The United Kingdom government has published the finalized UK Sustainability Reporting Standards (UK SRS) — a set of corporate reporting rules aimed at enhancing voluntary sustainability and climate disclosures for companies.

The new standards include UK SRS S1 and UK SRS S2, aligned with the International Sustainability Standards Board’s (ISSB) IFRS S1 (sustainability-related disclosures) and IFRS S2 (climate-related disclosures). Both standards provide a framework for companies to consistently report sustainability-related financial risks and opportunities, improving comparability and investor insight.

While currently set for voluntary adoption, the UK government has indicated it may move toward mandatory application in future corporate reporting reforms. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is separately consulting on updating listing rules to require UK SRS disclosures for listed companies, and broader requirements for private firms could come through forthcoming legislation.

A notable technical change in the finalized UK SRS relates to transitional reliefs: whereas draft standards had specific time limits for reporting Scope 3 emissions and “climate-first” reliefs, the final standards remove those time references, leaving such transition periods to regulators or future law.

Supporters highlight UK SRS as a crucial step toward modernizing sustainability reporting, aligning the UK with global reporting norms while providing clear, decision-useful information to investors and stakeholders.