Stormwater Shepherds

A registered charity in Australia and the UK, Stormwater Shepherds is an environmental not for profit organisation. Their website states they are committed to restoring health to our waterways. We investigate the 'eco-warriors' behind this organisation.

There are three trustees in the UK, Neville Wells, Bryan Pocock and Roger Ker. In Australia there are also three trustees, Andy Hornbuckle, Brenden Parker and Kevin Wibberley. The Stormwater Shepherds website shows an executive team led by organisation founder, Australian Andy Hornbuckle and a UK based Operations Director, Jo Bradley. The website also shows a list of 'Zero Pollution Ambassadors', influential people in the stormwater and drainage sectors across the globe.

People

Andy Hornbuckle the founder of Stormwater Shepherds is the CEO of the Australian based company SPEL Environmental Pty Ltd, which trades as Atlan Stormwater, formerly known as SPEL Environmental. The company provides Stormwater Solutions and has estimated revenues of AUD$ 25 million a year.

Jo Bradley has over 20 years experience working for the UK Environment Agency and her LinkedIn profile shows a recommendation that states "Jo is one of the most important figures in highway drainage pollution in the UK".

Bryan Pocock is the Managing Director of Shropshire based unlimited company SPEL products. SPEL provide a wide range of products for the storage, monitoring, treatment and utilisation of surface water. The company is connected to Atlan Stormwater in Australia and they supply many of the same products.

Roger (Brett) Ker is a director of Harrow based Orthene Chemicals, the largest private label brake fluid manufacturer in the world. According to his LinkedIn profile, Ker is now based in New York.

Neville Wells is a director at CLD group of companies, a fencing and gate supplier from Sandbach, Cheshire.

Brenden Parker is a director of Queensland based dust extraction company RVT Group,

Kevin Wibberley is the General Manager of pipe supplier Acu-Tech Piping Systems based in Perth, Western Australia.

Hornbuckle, Pocock, Ker, Wells, Parker and Wibberley are all members of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church and there are many connections between the six trustees. 

Hornbuckle and Parker both work for RVT Group, Australia in Queensland. Parker as a director and Hornbuckle as a business advisor. Hornbuckle business advisory role is via UBT (the brethren's business consultancy). Wibberley is a former UBT accountant. The owners of SPEL Environmental Pty Ltd are heavily connected to UBT.

Charity Finance
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UK
​The latest accounts lodged with the UK charity commission for Stormwater Shepherds show that it received income totalling £89,249 and spent £88,687. The charity has a loan from SPEL for £247,256 and therefore has negative net liabilities of nearly a quarter of a million. 

A deeper dig shows how the £88,687 was spent. They employed just one person in Jo Bradley, she earned £68,867 with a further £10,715 spent on her pension and social security costs. In total employing Bradley cost the charity £79,582. A further £8,434 was spent on professional fees, subscriptions, insurance, bank charges and depreciation. The final £671 included £180 on miscellaneous and the grand sum of £491 on general marketing.

It would therefore appear that SPEL is funding a charity, the charity spend the bulk of their donations to employ one person to actively promote the need for Stormwater Solutions. So the logical next step is to look at what impact Jo Bradley is having on the industry.

Attending the NCE Roads Conference 2024
Presenting to the Wales Green Infrastructure
Press Articles in The Times, BBC website
On the 2025 list of the UK's most impactful environmental professionals
Contributing to a whitepaper released by Keyline Civil Specialists
Quoted in an article by DeSmog, Unearthed (Greenpeace) and the BBC

As a campaigner, Bradley is undoubtedly doing great work. 

Australia
The latest Australian accounts filed on the Australian Charities and No-for-Profits Commission (ACNC) for Stormwater Shepherds show income of AUD$380,000 and expenses of AUD$7,800. 
There is no visibility on the source of the $380,000 donations. Though it was used to pay off a loan of $373,327 made to Stormwater Shepherds by SPEL Environmental Pty Ltd, the owner of Atlan Stormwater. 
Expenses were mainly spent on Accountancy fees, Subscriptions and Internet & Website fees. Just $1,500 was spent on Service Charges for Labour.

There is evidence of Stormwater Shepherds carrying influence within Australian Government with papers found in publications by NSW Government Water and in a submission to the National Water Reform Inquiry. Using the services of Stormwater Shepherds former Director of Operations, Mary Rayner.

It is of note that Atlan Stormwater is owned by the influential Hales family from Sydney. Stephen Hales and his sons James & Cameron are the brother and nephews of Plymouth Brethren Christian Church leader Bruce D Hales. Cameron Hales is actively involved in UBT.

In summary Stormwater Shepherds charities in the UK and Australia appear to be the 'lobbying' and 'influencing' arm of SPEL Environmental Pty Ltd and SPEL Products. The charities seek to improve the health of our waterways, and to do this they fund an influential and experienced Director of Operations to highlight the issues, particularly issues surrounding Stormwater runoff from our highways.  

It does leave one thinking is this a charity or simply an 'off the books' lobbying business?