Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Key definition

Diversity definition

What does Diversity mean? In legal practice, diversity describes designing or procuring two or more separate and dissimilar systems that perform the same function so that a single fault, common design error or shared dependency is less likely to disable all protections at once. It complements redundancy: rather than like-for-like duplication, the systems are independent and varied (for example, different vendors, technologies, code bases, power feeds or physical routes). This is not generally defined in statute or case law; it is a descriptive risk‑control concept recognised in regulator guidance and industry standards, and is routinely addressed in contracts, safety cases and procurement for critical infrastructure,...

SRA diversity monitoring for law firms: mandatory collection, reporting and publication, data protection, and benchmarking guidance (England and Wales)

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Practice notes

The solicitors regulation authority (SRA) mandates that, every two years, you gather, submit and publish information on the diversity profile of your workforce. The SRA sets out in detail the categories to be collected and the individuals to be included. This Practice Note outlines what your firm must do. A companion Practice Note, Diversity monitoring and data protection, addresses the data protection considerations of diversity monitoring.

The regulatory regime

There is no express statutory duty to monitor workforce diversity; this obligation arises from the SRA’s rules.

The three stages of diversity monitoring

collecting diversity information from your workforce
reporting those figures to the SRA
publishing the results

Are all firms required to monitor diversity?

The duty to collect, report and publish diversity figures covers all firms, including sole practitioners, traditional practices and alternative business structures. Where a firm consists of multiple separate but related entities, only a single consolidated return is needed. The obligation applies to regulated law firms only, and excludes in-house lawyers and unregulated organisations.

Whose data must you collect?

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Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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