Written By: Tim Holman – Head of Consultancy, MSc, MEng, CEng, MEI
Tim leads TEAM Energy’s consultancy practice and has extensive experience supporting organisations through ESOS compliance, audits and regulatory review.
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) have recently published its post-implementation review (PIR) of the Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) framework, providing important insights into how the policy has performed since its introduction in April 2019.
Watch our short video summary of this Market Briefing, where TEAM Energy highlights the key developments covered in this briefing, explains what they mean for UK organisations.
What is SECR?
For those still asking what is SECR? The framework requires large UK organisations to disclose energy use, carbon emissions, and associated intensity metrics within their annual reports. Designed to improve transparency and accountability, Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting requirements have become a central part of UK sustainability disclosure practices and wider SECR compliance obligations.
What Was the Outcome of the Review?
The review finds that SECR has largely achieved its core aims. It has improved the consistency and visibility of corporate energy and emissions data, supporting both internal decision-making and external scrutiny. As a result, many organisations have strengthened their understanding of energy performance and risk, aligning their reporting processes more closely with existing SECR guidelines and broader sustainability frameworks.
Importantly, the PIR also confirms that SECR has delivered measurable energy savings. Participating companies and LLPs reduced electricity and gas consumption by an estimated 4.5% in 2020 and 6.2% in 2021. These early gains demonstrate that structured reporting, supported by clear SECR guidance, can drive behavioural change within a business, particularly when organisations first begin to monitor and act on their energy use.
Is SECR Achieving Its Intended Outcomes?
The review highlights a growing challenge. Over time SECR requirements are increasingly viewed as a compliance exercise rather than a strategic driver of decarbonisation. While organisations continue to meet disclosure obligations, SECR is not consistently embedded into long-term planning or investment decisions, limiting its ability to deliver sustained emissions reductions.
This shift reflects a broader trend. Early savings were often achieved through low-cost or operational improvements, but further reductions now require more complex, capital-intensive interventions. Without stronger integration into corporate strategy, SECR risks losing its influence as a catalyst for bigger change.
The review also acknowledges the increasingly complex policy landscape in which SECR operates. Organisations are navigating overlapping schemes such as ESOS and evolving reporting frameworks, making it harder to attribute outcomes directly to SECR or fully align it with wider net zero strategies.
What is Expected to Change?
In response, DESNZ recommends retaining the SECR framework but introducing targeted amendments. These are expected to focus on simplifying reporting requirements, reducing administrative burden, and improving alignment with emerging standards such as the UK Sustainability Reporting Standards (UK SRS).
Overall, the PIR reinforces that SECR compliance continues to play a valuable role in improving transparency and driving initial energy savings. However, it also signals future policy change, including strengthening the link between reporting and action, which will be essential to ensure that SECR evolves from a disclosure scheme into a more effective tool for organisation’s long-term decarbonisation.
Are you required to comply with SECR? Access our SECR Reporting Guide.