--- title: "Action for Children rating & legitimacy | CharityCompare" description: "Is Action for Children a legitimate UK charity? Clarity Score 76/100. Accounts 2025: income £163m · 96% on charitable activities. Reg 1097940." source: https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/action-for-children retrieved: 2026-08-18T01:25:21.852Z license: "Charity data © Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0" --- Quick answer ## Is Action for Children a good charity? Action for Children scores 76/100 (4 stars, Good) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, calculated from its UK regulator filings. Its latest accounts year is 2025 (£163m total income, 96% of spending on charitable activities). This reflects financial transparency and stewardship on paper — not the real-world impact of its programmes. See the full breakdown. Watford · UK-wide · WD18 8AG | Reg [1097940](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/action-for-children) | Registered charity | [Official website](https://www.actionforchildren.org.uk/) | [Charity Commission register](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/1097940) Donate ## How can you give to ACTION FOR CHILDREN? You leave CharityCompare to complete a donation on the official ACTION FOR CHILDREN form. We do not process payments or take commission. Opens their official online donation form. [Donate](https://www.actionforchildren.org.uk/?utm_source=charitycompare&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=donate&utm_content=1097940) ## What does Action for Children do? Action for Children is a registered charity (no. 1097940) working in homelessness across the United Kingdom. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 96% of spending to charitable activities, holding roughly 1 month of reserves, and files its annual accounts on time. Reported income has been broadly stable over recent years. CharityCompare's Clarity Score rates the organisation only from public Charity Commission accounts — accountability, financial health, efficiency and community support — not the quality or impact of its programmes. Summarised from public filings — Action for Children hasn't added its own description yet. [Work here? Add it free →](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/claim?charity=action-for-children) **In short:** ACTION FOR CHILDREN scores 76 out of 100 (4 stars). 96% average program spend (3-year average). Filings are up to date with no major concerns. ## What is Action for Children? Action for Children has a Clarity Score of 76 out of 100 on CharityCompare (4 stars, Good). Charity Commission registration number 1097940. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: Homelessness. Latest accounts year 2025: total income £163m, with 96% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: up to date. Reserves: approximately 1 month of operating costs. No major red flags from our filing review. Scores are independent and based on official filings — not a donation recommendation. Data from [Charity Commission register](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/), last updated 17 July 2026. Overall score 76/100 4★ · Good Cause spend 96% 3-yr avg · charitable activities Accountability 100/100 Finance beacon Income £163m Latest year 2025 Reserves 1 mo 1 month of running costs Accounts filing On time Charity Commission £22.8 raised per £1 fundraising (3-yr avg) · 5% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: high ## How does ACTION FOR CHILDREN compare? Clarity Score percentile against similar UK charities — the share of peers ACTION FOR CHILDREN scores higher than. Income band (£10m+)43rdpercentile **Scores higher than 43% of 943 charities in its income band** · 76/100 vs 77 peer average (marker). Homelessness charities33rdpercentile **Scores higher than 33% of 243 charities in this cause** · 76/100 vs 79 peer average (marker). ## How reliable is Action for Children's data? Source Charity Commission (England & Wales) Accounts year 2025 Filing date 24 June 2026 Profile reviewed 17 July 2026 High confidence — complete filing data Scores reflect the latest annual accounts on the register. Clarity Score measures how clearly the charity accounts for money in those filings — not programme impact. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Sources: [Charity Commission for England and Wales](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/), [Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator](https://www.oscr.org.uk/) and [Charity Commission for Northern Ireland](https://www.charitycommissionni.org.uk/). [Open Government Licence v3.0](https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/). ## What is Action for Children's Beacon report? Detailed accountability and finance metrics from UK regulator filings — structured for transparency in our four-beacon report. ### Accountability & Transparency Baseline trust from filing discipline, board oversight, and declared governance policies. 100/100 | Metric | Score | Value | | --- | --- | --- | | Filing history (5 years) 100% on-time over five years = 15 pts · one late filing = 5 pts · two or more = 0 pts. | 100% | 15/15 pts | | Trustee oversight Three or more trustees on the register = 15 pts, scaled down for fewer (governance red flag below three). | 100% | 12 trustees · 15/15 pts | | Declared policies Safeguarding (4) · conflict of interest (3) · volunteer management (3) — from Charity Commission annual return. | 100% | 10/10 pts | ### Financial Health Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts. 50/100 | Metric | Score | Value | | --- | --- | --- | | Reserves (months of cash) 3–24 months = full marks, tapering on both sides · 0 months or 4+ years (hoarding) = 0 pts. | 33% | 1 month · 5/15 pts | | Income stability / growth +20% or more over the window = 10 pts · flat = 5 pts · −20% or worse = 0 pts, scaled between. | 70% | 7/10 pts · 3-year average | | Liabilities to assets 0% liabilities-to-assets = 5 pts, scaling down to 0 pts at 60%+ debt. | 60% | 25% · 3/5 pts | ### Financial Efficiency How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios. 100/100 | Metric | Score | Value | | --- | --- | --- | | Program expense ratio 90%+ on charitable activities = full marks, scaling down to 0 pts at 50% or below. | 100% | 96% · 10/10 pts (3-year average) | | Fundraising efficiency ≤10p to raise £1 = full marks, scaling down to 0 pts at 40p or above (fundraising cost ÷ income). | 100% | 4p per £1 income · 10/10 pts (3-year average) | ### Community Support Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff. 10/100 | Metric | Score | Value | | --- | --- | --- | | Volunteer-to-staff ratio Volunteers at 2x staff or more = full marks · no volunteers = 0 pts, scaled between. | 10% | 475 volunteers / 4395 staff · 1/10 pts | [How we calculate beacon scores →](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology) ## What is Action for Children's Clarity Score? 76/100 total · Good · 4 of 5 stars Four pillars (40 + 30 + 20 + 10 points) from Charity Commission filings — see methodology for full weightings. 100/100 Accountability & Transparency 50/100 Financial Health 100/100 Financial Efficiency 10/100 Community Support ### Accountability & Transparency Baseline trust from filing discipline, board oversight, and declared governance policies. 100/100 Filing history (5 years)15/15 pts Trustee oversight12 trustees · 15/15 pts Declared policies10/10 pts ### Financial Health Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts. 50/100 Reserves (months of cash)1 month · 5/15 pts Income stability / growth7/10 pts · 3-year average Liabilities to assets25% · 3/5 pts ### Financial Efficiency How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios. 100/100 Program expense ratio96% · 10/10 pts (3-year average) Fundraising efficiency4p per £1 income · 10/10 pts (3-year average) ### Community Support Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff. 10/100 Volunteer-to-staff ratio475 volunteers / 4395 staff · 1/10 pts ## How much does Action for Children raise and spend? Latest filed year 2025 · Source: Charity Commission filings | Category | Amount | % of spend | | --- | --- | --- | | Total income | £163m | — | | Total expenditure | £163m | — | | Charitable activities | £156m | 95% | | Fundraising | £7.4m | 5% | | Governance & admin | £1.2m | 1% | 95%On charitable activities ## Where does the money go? Latest accounts (2025) · £163m spent - Charitable activities95% · £156m - Fundraising5% · £7.4m - Governance1% · £1.2m ## What trust indicators does Action for Children have? Pulled from the Charity Commission register — filing behaviour, board size, and workforce where reported. - ✓ Accounts filed on time up to date · last filing 24 June 2026 - ✓ Trustee board size (3–12) 12 trustees on the Charity Commission register - ✓ Workforce on register 4395 employees · 475 volunteers (0:1 volunteer-to-staff) Fundraising Regulator Not listed as member Separate from our financial scores — shows whether the charity follows the Code of Fundraising Practice. [Check Fundraising Regulator →](https://www.fundraisingregulator.org.uk/members/) Official register Reg 1097940 Full trustee list, accounts, and regulatory history on the Charity Commission. [View on Charity Commission →](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/1097940) ### Trustees & officers - Sarika Patel Chair · since 2019 - Enda Michael Johnson since 2020 - Rev Michael John Adrian Long since 2020 - Steven David Bell since 2020 - Peter Thomas Curran since 2021 - Lynne Ann Atkin since 2022 - Charles Nairn Geekie KC since 2023 - Navin Kaul since 2024 - Anthony Hunter since 2026 - Elizabeth Bell since 2026 - Richard Eastmond since 2026 - Robert Fleming since 2026 100 How we score charities +The Clarity Score is a 100-point rating from UK regulator filings (Charity Commission for England and Wales, OSCR and CCNI). Four pillars — Accountability & Transparency (40), Financial Health (30), Financial Efficiency (20), and Community Support (10) — each scored on a continuous scale, not pass/fail cutoffs. A statutory inquiry sets the score to 0 automatically. [Full methodology →](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology) Accountability & Transparency Scored from filings 40 points — filing history (15), trustee oversight (15, scaling up to a board of three or more), declared policies (10). Financial Health Scored from filings 30 points — reserves (15, full marks 3–24 months, tapering on both sides), income stability (10), liabilities to assets (5, scaling down as debt rises). Financial Efficiency Scored from filings 20 points — program expense ratio and fundraising cost, each on a graduated scale (not a single cutoff). Kept at 20% of the total: financial-ratio scoring alone is not a reliable effectiveness signal (see "why not just an overhead ratio?" below). Community Support Scored from filings 10 points — volunteer-to-staff ratio from Charity Commission workforce data, scaling continuously up to a 2:1 ratio. Overall score Sum of all pillar points. Display stars use the same bands as the labels: 90–100 → 5★ Exceptional; 75–89 → 4★ Good; 60–74 → 3★ Needs improvement; 1–59 → 2★ Poor; 0 → not rated. ## How have Action for Children's finances changed over five years? - Income - Spending - Cause spend Values in £ thousands · Cause spend plotted only when the filing discloses a split · Source: Charity Commission accounts ## What are the key facts about Action for Children? Overall score 76/100 (4★) Income £163m Cause spend 96% of expenditure Reg number 1097940 Scope UK-wide Reserves 1 month Trustees 12 Accounts year 2025 Filing up to date ## How does ACTION FOR CHILDREN compare, and where else can you look? [Compare ACTION FOR CHILDREN with others](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/compare-charities?ids=action-for-children) [More homelessness charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/homelessness) [How we score charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology) ### Where ACTION FOR CHILDREN sits The causes this charity is classified under, and other charities working nearby. - [homelessness charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/homelessness) - [disability charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/disability) - [education charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/education) - [children charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/children) - [Charities in Watford](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/cities/watford) ### Similar homelessness charities Top-rated peers by CharityCompare score - [ROUNDABOUT LIMITED](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/roundabout-limited) 98/100 · £9.4m - [DEAFBLIND UK](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/deafblind-uk) 98/100 · £3.6m - [SIGHT SUPPORT HULL AND EAST YORKSHIRE](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/sight-support-hull-and-east-yorkshire) 96/100 · £666k - [Churches Housing Action Team (Devon) Ltd](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/churches-housing-action-team-devon-ltd) 95/100 · £489k ## How can you share Action for Children's rating? 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Free to use — a lightweight HTML badge or an embeddable score widget, each linking back to this independent profile and our [methodology](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology). BadgeScore widget [♥ CharityCompare Clarity Score 76/100 ★★★★★](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/action-for-children) Lightweight HTML badge (no iframe) — paste anywhere ♥ CharityCompare Clarity Score 76/100 ★★★★★ Copy code ## Frequently asked questions Common questions about Action for Children's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status. Is Action for Children a good charity? + Action for Children scores 76 out of 100 (4 stars — Good) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its UK regulator filings. Around 96% of its spending goes to charitable activities and its accounts are up to date. That reflects how transparent and financially healthy it looks on paper — it does not measure the real-world impact of its work, so treat it as one factor alongside the cause you care about. CharityCompare never tells you where to donate. Is Action for Children a legitimate charity? + Yes — Action for Children is a legitimate registered charity (charity number 1097940). Verify it on the official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/1097940. Registration proves status; Clarity Score then summarises filing transparency on paper, not programme impact. What is Action for Children's charity number? + Action for Children's charity number is 1097940. Check that number on the official register (Charity Commission, OSCR or CCNI) or this CharityCompare profile before you donate — scammers sometimes reuse real numbers on fake appeals. What is Action for Children's charity rating? + Action for Children scores 76 out of 100 on CharityCompare (4 stars — Good). The Clarity Score V1 sums four pillars from UK regulator filings: Accountability & Transparency (40 pts), Financial Health (30), Financial Efficiency (20), and Community Support (10). Stars use the same bands as those labels — 90+ is 5★ Exceptional. It is not an impact ranking. Does Action for Children have reviews and complaints? + CharityCompare does not host public user reviews for Action for Children. Instead you get a filing-based Clarity Score, cause spend, reserves and red flags such as late accounts. For formal complaints about a charity, contact the Charity Commission, OSCR, CCNI or the Fundraising Regulator as appropriate. How much of my donation reaches Action for Children? + According to its 2025 regulator filing, 96% of Action for Children's total spending went to charitable activities (3-yr avg across disclosed years). That is the closest official figure to "how much of your donation reaches the cause" — it is an average across all spending in the filing, not a pound-by-pound breakdown of an individual gift. What are Action for Children's overheads? + According to its 2025 regulator filing, fundraising costs were about 4% of total expenditure and combined overheads (fundraising plus governance) were about 5% of total expenditure at Action for Children. The filings CharityCompare uses do not publish CEO or senior-staff pay, so we cannot say what Action for Children's chief executive is paid — where disclosure rules apply, senior pay appears in the trustees' annual report on the Charity Commission register. How much income does Action for Children receive? + Action for Children reported £163m total income in its 2025 accounts, based on UK regulator filings. Five-year trend: stable. Are Action for Children's accounts up to date? + Filing status: up to date (last filing 2026-06-24). CharityCompare flags late or missing accounts separately from the financial score. Where is Action for Children based? + Action for Children is listed at Watford · UK-wide · WD18 8AG and operates UK-wide, focused on homelessness. How does CharityCompare score Action for Children? + We calculate a Clarity Score of 0–100 from four pillars in Action for Children's regulator filings: Accountability & Transparency (40 points — filing history, trustees, policies), Financial Health (30 — reserves, income trend, debt), Financial Efficiency (20 — cause spend and fundraising cost, on a graduated scale) and Community Support (10 — volunteer-to-staff ratio). An open statutory inquiry scores 0. The score measures reporting on paper, not programme impact. CharityCompare is free for donors, takes no commission on donations, and scores cannot be bought. How often is this page updated? + This profile was last updated on 17 July 2026 from the latest UK regulator data available to CharityCompare, and Action for Children's most recent accounts cover 2025. Scores and figures refresh whenever we re-ingest the register, so the page reflects our latest data pull rather than a one-off review.