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Bright Futures Early Learning

Charity rating & review

60/100 Clarity Score · 2 stars · Charity Commission filings · How we score

Verified · Charity Commission data
60 /100

Clarity score

Needs improvement

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Is Bright Futures Early Learning a good charity?

Bright Futures Early Learning scores 60/100 (Needs improvement) on our Clarity Score, with 100% of spending going to charitable activities and accounts late. This reflects financial transparency and stewardship from Charity Commission filings — not the real-world impact of its programmes. See the full breakdown.

Birmingham · BB4 8HW Reg 1159674 Registered charity Official website Charity Commission register

Mission

Bright Futures Early Learning is a registered charity (no. 1159674) working in children & youth in Birmingham · BB4 8HW. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 100% of spending to charitable activities, though its recent accounts were filed late. Reported income has been declining 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.

In short: Bright Futures Early Learning scores 60 out of 100 (2 stars). 100% average program spend (3-year average). Review the pillar breakdown below.

Overview

Bright Futures Early Learning has a Clarity Score of 60 out of 100 on CharityCompare (2 stars, Needs improvement). Charity Commission registration number 1159674. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: Children & youth. Latest accounts year 2021: total income £555k, with 100% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: late. 1 filing concern(s) noted on this profile. Scores are independent and based on official filings — not a donation recommendation.

Data from Charity Commission register, last updated .

Overall score

60/100

2★ · Needs improvement

Cause spend

100%

3-yr avg · charitable activities

Accountability

75/100

Finance beacon

Income

£555k

Latest year 2021

Reserves

Months of running costs

Accounts filing

Late

Check register

Fundraising efficiency not stated · 0% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: medium

How Bright Futures Early Learning compares

Clarity Score benchmarked against similar UK charities — higher is better.

Income band (£500k–£1m)60 vs 78 avg

Ranks higher than 13% of 2,157 charities in its income band.

Children & youth charities60 vs 78 avg

Ranks higher than 12% of 3,988 charities in this cause.

Data & confidence

Source
Charity Commission (E&W)
Accounts year
2021
Filing date
2026-06-24 00:00:00.0000000
Profile reviewed
2026-06-25

Medium confidence — some data missing or late

Scores reflect the latest annual accounts on the register. Impact, leadership, and culture beacons require information beyond public filings.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: Charity Commission for England and Wales . Open Government Licence v3.0 .

Beacon report

Detailed accountability and finance metrics from Charity Commission filings — structured for transparency in our four-beacon report.

Accountability & Transparency

Baseline trust from filing discipline, board oversight, and declared governance policies.

75/100

Accountability & Transparency metrics for Bright Futures Early Learning
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.

33% 5/15 pts
Trustee oversight

Three or more trustees on the register = 15 pts · one or two = 0 pts (governance red flag).

100% 3 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.

33/100

Financial Health metrics for Bright Futures Early Learning
Metric Score Value
Reserves (months of cash)

3–24 months = 15 pts · 1–3 months = 7 pts · under 1 month or over 3 years (hoarding) = 0 pts.

0% Not stated · 0/15 pts
Income stability / growth

Positive or stable three-year revenue trend = 10 pts · sustained decline = 0 pts.

100% 10/10 pts · 3-year average
Liabilities to assets

Low debt (< 30% liabilities to assets) = 5 pts · high debt = 0 pts.

0% 51% · 0/5 pts

Financial Efficiency

How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios.

100/100

Financial Efficiency metrics for Bright Futures Early Learning
Metric Score Value
Program expense ratio

≥ 75% on charitable activities = 10 pts · 60–75% = 5 pts · below 60% = 0 pts.

100% 100% · 10/10 pts (3-year average)
Fundraising efficiency

Spends ≤ £0.20 to raise £1 = 10 pts · £0.21–£0.35 = 5 pts · above £0.35 = 0 pts (fundraising cost ÷ income).

100% 0p per £1 income · 10/10 pts (3-year average)

Community Support

Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff.

0/100

Community Support metrics for Bright Futures Early Learning
Metric Score Value
Volunteer-to-staff ratio

More volunteers than paid staff = 10 pts · equal mix = 5 pts · no volunteers = 0 pts.

0% Not reported · 0/10 pts

How we calculate beacon scores →

Clarity Score

60/100 total · Needs improvement · 2 of 4 stars

Four pillars (40 + 30 + 20 + 10 points) from Charity Commission filings — see methodology for full weightings.

75/100
Accountability & Transparency
33/100
Financial Health
100/100
Financial Efficiency
0/100
Community Support

Accountability & Transparency

Baseline trust from filing discipline, board oversight, and declared governance policies.

75/100

Filing history (5 years)5/15 pts
Trustee oversight3 trustees · 15/15 pts
Declared policies10/10 pts

Financial Health

Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts.

33/100

Reserves (months of cash)Not stated · 0/15 pts
Income stability / growth10/10 pts · 3-year average
Liabilities to assets51% · 0/5 pts

Financial Efficiency

How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios.

100/100

Program expense ratio100% · 10/10 pts (3-year average)
Fundraising efficiency0p per £1 income · 10/10 pts (3-year average)

Community Support

Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff.

0/100

Volunteer-to-staff ratioNot reported · 0/10 pts

Revenue & expenses

Latest filed year 2021 · Source: Charity Commission annual accounts

Bright Futures Early Learning revenue and expenses for 2021
Category Amount % of spend
Total income £555k
Total expenditure £546k
Charitable activities £546k 100%
100%On charitable activities

Where the money goes

Latest accounts (2021) · £546k spent

  • Charitable activities100%

Trust indicators

Pulled from the Charity Commission register — filing behaviour, board size, and workforce where reported.

  • Accounts filed on time

    Filing status: late

  • Trustee board size (3–12)

    3 trustees on the Charity Commission register

Fundraising Regulator

Not listed as member

Separate from our financial scores — shows whether the charity follows the Code of Fundraising Practice.

Check Fundraising Regulator →

Official register

Reg 1159674

Full trustee list, accounts, and regulatory history on the Charity Commission.

View on Charity Commission →

Trustees & officers

  • Sharon Charlesworth since 2021
  • Gemma Louise Nuttall since 2021
  • Pagan Anne Cavaney Chair · since 2022
How we score charities +

The Clarity Score is a 100-point rating from UK Charity Commission data. Four pillars — Accountability & Transparency (40), Financial Health (30), Financial Efficiency (20), and Community Support (10). A statutory inquiry sets the score to 0 automatically.

Full methodology →

Accountability & Transparency

Scored from filings

40 points — filing history (15), trustee oversight (15), declared policies (10).

Financial Health

Scored from filings

30 points — reserves (15), income stability (10), liabilities to assets (5).

Financial Efficiency

Scored from filings

20 points — program expense ratio (10), fundraising efficiency (10). Kept at 20% to avoid punishing legitimate infrastructure costs.

Community Support

Scored from filings

10 points — volunteer-to-staff ratio from Charity Commission workforce data.

Overall score

Sum of all pillar points. Translated to stars: 90–100 Exceptional (4★), 75–89 Good (3★), 60–74 Needs improvement (2★), below 60 Poor (1★).

Five-year trends

£0k £600k £1200k £1800k £2400k 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Income 2021: £555k Spending 2021: £546k Cause spend 2021: £546k Income 2022: £999k Spending 2022: £960k Cause spend 2022: £960k Income 2023: £1,519k Spending 2023: £1,397k Cause spend 2023: £1,397k Income 2024: £1,617k Spending 2024: £1,708k Cause spend 2024: £1,708k Income 2025: £2,022k Spending 2025: £1,845k Cause spend 2025: £1,845k
  • Income
  • Spending
  • Cause spend

Values in £ thousands · Source: Charity Commission accounts

Key facts

Overall score
60/100 (2★)
Income
£555k
Cause spend
100% of expenditure
Reg number
1159674
Scope
Local (birmingham)
Reserves
Trustees
3
Accounts year
2021
Filing
late

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Red flags

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about Bright Futures Early Learning's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status.

What is Bright Futures Early Learning's charity rating? +

Bright Futures Early Learning scores 60 out of 100 on CharityCompare (2 stars — Needs improvement). The Clarity Score V1 sums four pillars from Charity Commission filings: Accountability & Transparency (40 pts), Financial Health (30), Financial Efficiency (20), and Community Support (10).

Is Bright Futures Early Learning a good charity to donate to? +

Bright Futures Early Learning scores 60 out of 100 (2 stars — Needs improvement) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its Charity Commission filings. Around 100% of its spending goes to charitable activities and its accounts are late. 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 Bright Futures Early Learning a legitimate UK charity? +

Yes — Bright Futures Early Learning is registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales under registration number 1159674. You can verify the entry on the official register.

What is Bright Futures Early Learning's Charity Commission registration number? +

Bright Futures Early Learning's registration number is 1159674. Official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/1159674

How much income does Bright Futures Early Learning receive? +

Bright Futures Early Learning reported £555k total income in its 2021 accounts, based on Charity Commission filings. Five-year trend: declining.

What percentage of Bright Futures Early Learning's spending goes to charitable activities? +

Approximately 100% of total expenditure went to charitable activities in the latest filed year. Fundraising was 0% and combined overhead (fundraising plus governance) was 0%.

Are Bright Futures Early Learning's accounts up to date? +

Filing status: late (last filing 2026-06-24 00:00:00.0000000). CharityCompare flags late or missing accounts separately from the financial score.

Where is Bright Futures Early Learning based? +

Bright Futures Early Learning is listed at Birmingham · BB4 8HW, focused on children & youth.

How does CharityCompare score Bright Futures Early Learning? +

We analyse Charity Commission annual accounts using three-year averages for program expense, fundraising efficiency, and overhead; working capital from reserves vs average expenditure; liabilities-to-assets from the latest balance sheet when available. Impact, leadership, and culture beacons are not yet assessed from public data alone. See our methodology for weights and thresholds.

Does CharityCompare recommend donating to Bright Futures Early Learning? +

No. CharityCompare provides independent scores and facts from official filings. We do not tell you where to donate or earn commission from charities.

How can I compare Bright Futures Early Learning with other charities? +

Use our free compare tool to put Bright Futures Early Learning side-by-side with other UK charities on scores, finances, and filing status.