TCFD framework — four pillars, eleven disclosures
The complete TCFD framework: four thematic pillars covering Governance, Strategy, Risk Management and Metrics & Targets, supported by eleven recommended disclosures. Every climate-disclosure standard since — IFRS S2, UK SRS S2, EU ESRS E1 — is built on this architecture.
The four-pillar architecture
The Task Force structured its recommendations around four thematic areas representing core elements of how organisations operate. Each pillar maps to a single core recommendation and is supported by two or three recommended disclosures.
The four recommendations are interrelated and supported by 11 recommended disclosures that build out the framework with information that should help investors and others understand how reporting organizations think about and assess climate-related risks and opportunities.
Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures
Governance — 2 disclosures
Disclose the organisation’s governance around climate-related risks and opportunities. Core for mainstream financial filings — no materiality test.
- Gov-a — Board oversight Recommended disclosure
- Describe the board's oversight of climate-related risks and opportunities. Covers: which board committee considers climate, how often, what governance information flows up, how climate considers business strategy, risk management policies, annual budgets, business plans, performance objectives, major capital expenditures, acquisitions and divestitures.
- Gov-b — Management's role Recommended disclosure
- Describe management's role in assessing and managing climate-related risks and opportunities. Covers: whether the organisation has assigned climate-related responsibilities to management-level positions, the associated organisational structure, processes by which management is informed about climate-related issues, and how management monitors climate matters.
Strategy — 3 disclosures
Disclose the actual and potential impacts of climate-related risks and opportunities on the organisation’s businesses, strategy and financial planning where such information is material. Includes the scenario-analysis requirement.
- Strat-a — Risks and opportunities by time horizon Recommended disclosure
- Describe the climate-related risks and opportunities the organisation has identified over the short, medium and long term. Covers: time horizons used, specific climate-related issues for each horizon, processes used to determine which risks and opportunities could have a material financial impact.
- Strat-b — Business and financial impact Recommended disclosure
- Describe the impact of climate-related risks and opportunities on the organisation's businesses, strategy and financial planning. Covers impact on: products and services, supply chain and value chain, adaptation and mitigation activities, investment in R&D, operations (types of operations, location of facilities), and acquisitions or divestitures.
- Strat-c — Scenario analysis Recommended disclosure
- Describe the resilience of the organisation’s strategy, taking into consideration different climate-related scenarios, including a 2°C or lower scenario. This is the most technically demanding TCFD disclosure — see our dedicated TCFD disclosures guide for practical examples of physical-risk and transition-risk scenarios 2.
Risk Management — 3 disclosures
Disclose how the organisation identifies, assesses and manages climate-related risks. Core for mainstream financial filings — no materiality test.
- RM-a — Identifying and assessing risks Recommended disclosure
- Describe the organisation's processes for identifying and assessing climate-related risks. Covers: how the organisation determines the relative significance of climate-related risks compared to other risks, how it considers existing and emerging regulatory requirements, how it assesses the potential size and scope of identified climate-related risks, and definitions of risk terminology used.
- RM-b — Managing risks Recommended disclosure
- Describe the organisation's processes for managing climate-related risks. Covers: how the organisation makes decisions to mitigate, transfer, accept or control climate-related risks, and how it prioritises climate-related risks including how materiality is determined.
- RM-c — Integration with overall risk management Recommended disclosure
- Describe how processes for identifying, assessing and managing climate-related risks are integrated into the organisation's overall risk management. Demonstrates whether climate is treated as a standalone exercise or genuinely embedded in enterprise risk management.
Metrics & Targets — 3 disclosures
Disclose the metrics and targets used to assess and manage relevant climate-related risks and opportunities. The ‘connective tissue’ that links the other three pillars.
- M&T-a — Climate metrics Recommended disclosure
- Disclose the metrics used by the organisation to assess climate-related risks and opportunities in line with its strategy and risk management process. Covers cross-industry metric categories: GHG emissions, transition risks, physical risks, climate-related opportunities, capital deployment, internal carbon prices, and remuneration.
- M&T-b — Scope 1, 2 and 3 GHG emissions Recommended disclosure
- Disclose Scope 1, Scope 2 and, if appropriate, Scope 3 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the related risks 3. The Task Force later concluded that Scope 1 and 2 should be disclosed independent of materiality 1. Scope 3 remains subject to an ‘if appropriate’ / materiality test under TCFD, though UK SRS S2 and IFRS S2 make Scope 3 mandatory (with comply-or-explain in year one).
- M&T-c — Targets and performance Recommended disclosure
- Describe the targets used by the organisation to manage climate-related risks and opportunities and performance against targets. Covers: whether the target is absolute or intensity-based, time frames over which the target applies, base year, key performance indicators used to assess progress against targets.
Cross-industry metric categories under TCFD M&T-a
GHG emissions; transition risks; physical risks; climate-related opportunities; capital deployment; internal carbon prices; and remuneration.
The 2021 Annex added these as a default set of cross-industry climate-related metrics.
Which disclosures are subject to materiality
The TCFD treats Governance and Risk Management disclosures as core (no materiality test). Strategy and Metrics & Targets disclosures are material-only — with the exception of Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, which should always be disclosed.
TCFD → IFRS S2 → UK SRS S2
IFRS S2 fully incorporates TCFD’s four pillars and 11 recommendations — the IFRS Foundation publishes an explicit comparison. UK SRS S2 then layers six UK-specific amendments on top.
Seven principles for high-quality disclosure
Beyond the 11 recommendations, the TCFD set out seven principles to characterise effective climate-related financial disclosure. These principles inform the FRC’s and FCA’s review of disclosures in UK annual reports.
- 1. Relevant Principle
- Disclosure should represent relevant information — focused on the user's needs for understanding climate-related risks and opportunities.
- 2. Specific and complete Principle
- Disclosure should be specific and complete — covering the recommended elements rather than partial or generic statements.
- 3. Clear, balanced and understandable Principle
- Disclosure should be clear, balanced and understandable — appropriate for the level of users' likely sophistication.
- 4. Consistent over time Principle
- Disclosure should be consistent over time — supporting year-on-year tracking of progress and changes in approach.
- 5. Comparable Principle
- Disclosure should be comparable among companies within a sector, industry or portfolio.
- 6. Reliable, verifiable, objective Principle
- Disclosure should be reliable, verifiable and objective — supportable by underlying data and processes.
- 7. Timely Principle
- Disclosure should be provided on a timely basis — aligned with the financial reporting cycle.
The TCFD guide set
From the framework, continue to practical drafting, UK-specific requirements, and the migration to UK SRS S2.
TCFD — the UK guide
Cluster anchor: history, four pillars, UK applicability and the path to UK SRS S2.
RequirementsTCFD reporting requirements
Who must report under FCA Listing Rules and SI 2022/31, what to disclose, and when.
PracticalTCFD disclosures — practical guidance
How to draft each of the 11 disclosures, examples, and the UK SRS S2 uplift.
UK-specificTCFD UK requirements
FCA Listing Rules, SI 2022/31, threshold tests, and the UK SRS S2 transition.
MigrationTCFD → UK SRS migration
What carries over from TCFD to UK SRS S2 and what UK SRS S2 demands on top.
StandardsUK SRS S1 — General Requirements
The S1 architectural framework that supports UK SRS S2 climate disclosures.
Related guides & references
Primary references
TCFD original documentation, IFRS Foundation comparison, GHG Protocol — the sources behind every claim on this page.