Equality and diversity
We are committed to advancing equality and championing inclusion, ensuring everyone can realise their potential. We embed equality considerations thoroughly, breaking down barriers and fostering opportunity as both an employer and a policymaker.
Equality in policy-making
When working on the development of policy, our officials consider the impact policy options might have on those sharing protected characteristics. We look for positive steps to advance inclusion and assess how to prevent or mitigate against negative impacts. Ministers are advised of the impact a decision has on equalities, and this is considered, so decisions are made with a clear understanding of how they affect those sharing protected characteristics.
HMT policy officials follow the internal procedures to ensure compliance with the Public Sector Equality Duty under section 149 of the Equality Act 2010 (the PSED). Internal PSED guidance is available to staff to assist them in making their assessment of the equality impacts for policy issues under consideration.
Although the Treasury sets departmental budgets, it is in large part up to each individual department to decide how they use their funding. In deciding how the budget is to be spent, departments have responsibilities to consider the impact on individuals sharing protected characteristics. There are some policy areas, such as welfare, where the Treasury has a greater policy making responsibility.
Case studies: Autumn Budgets 2024 and 2025 and Spending Review 2025
Autumn Budget 2024 and 2025
Ahead of the Autumn Budgets of 2024 and 2025 we assessed the potential effects of policies and tax changes on diverse groups reflecting our belief that the government must work for everyone. For both Budgets, advice to Treasury Ministers clearly set out equality impacts. For the first, Tax Information and Impact Notes (TIINs) were published alongside the Finance Bill 2024-25 to promote transparency and public accountability. These TIINs set out, in summary, the expected impacts of tax measures including those relevant to protected characteristics and can be found here. In the case of Budget 2025, the TINNs are published alongside the Finance Bill and can be seen through the same link as above for that event.
Spending Review 2025
The government sets out its long-term plans for expenditure at Spending Reviews (SRs). Under the updated Charter for Budget Responsibility, the UK government is committed to conducting a multi-year spending review every two years. SRs cover the whole of the UK - including the devolved administrations in areas where spending responsibility is devolved - and set limits on UK Government departmental spending, and block grants for the Devolved Administrations for a set period. The most recent SR was held in 2025.
During Spending Review 2025, HMT worked closely with spending departments to ensure government spending was aligned with the government’s priorities and cost-effectiveness, including gathering information about the equalities impacts of spending review decisions. This information informed advice provided to Treasury Ministers during the spending review on the equalities implications of individual department settlements and the overall SR considerations. For example:
Health
- The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) SR settlement increases budgets from £177.9 billion to £232.0 billion by 2028-29, and funds the largest ever health capital budget, with a £4 billion cash increase in capital spending over the SR period. Spending on healthcare will particularly benefit older people, children and disabled people who are more likely to use NHS health services.
Adult Social Care
- The Spending Review allows for an increase of over £4bn available for adult social care in 2028-29 compared to 2025-26 as part of the local government settlement. This includes £500m to begin implementing the Fair Pay Agreement in 2028/29, intended to boost the wages and working conditions of adult social care workers across England. As ASC covers activities to help people who are older or living with a disability or physical or mental illness to live as independently as possible and to stay well, investment in adult social care services particularly benefits older people and those with disabilities. Meanwhile, as the ASC workforce has a high share of female workers and older workers, a policy that redistributes funds to the ASC workforce is likely to have positive equalities impacts.
Children’s Social Care
- Our reforms are based on evidence-led practice and build on recommendations from a series of reviews, including the Independent Review of Children’s Social Care. Our actions are informed by the experiences of children and young people, and we are working closely with local partners, including through the Families First Partnership Programme, to design and deliver the services that children and families need locally. While our reforms to children’s social care services are aimed at all children and families interacting with the care system, we know that certain cohorts of children – including older children, boys, and certain racial groups – are over-represented in cohorts of Children in Need and Children Looked After. Across our reforms, we are strengthening whole-family working and developing an understanding of a child’s background and family environment – as well as providing support to children of all ages, including teenagers leaving care.
We will continue to work closely with departments to ensure the way funding decisions are assessed is informed by important equalities considerations, helping build a fairer, more inclusive society. Through ongoing transparency and rigorous analysis, we aim to deliver policies that foster opportunity and help everyone realise their potential.
Equality as an employer
We promote equality of opportunity in employment to ensure our workforce is representative of the community it serves and that we attract and retain talented employees. We publish regular information on the diversity of our work force in the Treasury’s Annual Report and Accounts. (page 98-102). We also contribute to the Civil Service statistics publication, which provides the Civil Service context for our diversity data.
Public sector equality duty (PSED) objectives – 2024-28
Most public sector organisations are required by the Equality Act to publish equalities objectives every four years. For the 2024-28 period, we have set two equalities objectives that relate to our policy work and three workforce related equalities objectives.
All five are shown below:
Equality in policy work
The following objectives reflect the department’s continued commitment to consider with care the impacts of policy options on those sharing protected characteristics:
- Promote awareness and understanding by continuing to deliver and update the rolling programme of activities that informs HM Treasury officials on their responsibilities under the PSED and on equalities issues (ongoing to March 2028)
Continue to keep our internal mechanisms under active review and update the internal guidance, governance and support structures within HM Treasury for ensuring that statutory obligations set out under the PSED on equalities continue to be properly considered in policy work and decision making (ongoing to March 2028)
Equality in the workforce
The department’s workforce objectives demonstrate its continued commitment to embed equality, diversity and inclusion into our people-related activities, ensuring our organisation is a place where everyone can have access to opportunities, thrive and fulfil their potential. These are as follows:
- Renew our focus to build and deepen an inclusive culture based on our Treasury values by giving all colleagues a voice in shaping our organisation
- Improve representation and diversity of thought at all grades with fulfilling and sustainable careers across our locations by nurturing diverse talent and supporting all colleagues to grow and progress
- Foster accountability for the delivery of diversity and inclusion outcomes at all levels of the department with an evidence-based approach
Further information about the department’s actions to embed equality, diversity and inclusion can be found in Treasury’s Annual Report and Accounts (page 38-40).