Halifax sustainability score: 20/100
Better than 0% of Financial Services / Banking
Below expectations starts at 31. The highest score on SINK is 71.
Halifax is a brand of Bank of Scotland plc, offering mortgages, savings and personal lending in the UK. This score covers Bank of Scotland plc, which had about 16,682 employees and £5.66bn total income in 2025; mortgages were £291.6bn of its £314.3bn customer advances.
Head office Halifax, United KingdomStaff ~16,682 (2025)Revenue £5,659M total income (Bank of Scotland plc group, FY2025)Website ↗
Bank of Scotland plc (trading as Halifax) discloses almost no environmental data of its own, relying on SECR exemptions to defer to parent-group reporting. Across operations, supply chain, energy, and waste, it publishes zero figures. Its £314bn lending book is mortgage-heavy with no financed-emissions quantification. A Responsible Business Committee exists, but no measurable commitments were found in its accounts.
Halifax scores 20/100 (Significant gaps) on SINK's independent climate assessment, scored from public data only. Scores are free. Nobody can pay to change a score, speed it up or hide it. Last verified November 2026.
That places Halifax joint 973rd of 1,023 companies scored, and joint 59th of 61 in Financial Services / Banking.
What is Halifax doing well, and where does it fall short?
Strongest on Controversies & Red Flags and Transparency & Accountability (8/10, 3/10). Weakest on Carbon Footprint: Operations and Carbon Footprint: Supply Chain (1/10, 1/10).
Where Halifax lost points
For each question that lost points, the evidence our public rubric looks for that we didn't find.
What would raise this score
- Emissions from its own operationsPublish emissions figures for its own operations, even an estimate from energy bills.
- Emissions from its supply chainAssess where its supply-chain emissions come from.
- Whether its emissions are fallingShow its emissions are falling, even from energy bills or mileage.
Every question that lost points
- Emissions from its own operations1/10No emissions figures for its own operations, not even an estimate from energy bills.
- Emissions from its supply chain1/10No assessment of where its supply-chain emissions come from.
- Whether its emissions are falling1/10No evidence its emissions are falling, not even from energy bills or mileage.
- How clean its energy is1/10No renewable energy tariff or major efficiency investment shown.
- Its effect on nature2/10No assessment of its effect on nature, and no basic environmental policy.
- How it uses materials and handles waste1/10No recycling or waste reduction shown.
- Its effect on water1/10No figures for its water use.
- Its climate targets1/10No emissions reduction targets.
- How openly it reports3/10No published sustainability data, or no one named as responsible for it.
A score changes when the evidence does. We use new published evidence at the next rescore. Anyone can send us new evidence, free. How to send it.
How is Halifax's SINK score calculated?
Same ten questions for every company. No private weighting.
SINK = (0.3 × Base + 0.7 × Performance) × ScaleHas Halifax's score changed?
Halifax's score has moved from 46 to 20 across 4 recorded reviews, down 26 points.
- 20 → 207 November 2026
Correction, 7 November 2026: removed an unsourced emissions figure. Score unchanged.
- 46 → 20-266 November 2026
Re-scored under the current method on Bank of Scotland plc's own filed accounts, of which Halifax is a brand (owner rulings 2026-11-05 and 2026-11-06). Those accounts report no emissions of their own and group evidence doesn't count, so the cautious 0.70x size deduction applies.
- 46 → 4614 October 2026
Founded-year rule, score unchanged. founded 1853 -> empty: Halifax is not a company ("Halifax is a division of Bank of Scotland plc", halifax.co.uk). Halifax plc's business passed to Bank of Scotland plc (SC327000, incorporated 2007-09-17, https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/SC327000); the former Halifax plc (02367076, renamed Halifax Limited) was dissolved 2025-03-05 (https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/02367076). Bank of Scotland's 2007 creation is not Halifax's, so founded is left empty (owner ruling 2026-10-14). Description: removed the contradictory "founded in 1749"; now "its roots go back to 1853". bioVerifiedBy manual:halifax-1853-permanent-benefit-building-society -> manual:halifax-division-of-bank-of-scotland-sc327000.
- Scored 466 April 2026
Initial score at platform launch
What evidence is Halifax's score based on?
10 sources used in this assessment. All publicly available. Each row shows which of the ten questions it informed.
10% of them were published by Halifax itself; the rest come from independent sources.
Halifax is a brand of Bank of Scotland plc, so this score covers that company on its own filed accounts (owner ruling 2026-11-05). Those accounts report no emissions of its own and refer to its parent group's report. Group evidence doesn't count, so no emissions figure is used, and the cautious 0.70x size deduction applies.
“The Bank has taken advantage of the exemption from Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) reporting requirements in its own”
“Group of companies accounts made up to 31 December 2025”
“Halifax mortgage customers can earn up to £2,000 cashback for installing a heat pump”
“Halifax has now paid £6m in Green Living Reward cashback across all channels, of which £2.5m has been paid to broker clients.”
“has also partnered with Effective Home and Octopus Energy to streamline the process for customers”
“From Tuesday 10th December, Halifax will use a property's Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating in its affordability calculations.”
“Halifax explained that its affordability model already factors in living costs, including energy expenses”
“Halifax is a division of Bank of Scotland plc. Registered in Scotland No.SC327000.”
“Homes with the lowest energy efficiency ratings, ie EPC F and G, will see a small reduction in the maximum loan amount.”
“Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating when assessing an applicant”
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How does Halifax compare with other financial services / banking companies?
Halifax is tied at the bottom of the financial services / banking pack.
Among the 61 major financial services / banking brands we've scored, Halifax is tied =59th of 61, with 2 others.
Who scores higher in Financial Services / Banking?
The 3 companies in the sector scoring nearest above Halifax.
Freddie Mac publishes no emissions data for its operations or its mortgage book, and no reduction targets; its last sustainability report covered 2023 and its ESG web page was removed in 2025.
See the breakdown →Coutts publishes no emissions figures of its own and no figure for the emissions it finances: its climate reporting sits with NatWest Group, which does not count for Coutts here.
See the breakdown →Fannie Mae discloses no operational or financed emissions despite guaranteeing $4.1 trillion in mortgages.
See the breakdown →Which companies moved this week, and why.
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