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Exeter: spending over £500

Last updated . Figures refresh every night. How each figure is worked out.

Exeter published 8,564 payments of £500 or more between August 2025 and July 2026, worth £46.4m in all, to 1,094 suppliers. The largest total went to Mears Ltd: £7.0m across 758 payments. These are the council's own published records; the gaps in them are listed below.

Key figures

  • £46.4mPaid in payments of £500 or more, latest year
  • 8,564Payments
  • 1,094Suppliers
  • 12 of 12Months with payments published

What the council published

  1. Augpublished
  2. Septpublished
  3. Octpublished
  4. Novpublished
  5. Decpublished
  6. Janpublished
  7. Febpublished
  8. Marpublished
  9. Aprpublished
  10. Maypublished
  11. Junpublished
  12. Julpublished

Gaps and problems in the data, as published:

  • 11 credits and refunds (negative amounts, £16,892 in all) are included, so totals are net.

Top 50 suppliers by value

Exeter: the 50 suppliers paid most, August 2025 to July 2026
SupplierPaidPayments
Mears Ltd
Details
£6,970,322758
Payments
758
Strata Service Solutions Ltd
Details
£3,538,82253
Payments
53
Comensura
Details
£2,640,053774
Payments
774
Specialist Fleet Services Ltd
Details
£2,086,606975
Payments
975
Zurich Municipal
Details
£1,696,15818
Payments
18
Classic Builders (South West) Ltd
Details
£1,592,8374
Payments
4
Edf Energy Customers Ltd
Details
£1,245,220212
Payments
212
Clc Contractors Ltd
Details
£1,062,552139
Payments
139
Mercury Construction (South West) Ltd
Details
£863,34680
Payments
80
Liberty Gas Group Ltd
Details
£806,13951
Payments
51
Exeter Cvs (Colab)
Details
£800,34615
Payments
15
Sureserve Energy Services South West Ltd
Details
£508,98427
Payments
27
Post Office Limited - Payout
Details
£495,0003
Payments
3
Dodd Group (South) Ltd
Details
£473,56633
Payments
33
Source For Business T/A Sw Water Business
Details
£435,009133
Payments
133
Bournemouth Churches Housing Assn (Bcha)
Details
£410,4498
Payments
8
East Devon District Council
Details
£400,7253
Payments
3
Devon County Council
Details
£375,50728
Payments
28
Surestay Housing Ltd
Details
£372,72471
Payments
71
Kier Construction Ltd
Details
£343,1354
Payments
4
Westcountry Fire Protection Ltd
Details
£326,91461
Payments
61
Allstar Business Solutions
Details
£313,76797
Payments
97
Julian House
Details
£297,9806
Payments
6
Corona Energy
Details
£285,543100
Payments
100
Dolphin Lifts South West
Details
£285,51756
Payments
56
Grant Thornton
Details
£271,8618
Payments
8
Inexeter Ltd
Details
£268,76018
Payments
18
Royal Devon University Hospitals Nhsft
Details
£266,4819
Payments
9
Ringgo Limited
Details
£259,68211
Payments
11
Home Group Ltd
Details
£253,5005
Payments
5
Skinner Construction Ltd
Details
£223,5012
Payments
2
Atkinsrealis Uk Ltd
Details
£221,1027
Payments
7
Scheidt & Bachmann (Uk) Ltd
Details
£213,3115
Payments
5
Exeter City Community Trust (Fitc)
Details
£208,93814
Payments
14
Cobwebs
Details
£204,45327
Payments
27
Archway Facilities
Details
£203,23444
Payments
44
Red House Hotel
Details
£200,36110
Payments
10
Evouchers Ltd
Details
£200,0001
Payments
1
Devon Tree Services
Details
£193,524149
Payments
149
Patronus Security Uk Ltd
Details
£188,432122
Payments
122
Livewest Ltd
Details
£176,35719
Payments
19
Devon Partnership Nhs Trust
Details
£175,4151
Payments
1
Sciprint Ltd
Details
£162,72121
Payments
21
Wemco Ltd
Details
£155,16562
Payments
62
Faithful & Gould/Atkins Group
Details
£154,0078
Payments
8
University Of Plymouth Enterprise Ltd
Details
£151,2462
Payments
2
Debit Finance Collections Plc
Details
£145,13924
Payments
24
Travelodge
Details
£137,24512
Payments
12
Glendale Countryside Ltd
Details
£135,41432
Payments
32
Envirocall Limited
Details
£132,16012
Payments
12

Spending by category (our classification)

Payments this site classifies into each category from the supplier and the council's description; most payments fall into none. The rules are on the methodology page.

Exeter: payments by category (our classification)
Show as a table
Exeter: payments by category (our classification)
NamePaid
1. Consultancy and agency staff£5,997,673
2. Payments to other councils and public bodies£1,092,390
3. Large outsourcing and contracting firms£697,152
4. IT and software£459,103
5. Legal fees£291,497
6. Communications and PR£153,233
7. Catering and hospitality£74,894
8. Conferences and events£74,856
Payments to other councils and public bodies: largest suppliers

The supplier is another council, a police, fire or NHS body, a government department or agency, or a pension fund.

  1. East Devon District Council: £400,725 (3 payments)
  2. Devon County Council: £375,507 (28 payments)
  3. Devon Partnership Nhs Trust: £175,415 (1 payment)
  4. Dorset County Council: £50,667 (1 payment)
  5. Exeter City Council: £22,467 (2 payments)
  6. Environment Agency: £13,953 (4 payments)
  7. Teignbridge District Council: £12,873 (8 payments)
  8. Salford City Council: £10,000 (1 payment)
  9. Oxford City Council: £6,000 (1 payment)
  10. Laser Energy (Kent County Council): £5,400 (1 payment)
Large outsourcing and contracting firms: largest suppliers

The supplier is one of a named list of large firms that run council services under contract. A payment to one is often a routine instalment on a long contract.

  1. Kier Construction Ltd: £343,135 (4 payments)
  2. Glendale Countryside Ltd: £135,414 (32 payments)
  3. Suez Recycling & Recovery Ltd: £122,077 (15 payments)
  4. Kier Inegrated Services Ltd: £61,306 (1 payment)
  5. Mitie Property Services: £22,073 (5 payments)
  6. Engie Gas Ltd: £9,231 (5 payments)
  7. Sodexo Motivation Solutions Uk T/A Pluxee Uk: £3,916 (3 payments)
Legal fees: largest suppliers

The supplier is a law firm or chambers, or the council describes the payment as legal fees, counsel or court fees.

  1. Freeths Llp: £91,779 (17 payments)
  2. Ashfords: £53,806 (12 payments)
  3. Lexis Nexis Uk: £31,083 (1 payment)
  4. Womble Bond Dickinson (Uk) Llp: £12,303 (1 payment)
  5. Stephens & Scown Solicitors Llp: £12,191 (6 payments)
  6. Trowers & Hamlins Llp: £11,870 (2 payments)
  7. Mrs Debbie Grennan: £7,850 (6 payments)
  8. Comensura: £7,642 (2 payments)
  9. Mr Christopher Jones: £6,825 (3 payments)
  10. Graysons Solicitors: £6,583 (1 payment)
Consultancy and agency staff: largest suppliers

The supplier is a recruitment agency or consultancy on a named list, or the council describes the payment as consultancy, agency or interim staff, or professional fees.

  1. Comensura: £2,632,410 (772 payments)
  2. Strata Service Solutions Ltd: £581,804 (2 payments)
  3. Surestay Housing Ltd: £277,079 (50 payments)
  4. Grant Thornton: £271,861 (8 payments)
  5. Atkinsrealis Uk Ltd: £221,102 (7 payments)
  6. Scheidt & Bachmann (Uk) Ltd: £207,261 (2 payments)
  7. Faithful & Gould/Atkins Group: £153,152 (7 payments)
  8. Poynton Bradbury Wynter Cole Ltd: £108,965 (3 payments)
  9. The Oyster Partnership Ltd: £105,977 (61 payments)
  10. Buro Happold Ltd: £94,448 (2 payments)
IT and software: largest suppliers

The supplier is on a named list of IT and telecoms firms, or the council describes the payment as software, licences, IT, hardware, hosting or telephony.

  1. Debit Finance Collections Plc: £145,139 (24 payments)
  2. Pce Technology Ltd: £80,182 (1 payment)
  3. Granicus-Firmstep Limited: £38,133 (5 payments)
  4. Ppl Prs Ltd: £32,261 (3 payments)
  5. Strata Service Solutions Ltd: £28,784 (7 payments)
  6. Oneadvanced Limited: £19,265 (1 payment)
  7. Les Mills Fitness Uk Ltd: £19,204 (25 payments)
  8. Fitronics Ltd (T/A Cap2): £9,407 (1 payment)
  9. Idox Software Ltd: £8,584 (1 payment)
  10. Housing Partners Ltd: £8,224 (1 payment)
Communications and PR: largest suppliers

The council describes the payment as advertising, marketing, publicity or public relations. Recruitment and statutory notices are left out.

  1. The National Leaflet Company: £53,826 (9 payments)
  2. Cushman & Wakefield: £14,968 (3 payments)
  3. Brightsea Ltd: £11,115 (5 payments)
  4. Chalk & Ward Advertising: £10,962 (5 payments)
  5. The Graphic Design House: £7,449 (4 payments)
  6. Inexeter Ltd: £6,500 (2 payments)
  7. Data Thistle: £5,045 (2 payments)
  8. Devon Association Of Tourist Attractions: £4,500 (3 payments)
  9. Avoy Technologies Ltd: £3,800 (1 payment)
  10. The Purple Company (Uk) Ltd: £3,108 (2 payments)
Conferences and events: largest suppliers

The council describes the payment as a conference, seminar, exhibition, event or venue hire.

  1. Jeremy Southam: £20,000 (1 payment)
  2. Crown Fine Art Ltd: £9,619 (3 payments)
  3. Sam Talbot Ltd: £6,000 (2 payments)
  4. Watkiss Art International: £3,760 (2 payments)
  5. Bayside Signs & Display: £3,335 (3 payments)
  6. Josh Pratt: £3,200 (2 payments)
  7. Stalite Signs Ltd: £3,011 (3 payments)
  8. South West Heritage Trust: £3,000 (1 payment)
  9. Local Government Association: £2,995 (4 payments)
  10. Contemporary Art Society: £2,200 (1 payment)
Catering and hospitality: largest suppliers

The council describes the payment as catering, hospitality or refreshments. School meals are left out.

  1. Graze By Dish: £50,845 (47 payments)
  2. Whmc Trading Co Ltd: £7,500 (14 payments)
  3. Bidfood: £3,407 (6 payments)
  4. J & R Foodservice Ltd: £3,399 (6 payments)
  5. 13 (City Of Exeter) Sqn Atc: £2,667 (3 payments)
  6. Coffeeworks Ltd: £2,216 (4 payments)
  7. R D Johns Ltd: £2,051 (3 payments)
  8. Pas Sound & Communications Ltd: £1,225 (1 payment)
  9. Exeter Cathedral Enterprises Ltd: £1,000 (1 payment)
  10. Dan'S American Kitchen: £585 (1 payment)

Spending by the council's own service areas

Exeter: payments by service area, as the council labels them
Show as a table
Exeter: payments by service area, as the council labels them
NamePaid
1. General Maintenance£3,713,174
2. Strata Contract Payment£2,761,799
3. Fleet Contract Hire£1,965,637
4. Repairs To Void Properties£1,647,525
5. Vaughan Road Phase A£1,631,674
6. Public Liability Insurance£1,582,320
7. General Management£1,138,691
8. Edf Electricity Suspense£1,050,023
9. Service Contracts£986,355
10. St Sidwell'S Point Ops£833,908
11. Disabled Facilities Grants£822,463
12. Materials Reclamation Facility£791,807
13. Exeter Corn Exchange£780,728
14. Car Parks£768,473
15. Kitchen Replacements£733,398
16. Fire Risk Assessment Works£729,264
17. Wellbeing Exeter£685,838
18. Refuse Collection£683,325
19. Recharges From Strata£575,740
20. Adaptations£516,360
21. Paris Suspense£515,578
22. Property Maintenance£514,000
23. Riverside Leisure Centre£471,474
24. Prog'D Elec Re-Wiring General£415,259
25. Household Support Fund 7£404,377

Who is paid for grounds, street cleaning, roads and bins?

The suppliers paid most for each kind of work, where the council's own labels say what the payment was for (our matching). A council that does the work with its own staff pays mostly wages, which are not in this data, so a short list here can mean the work is done in-house.

Parks and open spaces (including play areas): largest suppliers
Show as a table
Parks and open spaces (including play areas): largest suppliers
NamePaid
1. Comensura£94,857
2. Aba Groundcare (Sw) Ltd£51,116
3. Allstar Business Solutions£37,568
4. Moorland Fuels£17,417
5. Hays Accountancy Personnel£16,066
6. Mercury Construction (South West) Ltd£14,040
7. Masons Kings£13,171
8. Source For Business T/A Sw Water Business£13,133
9. Aitkens Sportsturf Ltd£12,845
10. Rock Compliance£7,664
Street cleaning: largest suppliers
Show as a table
Street cleaning: largest suppliers
NamePaid
1. Comensura£94,726
2. Allstar Business Solutions£52,980
3. Hako Machines Ltd£20,016
4. J & A Young (Leicester) Ltd£6,885
5. Northern Municipal Spares£6,663
6. Day'S Rental£4,278
7. Tam Marketing Ltd£838
8. Exeter Coachworks Ltd£830
9. Specialist Fleet Services Ltd£515
Waste collection: largest suppliers
Show as a table
Waste collection: largest suppliers
NamePaid
1. Comensura£206,285
2. Allstar Business Solutions£198,455
3. Peter Ridley Waste Systems£113,328
4. Straight Manufacturing Ltd T/A Ipl Plastics£55,530
5. Contenur Uk Limited£52,215
6. Craemer Uk Ltd£39,137
7. Storm Environmental Ltd£36,301
8. Qms Ltd£24,354
9. Bam Construction Ltd - Site Solutions£19,908
10. Mer Fleet Services£17,912

Consultancy and agency against the pay bill

Payments we classify as consultancy and agency staff came to 23.2% of Exeter's own staff costs in its 2025-26 revenue return, against a median of 9.8% for the other district councils in England read so far. The payments and the staff costs come from different sources and periods, so this is a guide to scale.

What this data does and doesn't show

  • It is the council's own record of payments of £500 or more. It leaves out salaries, most staff costs and many internal costs, so it is not the council's whole spending.
  • Descriptions are the council's own and vary in quality; some are codes, some are blank, and some supplier names are withheld to protect individuals.
  • A large payment to one supplier is often a routine instalment on a long contract that was tendered openly.
  • The categories and the matching to services are this site's classification from keywords, not the council's. The rules are on the methodology page.

Sources

Exeter, spending over £500, published here. Licence as the council states it: Open Government Licence (linked on page). Checked 2026-09-24; files read 2026-09-29.

Every file read (5)

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