LONDON, March 26 -- The government of the United Kingdom issued the following news:
The Charity Commission, the regulator of charities in England and Wales, has analysed data drawn fromannual returns for thefinancial yearending 2024- the most comprehensive dataset available to the charity sectoreach year.
Charitiesin England and Walesspent£100 billionon deliveringvital societal impactin 2024,5.4%more than in2023andexceeding the 2.5% increase in the consumer price index for the same period.The majority ofsector grossexpenditure(90%)benefittedcommunities in the UK,whilea tenth,£11 billion, wasoverseas.
Increased expenditure wasmatched by growth in income (5.6%), which rose to £102 billion.Of this,almost a third (32%)was down tothe generosity of the public,with donations and legacies reaching £32 billion.Small charities, which are by far the greatest in number,largely relyon this income.Charitable activitiesgenerated£50 billion,around half of all charity income (49%), and a further £10 billionwas generated byothertrading activities (10%).
Alongside vital support from the public,organisationsalso made a considerable contribution to charity with half(51%) of charities with an income of £100,000or morereportingdonations from a corporate donor.Meanwhile an upward trend continued inthe number ofservicesprovided by charitiesunder contract tolocal or nationalgovernment,upby7%to 7,358,witha totalvalue of£11 billion.Grant making charities awarded£17.84 billionin grants,up from £16.97 billion in 2023,which included£12 billion to other charities.
However,for a third year in a row, the analysis drew out some indicators underliningtheongoing financial squeezein parts of the sector.
The margin between income and expenditure across the sectorimproved butisnot yet recovered to pre-pandemic levels,withsmaller charitiesoperatingonthenarrowest margins. In 2024the overallsector-levelmarginwas £1 billion,up fromafive-yearlow of£700 million in2023.Whilemore than half of charities (57%) had more income than expenditure, around 2 in 5 charities (41%) had expenditure that exceeded incomewiththeremainderbreaking even.One in four (25%) charities with an income of £10,000 or less reportedonlybreakingevencompared to less than 1% for each of the other income bands, pointing to the challenges faced by smaller charities.
Fewer jobs were reportedin 2024than in 2023,alongside asmall risein thenumber of volunteers. While the sector employs 1.6 million people acrossnearly 50,000charities, most of whom work in the UK, there were 139,725 fewer jobs reported in 2024 than in the 2023 annual returnincluding9,870 working overseas.Volunteers, who are essential to delivering public good, outnumbered paid workers in charities by a factor of3.8:1 in 2024,up from 3.5:1 in 2023.Around 70% of charities reported volunteers helped them deliver their charitable work in 2024,withmore than6 million volunteers reported.
Charity CommissionChief Executive,David Holdsworth,said:
Charities across England and Walescontinue tomakea huge impactand thisanalysis of charities' annual returns underlinestheirsignificantsocial and economiccontributionat a local,nationalandglobal level.
Butcharity leaders up and down both countriescontinue totell usthey are underconsiderable financialpressures. Thishasan ongoing impact on their ability to deliver, which is felt keenly is by the communities they serve.
Oneof the most important things trustees can do is plan and act on any 'early warning indicators' to help manage their finances whilst they still have a range of options.We have guidance to help charities facing intochallenging times.
To help trustees better understand and manage their financial responsibilities, the Commission is promotingitsonlinefinance toolkitwhich includesa financial health checkeras well asstraightforwardguidance.
Each question asked of charities in the annual returnisintendedto enable the Commission to better identify risks and problems in the sector; to help the public make informed and confident choices about charities; and allow policymakers, researchers, the sector and the public to gain a richer understanding of the sector in England and Wales.
Forfinancial yearsending in 2024 some110,756 charitieswere requiredtosubmitthe Charity Annual Return.Complianceroseto 97% in 2024 up from 93% of eligible charities forfinancial yearsending in 2023.
ENDS
Notes to editors
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The annual return 2024representsthe most comprehensive data set available on the charity sector, as it is a statutory requirement for charities to provide this to the Commission.TheCommission's analysis of theannual return 2024is a factualpresentation ofthe data charities have reported to the Commissionfor 12-month financial periods ending at any point in 2025.Annual Return data is a 'lagging indicator' as the information it captures has passedas each charity has up to 10 months to report it after the end of itsfinancial year.
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All registered charities must provide information annually to the Charity Commission ('the Commission'). The rules vary according to the charity's size and structure. Registered charities with:
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income up to £10,000 should complete the relevant sections (income and expenditure) of the annual return
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income above £10,000, and all Charitable Incorporated Organisations ('CIOs'), must prepare and file an annual return
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income above £25,000, and all CIOs, must also file copies of their trustees' annual report and accounts
For further information see the Commission's guidance on how toprepare a charity annual return.
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To help reduce unnecessary regulatory burdens on smaller charities,only larger charities,those with an income of £500,000 or more,are asked about the breakdown of their income and expenditure in the Annual Return.
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Figures have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Please see the report for more detailed values.
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TheCommission'sTrustee Finance Toolkit is availableat:https://beingacharitytrustee.campaign.gov.uk/trustee-finance-toolkit
Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.
