industry offerings, assessing how chemical weapons. Phillippa Spencer they will be used in practice and was named as Woman of the Year at how they will interact with existing the Woman in Defence UK Awards or upcoming technology. We 2019, during which she also picked provide expert advice, offering up the Outstanding Contribution Dstl Annual Report and Accounts 2019/20 Performance 005 Case Study Dstl leads development of innovative uncrewed aircraft concept for RAF iStock.com/sankai Uncrewed aircraft could be Under LANCA, a technology The RAF RCO, flying alongside crewed Combat demonstrator project known as in partnership with Aircraft under an innovative ‘Mosquito’ awarded contracts for project led by Dstl for the RAF Phase 1 of the work to three teams, Dstl, is adopting creative Rapid Capabilities Office (RCO). which produced preliminary system approaches to deliver this designs for an uncrewed air vehicle, challenging project. For The Lightweight Affordable Novel and assessment of the key risk areas example, by conducting Combat Aircraft (LANCA) concept and cost-capability trade-offs for looks to offer additional capability, an operational concept. The second a competition to access deployed alongside Combat phase will mature the down-selected ‘best of breed’, it has Aircraft like the F-35 and Typhoon system with initial flight test of the enabled non-traditional – potentially offering increased demonstrator air vehicle potentially protection, survivability and taking place as early as 2022.