DE&S 2024-25 Annual Report and Accounts shows strong delivery during challenging times
Published 21 July 2025
The 2024-25 DE&S Annual Report and Accounts (ARAc) has been published.
During the financial year to March 31, 2025, we spent £12.171 billion on behalf of UK Armed Forces to deliver the DE&S Equipment Programme 3.5% (£444 million) under budget.
We also spent more than £1.4 billion to help equip and support the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which included £884 million through grants from existing stores and additional rapid procurement of lethal and non-lethal kit.
The annual report reflects the implementation of a new operating model and People Management Model as part of the most significant improvement in DE&S’ ways of working for over a decade.
And we continued to deliver our core programme of work including more than 700 live programmes, including 29 major government projects - more than any other UK organisation.
Mark Russell, DE&S Chair, said:
“DE&S has had a successful year, rising up to overcome strategic, commercial and technical challenges. We have worked alongside our mission and industry partners with increasing efficiency to keep the United Kingdom secure at home and strong abroad."
Programme highlights from 2024-25 included the delivery to the British Army of the final 12 Apache AH-64E attack helicopters to complete the 50-strong fleet, and delivering the 95th operational Ajax armoured vehicle.
We also rapidly procured and delivered Stirling Castle, a new mine-hunting vessel that can deploy autonomous systems to locate and neutralise underwater threats.
The Strategic Defence Review (SDR) and broader Defence Reform have, and will be, pivotal in DE&S driving more pace, higher productivity and increased availability of equipment for the UK and its allies.
We have already increased the amount of time DE&S staff spend on work that directly supports UK Armed Forces, and in 2024-25 delivered 90% of our strategic milestones either on time or early.
Andy Start, DE&S CEO and acting UK National Armaments Director, said:
“Our core mission remains to equip and support our armed forces with the right equipment and support, at the right time, to protect our nation and help it prosper. In response to the challenging context we now face, we have sharpened our strategic focus and established new ways of working and strengthened our partnerships, to ensure we support economic growth and deliver greater availability at a higher pace. I am proud of all we have achieved this year, and the proactive way DE&S teams and the UK defence enterprise as a whole have responded to the challenges we have faced.”
The publication of the DE&S ARAc for 2024-25 reflects the 11th successful year DE&S has traded as an Executive Agency of the UK Ministry of Defence.
Read the DE&S ARAc in full here.
