UK Sustainability Reporting Standards
What is UK SRS?
UK SRS is the UK’s domestic sustainability disclosure framework, based on IFRS S1 and S2 with a set of UK-specific differences.
The Department for Business and Trade published it on 25 February 2026 as a voluntary standard.
The FCA’s final rules (PS26/19, 30 September 2026) require listed companies in scope to report against it on a comply-or-explain basis for accounting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2027, finalising FCA CP26/5.
Definition
UK SRS, in one paragraph
What is UK SRS? UK SRS stands for the UK Sustainability Reporting Standards — the UK’s domestically endorsed sustainability disclosure framework, based on the global baseline standards issued by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB).
It consists of two standards.
UK SRS S1, General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-related Financial Information, is the overarching framework.
UK SRS S2, Climate-related Disclosures, sets the climate-specific requirements.
The standards were issued by the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, within the Department for Business and Trade (DBT), on 25 February 2026.
The standing reference library for UK SRS — both standards, the consultation tracker and the endorsement history — is maintained on our primary reference site.
At a glance
| UK SRS | |
|---|---|
| Full name | UK Sustainability Reporting Standards |
| Made up of | UK SRS S1 (general requirements) and UK SRS S2 (climate) |
| Issued by | The Secretary of State for Business and Trade, within DBT |
| Issued on | 25 February 2026 |
| Based on | IFRS S1 and IFRS S2, issued by the ISSB |
| Legal status | Voluntary standards; listed companies in scope report against them, or explain, under FCA rules from 2027 |
The two standards: S1 and S2 as documents
What are the UK SRS? Two documents
What are the UK SRS? As documents, they are UK SRS S1 and UK SRS S2 — one framework, two standards, each endorsing the IFRS Standard of the same number.
UK SRS S1 is the general framework every disclosure sits in, and UK SRS S2 applies that framework to climate.
Each is a body of numbered paragraphs followed by lettered appendices: A to E in S1, A to C in S2.
The government keeps its UK SRS guidance page as the central place for guidance and updates on both documents.
General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-related Financial Information
Climate-related Disclosures
Structure
What sits in the appendices
Each Standard’s lettered appendices carry its defined terms, its application guidance and its transition reliefs.
Every appendix states that it is an integral part of the Standard and has the same authority as the other parts — they are not guidance notes to be read or skipped.
| Appendix | UK SRS S1 | UK SRS S2 |
|---|---|---|
| A | Defined terms | Defined terms |
| B | Application guidance | Application guidance |
| C | Sources of guidance | Application and transition (C1–C6) |
| D | Qualitative characteristics of useful sustainability-related financial information | — |
| E | Application and transition (E1–E5) | — |
The transitional reliefs sit in S1 Appendix E and S2 Appendix C.
Neither appendix contains an effective-date paragraph.
How those reliefs differ from the IFRS text is set out in the differences table below.
Terms defined in Appendix A are italicised the first time they appear in each Standard.
Read the definitions before the requirements — terms such as “climate-related transition plan” are defined there, not in the body.
Status
Voluntary standards, comply or explain for listed companies
UK SRS is available for voluntary use by any UK entity that chooses to adopt it.
For listed companies in scope, the FCA’s final rules (PS26/19, 30 September 2026) require reporting against UK SRS on a comply-or-explain basis for accounting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2027, with first reporting in 2028.
The consultation, FCA CP26/5, had proposed making UK SRS S2 mandatory; the final rules adopt comply or explain across all categories of disclosure instead.
No UK entity outside the listed categories is required to use UK SRS.
Whether UK SRS is law, and which Companies Act provisions it sits in, is covered at UK SRS legislation.
The FCA’s final rules make no UK SRS disclosure mandatory: a listed company in scope reports, or explains why not.
Any page still describing mandatory UK SRS S2 from 2027 is describing the consultation, not the final rules.
Origins
Where UK SRS came from
UK SRS originates from the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), established by the IFRS Foundation at COP26 in Glasgow in November 2021 as a global standard-setter for sustainability-related financial disclosures.
The ISSB was set up to develop a global baseline of sustainability disclosure standards focused on the information needs of investors and capital markets.
It responded to a fragmented landscape of voluntary frameworks — TCFD, SASB, GRI, CDP — that made cross-company comparison difficult and imposed overlapping reporting burdens.
The ISSB published its inaugural two standards, IFRS S1 and IFRS S2, on 26 June 2023, and revised IFRS S2 in December 2025.
They are the global baseline that individual jurisdictions adopt, adapt or build upon within their own legislative frameworks.
In October 2023 the TCFD was formally disbanded, and the Financial Stability Board asked the IFRS Foundation to take over monitoring of companies’ climate-related disclosures from 2024.
The UK endorsement process was led by DBT with two specialist committees.
The UK Sustainability Disclosure Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) assessed whether IFRS S1 and S2 met the UK endorsement criteria, and what amendments, if any, were needed.
Its secretariat is hosted by the Financial Reporting Council.
Commissioned in May 2024, it published its final endorsement recommendations on 18 December 2024, recommending that IFRS S1 and IFRS S2 be endorsed for UK use with some minor amendments.
The TAC met again in January 2026 to assess the ISSB’s December 2025 amendments to IFRS S2, and sent its supplementary recommendations to DBT on 26 January 2026.
Both sets of recommendations are on the TAC’s endorsement technical assessment project page.
The UK Sustainability Disclosure Policy and Implementation Committee (PIC) considered implementation matters and stakeholder views.
DBT consulted on the exposure drafts of UK SRS S1 and S2 from 25 June 2025 to 17 September 2025, alongside a parallel consultation on an oversight regime for sustainability assurance.
The consultation received 209 responses.
From ISSB establishment at COP26 (November 2021) to UK SRS publication (February 2026) took just over four years.
The UK endorsement process itself ran from the TAC’s commission in May 2024 to publication of the final Standards in February 2026 — 21 months.
Differences
How UK SRS differs from IFRS S1 and S2
UK SRS preserves the substance of the ISSB standards — it is not a wholesale rewrite of the IFRS text.
The UK government consulted on six proposed amendments in June 2025, but two did not survive to publication — one was withdrawn, one was replaced — and further provisions were added afterwards, so “six” describes the June 2025 proposal, not the final Standards.
The authoritative list of final differences is Annex A of the government’s consultation response, which carries no headline count.
| Aspect | IFRS S1 / S2 | UK SRS S1 / S2 |
|---|---|---|
| Delayed reporting relief | First-year relief to publish sustainability disclosures up to nine months after the financial statements | Removed — sustainability disclosures at the same time as the financial statements |
| Climate-first transition | One year, tied to first application | Retained with no time limit in the Standard (S1 ¶E3); availability set by UK law or FCA rules (S1 ¶E5) |
| Scope 3 relief | One year, tied to first application | Retained with no time limit in the Standard (S2 ¶C4); availability set by UK law or FCA rules (S2 ¶C6) |
| SASB reference | Shall refer to and consider | May refer to and consider |
| Effective dates | Set in the standards | Removed — none in the Standards; mandatory application is set separately, by FCA rules or under the Companies Act |
| Financed emissions (Category 15) | No requirement to explain where financed emissions cannot be estimated for the same period as the financial statements | Paragraph B59A added: the entity must explain why, its measurement approach and its plan to report on an aligned period |
| Industry classification (GICS) | Removed by the ISSB’s own December 2025 amendment | Inherited from the ISSB — not a UK-specific amendment |
Why the delayed relief went
Removing it aligns with the Standard’s “Connected information” requirement, keeping disclosures tied to the same reporting entity and period as the financial statements (UK SRS S1 ¶¶20–24, 64).
Who sets the clock
The Standards leave the availability, time limits and conditions of the transition reliefs to UK legislation or FCA rules (UK SRS S1 ¶E5, UK SRS S2 ¶C6).
The FCA’s final rules set it at two years for listed companies in scope (PS26/19 ¶3.14), and one year for Scope 3.
A voluntary reporter can use the untimed reliefs until such rules set a limit.
GICS
IFRS S2 originally required commercial banks reporting financed emissions to use GICS. The UK proposed removing it, then withdrew that proposal once the ISSB made the same change in December 2025, permitting any “internationally recognised industry classification”.
What that means for comparability
Disclosures under UK SRS are broadly comparable with disclosures under IFRS S1 and IFRS S2 in other jurisdictions.
An entity reporting under UK SRS can generally state that its disclosures comply with IFRS S1 and IFRS S2, subject to specific disclosure where the climate-first relief is used.
The IFRS Foundation reports that more than 40 jurisdictions have decided to use, or are taking steps to introduce, the ISSB Standards, which supports international comparability for multinational reporters.
For multi-jurisdictional reporters, the practical differences are typically manageable through disclosure design.
Paragraph-level detail is at UK SRS vs IFRS S1 and S2.
Structure
The four-pillar disclosure framework
UK SRS follows the four-pillar framework that originated with the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and was adopted by the ISSB — S1 applies it to sustainability-related risks and opportunities, S2 to climate-related ones.
Governance
The governance processes, controls and procedures used to monitor, manage and oversee the risks and opportunities — including board oversight and management’s role.
Strategy
The risks and opportunities that could reasonably be expected to affect the entity’s prospects over the short, medium and long term. S2 adds scenario analysis to assess climate resilience.
Risk management
The processes used to identify, assess, prioritise and monitor the risks and opportunities, and how they are integrated into overall risk management.
Metrics and targets
The metrics used to measure and manage performance, including any targets. S2 adds Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions, cross-industry metrics and industry-based metrics where available.
Both standards keep the four pillars inherited from TCFD but expand the requirements within each one.
The pillars are unpacked one by one at the four pillars of UK SRS, and compared with the old framework pillar by pillar at TCFD vs UK SRS.
S1 and S2
The two UK Sustainability Reporting Standards, side by side
What S1 covers
- Single, or “investor”, materiality — risks and opportunities that could reasonably be expected to affect the entity’s prospects, unlike the double materiality of the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive.
- Same time, same period, same entity — disclosures at the same time and for the same period as the financial statements (¶64), for the same reporting entity (¶20).
- Connected information (¶¶21–24) — the Standard’s own term, not “connectivity”, which does not appear in UK SRS S1.
- General-purpose financial reporting, including forward-looking information.
- Industry-based information — entities may, not shall, refer to SASB metrics.
The standing reference text is UK SRS S1 on our primary reference site.
What S2 covers
- Scenario analysis, required to assess climate resilience; publicly available scenario sets include those from the NGFS and the IEA.
- Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions under the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard — location-based Scope 2 is required, market-based may also be disclosed.
- Cross-industry metrics — transition risks, physical risks, opportunities, capital deployment, internal carbon prices, remuneration.
- Financed emissions for asset management, commercial banking and insurance.
- Carbon credits, where used to meet net emissions targets.
- Transition reliefs — no first-year comparatives, alternative GHG measurement methods (¶C3), and a Scope 3 deferral with no fixed time limit in the Standard (¶C4).
The standing reference text is UK SRS S2 on our primary reference site.
Scope
Who UK SRS applies to
CP26/5, published 30 January 2026 and closed 20 March 2026, proposed that UK SRS S2 climate disclosures apply to in-scope listed issuers from accounting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2027.
The FCA’s final rules keep that date and put five listing categories on a comply-or-explain basis against UK SRS.
Six further categories are excluded by name, including closed-ended investment funds (UKLR 11), open-ended investment companies (UKLR 12) and shell companies (UKLR 13).
What the final rules require
- UK SRS S1 and S2 disclosures on a comply-or-explain basis from periods beginning 1 January 2027 — report, or explain why not.
- Scope 3: one year’s relief from disclosure, stated as used; then disclose or explain.
- UK SRS S1 non-climate matters: two years’ relief from disclosure, stated as used.
- A disclosure of whether there is a climate-related transition plan and, if so, where it can be found — no duty to have one.
- Where assurance is obtained, the provider, the disclosures assured and the standards used — assurance itself is not required.
The Modernising Corporate Reporting programme, announced in October 2025, was framed in the February 2026 consultation response as the vehicle for considering whether the Companies Act 2006 should require private entities to report against UK SRS.
The Modernising corporate reporting consultation was published on 7 September 2026 by the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, and closes on 30 November 2026.
It says only that the government “will consider how UK SRS should be reflected in the Companies Act 2006” — it proposes no threshold, mechanism or date for private companies.
The full scoping test is at who must comply with UK SRS.
| UKLR category | Under the FCA’s final rules |
|---|---|
| UKLR 6 — commercial companies | UK SRS, comply or explain |
| UKLR 16 — non-equity and non-voting equity shares | UK SRS, comply or explain |
| UKLR 22 — transition category | UK SRS, comply or explain |
| UKLR 14 — secondary listings | UK SRS, comply or explain (CP26/5 had proposed a statement only) |
| UKLR 15 — depositary receipts | UK SRS, comply or explain (CP26/5 had proposed a statement only) |
| UKLR 11, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19 | Excluded (PS26/19 ¶3.7) |
Milestones
From COP26 to the first reports
- Nov 2021ISSB established at COP26 in Glasgow
- 26 Jun 2023ISSB publishes IFRS S1 and IFRS S2
The global baseline.
- Oct 2023TCFD disbanded
Monitoring passes to the IFRS Foundation from 2024.
- 18 Dec 2024TAC publishes its final endorsement recommendations
- 25 Jun 2025DBT publishes the UK SRS exposure drafts for consultation
- 17 Sep 2025UK SRS consultation closes
209 responses received.
- 12 Nov 2025FRC publishes ISSA (UK) 5000
The UK sustainability assurance standard, for voluntary use.
- Dec 2025ISSB publishes amendments to clarify IFRS S2
- 26 Jan 2026TAC sends supplementary recommendations
Covering the ISSB’s December 2025 amendments to IFRS S2.
- 30 Jan 2026FCA publishes CP26/5
Proposed UK SRS application for listed companies.
- 25 Feb 2026DBT publishes final UK SRS S1 and UK SRS S2
Available for voluntary use.
- 20 Mar 2026FCA CP26/5 consultation closes
- 7 Sep 2026Modernising corporate reporting consultation published
Closes 30 November 2026. Says the government “will consider how UK SRS should be reflected in the Companies Act 2006”.
- 30 Sep 2026FCA publishes its final rules, PS26/19
Comply or explain across the UK SRS for listed companies in scope.
- 15 Dec 2026ISSA (UK) 5000 becomes effective
For periods beginning on or after this date, or as at a specific date on or after it. Early voluntary application is permitted.
- 1 Jan 2027UK SRS applies to in-scope listed issuers, comply or explain
For accounting periods beginning on or after this date.
- 2028First UK SRS-aligned annual reports
First reporting under the FCA’s final rules; the CP26/5 cost-benefit analysis (Annex 2 ¶77) expected investors to start receiving them from January 2028.
Every date, with what each one means for a reporting company, is on the UK SRS timeline.
The existing regimes
How UK SRS fits existing UK reporting
UK SRS does not exist in isolation — four existing regimes overlap with or relate to it.
TCFD-aligned disclosures
UK-listed companies have reported against TCFD-aligned rules on a comply-or-explain basis since the rule made in PS20/17 (December 2020).
CP26/5 ¶4.4 proposed to delete those rules and replace them with UK SRS S2 for in-scope issuers; the FCA’s final rules put those issuers on comply or explain against UK SRS from periods beginning on or after 1 January 2027.
UK SRS S2 keeps the same four pillars but adds quantitative cross-industry metrics, Scope 1 and 2 emissions and Scope 3 disclosure.
The FCA sets out the current rules and what comes next on its sustainability reporting requirements page.
Section 414CB climate disclosures
Certain large UK companies and LLPs must disclose climate-related financial information in the Strategic Report under section 414CB of the Companies Act 2006.
The government has confirmed UK SRS S2 is a national reporting framework for section 414CB(6), so a company reporting under it — under the FCA’s rules or voluntarily — need not duplicate its disclosures to meet section 414CB(2A).
That holds provided section 414CB(1)–(5) are met and the use of UK SRS S2 is clearly referenced.
Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting
SECR remains a separate regime under SI 2018/1155, requiring annual energy and carbon disclosure in the Directors’ Report.
DESNZ has committed to “consider how energy and emissions data reported by an entity using UK SRS interacts with the SECR requirements, with a view to reducing unnecessary duplication where possible”.
No rationalisation has been confirmed, so plan for full compliance with both regimes separately.
The section 463 safe harbour
Where UK SRS disclosures sit in the Strategic Report, the protective provisions of section 463 of the Companies Act 2006 apply, limiting directors’ liability for compensation in respect of untrue or misleading statements.
DBT’s February 2026 consultation response explicitly confirmed this.
Preparing
Preparing for UK SRS, whatever the start date
With the FCA’s comply-or-explain rules applying from 2027, adoption now buys time for data infrastructure, capability building and stakeholder signalling.
Map TCFD disclosures against UK SRS S2
For listed companies the gap is typically in cross-industry metrics, quantitative financial effects and Scope 3. Document where existing disclosures already meet the Standard.
Build Scope 3 data infrastructure
The longest-lead work for most entities: supplier engagement, data quality and category prioritisation usually take more than one reporting cycle. The one-year relief and comply-or-explain basis in the FCA’s final rules give flexibility but do not remove the data challenge.
Develop climate scenario analysis
UK SRS S2 requires it. Most entities start from NGFS or IEA scenarios; the analysis should reflect the entity’s own business model, geography and exposure.
Strengthen governance and risk integration
UK SRS requires explicit board oversight, management responsibility and integration into existing risk processes. Document what exists and find the gaps.
Engage assurance providers early
Voluntary assurance under ISSA (UK) 5000 is available now, and early application ahead of 15 December 2026 is permitted. The FCA’s final rules ask only that a company obtaining assurance names the provider, scope and standards, but assurance-ready data is cheaper to build now.
Monitor the FCA and MCR
Read the FCA’s final rules (PS26/19) and watch for its guidance; the Modernising corporate reporting consultation, open until 30 November 2026, is where the Companies Act question will be considered.
Start with a gap analysis to see how current reporting compares with the Standards.
The delivery programme is laid out in the UK SRS compliance guide.
Sources
Primary sources
Every figure, date and status on this page traces to the instrument’s owner. Secondary commentary is never the source for a number.
- Department for Business and TradeUK Sustainability Reporting Standards: UK SRS S1 and UK SRS S2
The publication page for both standards, issued on 25 February 2026 for voluntary use.
- Department for Business and TradeUK SRS S1 General Requirements — final standard (PDF)
The general framework: materiality, reporting entity, Connected information. Appendices A to E; the reliefs sit in Appendix E (E1–E5).
- Department for Business and TradeUK SRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures — final standard (PDF)
The climate standard: scenario analysis, Scope 1–3, cross-industry metrics. Appendices A to C; the reliefs sit in Appendix C (C1–C6).
- Department for Business and TradeUK Sustainability Reporting Standards — guidance
The government’s central page for UK SRS guidance and updates.
- Financial Conduct AuthorityPS26/19: Aligning listed issuers' sustainability disclosures with international standards
First published 30 September 2026. The final rules: comply or explain across the UK SRS (¶1.2, ¶1.7) for UKLR 6, 14, 15, 16 and 22 (¶3.6), from accounting periods starting on or after 1 January 2027 (¶3.12); reliefs (¶3.14).
- Financial Conduct AuthorityCP26/5: sustainability disclosures — consultation page
The consultation PS26/19 finalises; it estimated around 600 listed companies would be affected.
- Financial Conduct AuthorityCP26/5 — full text (PDF)
Scope as consulted (¶3.5), the proposed TCFD rule replacement (¶4.4) and the cost-benefit analysis (Annex 2 ¶¶43, 77).
- Department for Business and TradeGovernment response to the UK SRS consultation
Annex A lists the final UK differences from IFRS S1 and S2; Chapter 3 covers s.414CB, SECR and the s.463 safe harbour.
- Financial Conduct AuthorityClimate change and sustainable finance — reporting requirements
The FCA’s account of the current TCFD-aligned rules and what comes next.
- IFRS FoundationISSB issues inaugural global sustainability disclosure standards
IFRS S1 and IFRS S2 issued on 26 June 2023 as a global baseline.
- IFRS FoundationIFRS S1 General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-related Financial Information
The ISSB global baseline UK SRS S1 endorses.
- IFRS FoundationIFRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures
The ISSB global baseline UK SRS S2 endorses.
- IFRS FoundationUse of ISSB Standards by jurisdiction
Over 40 jurisdictions using, or taking steps to introduce, the ISSB Standards.
- IFRS FoundationIFRS Foundation and the TCFD
Monitoring of climate-related disclosures taken over from the TCFD from 2024.
- Department for Business, Innovation, Science and TradeModernising corporate reporting — consultation
Published 7 September 2026, closes 30 November 2026; says only that the government will consider how UK SRS should be reflected in the Companies Act 2006.
- Financial Reporting CouncilUK Sustainability Disclosure TAC issues final recommendations
Final endorsement recommendations, 18 December 2024.
- Financial Reporting CouncilUK Sustainability Disclosure TAC — endorsement technical assessment of IFRS S1 and IFRS S2
Final recommendations 18 December 2024; supplementary recommendations 26 January 2026.
- Financial Reporting CouncilAssurance standards — including ISSA (UK) 5000
ISSA (UK) 5000 issued 12 November 2025 for voluntary use.
- legislation.gov.ukCompanies Act 2006, section 414CB
Climate-related financial disclosure in the Strategic Report.
- legislation.gov.ukCompanies Act 2006, section 463
Directors' liability for the Strategic Report — the safe harbour.
- legislation.gov.ukThe Companies (Directors’ Report) and LLP (Energy and Carbon Report) Regulations 2018 (SI 2018/1155)
The SECR regime, which stays separate from UK SRS.
Continue reading
Read next
UK SRS S1 and S2: the complete reference guide
How the two standards fit together — S1 the general requirements, S2 the climate requirements — applied as a pair.
UK SRS S1 — General Requirements
The general sustainability disclosure framework: materiality, Connected information and the four pillars.
UK SRS S2 — Climate Disclosures
Climate-specific requirements including Scope 1–3 emissions, scenario analysis, transition plans and cross-industry metrics.
UK SRS Timeline
All key dates from ISSB establishment to the FCA’s 2027 comply-or-explain start and first reporting periods.
UK SRS Compliance Guide
Practical implementation guidance covering scope, preparation steps, gap analysis and regulatory interactions.
UK SRS vs IFRS S1 & S2
How UK SRS differs from IFRS and the implications for UK entities and global comparability.