Annex A: Resources

Finances

The table below sets out our agreed Spending Review 25 (SR25) Phase 2 funding settlement from HM Treasury covering the three-year period 2026/27 to 2028/29. The table aggregates the constituent elements of our overall funding into a “Total Departmental Expenditure Limit” (TDEL) which forms the total budget for the year. TDEL is made up of two spending controls set by HM Treasury relating to net resource and net capital expenditure.

The table also differentiates between core funding and funding which has been ring-fenced at SR25 for the Census 2031 Programme.

As part of SR25 the organisation has been set a 5% efficiencies and savings target that it needs to achieve by the end of 2028/29. The efficiencies and savings made by the organisation in the period are retained to help meet any future cost pressures.

The table below sets out the breakdown of organisational budgets for 2026/27 using the strategic objectives as framing. It should be noted that the assessment of how budgets are disaggregated by objective is based on assumptions and is thus both an estimate and subject to change. The disaggregation is at a total level i.e. core plus Census 2031 funding.

Strategic Objective 1 (SO1) – reflects the frontline costs of social and economic statistics production, including the Census programme.

Strategic Objective 2 (SO2) – reflects the costs associated with operating a National Statistics Office and includes the National Statistician’s Office and associated activities; the utilisation of Official Development Assistance funding; and the Secure Research Service.

Strategic Objective 3 (SO3) – the core infrastructure, data, technology, running and corporate services costs for the organisation. These costs support the ongoing operation of the organisation and all technological and data development work underpinning the delivery of the other strategic objectives. This also includes support for the Census 2031 programme.

*OSR’s expected funding has been separately identified due to its status as the UK Statistics Authority’s independent statutory regulator.

All funding from HM Treasury is subject to Parliament’s approval of the 2026/27 Main Estimate and is subject to change until that point. That approval is not expected until Summer 2026 and therefore the details provided in the table above may be subject to change. Budgets may also change through the Supplementary Estimate in early 2027.

People

As of 31 March 2026, the ONS had a workforce of 5,370 (FTE), including our national field force of 591 (FTE), distributed across 7 different locations. As well as the long-established office locations in Newport, Titchfield and London, the ONS now has sites in Edinburgh, Darlington and Manchester. We have also recently secured a new site in Belfast and expect this to open in June 2026. The tables below provide an overview of our current workforce as of 31 March 2026; all figures are full-time equivalent.

Workforce by location