First published 19 October 2022 | Last updated 12 March 2025
BACKGROUND / Setting the scene
All of the key indicators and messages on a single page, grouped by area, with links to the underlying statistics, substance (arguments), stories, surveys and potential solutions.
An innate sense of fairness is hardwired into us, because humans evolved by building large social groups that depend on fair co-operation and rewarding positive behaviour…
The Fairness Index is the first online resource to collate and explain the key data about how fair British society is today. It focuses on five areas linked to the five ‘fair necessities’.
The index should be of interest to everyone, but is particularly designed to help social change organisations by explaining how and why the problems they seek to address are unfair.
The Fairness Foundation works to change the debate around fairness in the UK and to promote fairness as the foundation of a healthy, prosperous and secure society.
THE FAIR NECESSITIES / What is fairness?
Our definition of fairness, developed and published in 2021 and validated by polling in April 2022
Everyone should have their basic needs met, but we need to go further to enable people to play a constructive role in society
Everyone should be able to thrive, without having to overcome unreasonable barriers to opportunity or earn a huge salary
Everyone’s hard work should be rewarded, in line with their contribution to our society as well as to our economy
Everyone should contribute to society by paying the taxes that they owe, and in return they should be supported by society when they need it
Everyone should be treated with equal respect and should be able to exercise equal influence on decisions made in their name
INDICATORS / How fair is the UK?
15 indicators, three for each of the five fair necessities, to test whether we live in a fair society (methodology)
STATISTICS / What are the numbers behind the headline indicators?
Additional data such as regional and group breakdowns, changes over time, and overseas comparisons
SUBSTANCE / Why is the UK unfair?
Arguments about the nature, causes and consequences of key inequalities, citing and linking to third-party reports
SOLUTIONS / What can we do about it?
Some suggested solutions put forward by other organisations, grouped under three broad headings
SURVEYS / What does the public think?
A database of third-party polling on public attitudes linked to the fair necessities, as well as our own polling
What does our polling show?
STORIES / How does this translate into real life?
Links to interviews with people who have experienced the sharp end of living with unfairness in the UK, or stories about other aspects of unfairness
PERSPECTIVES / On some cross-cutting topics
ISSUES / Browse the data by thematic issue
BACKGROUND / Appendices
RESOURCES / Fairness Foundation
Read previous editions and subscribe
Find out more about we can help you
Read our definition of fairness (The Fair Necessities)
Read the findings of our attitudinal research
Watch event recordings or read summaries
