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Chain of Hope

Charity rating & review

84/100 Clarity Score · 4 stars · Charity Commission filings · How we score

Verified · Charity Commission data
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84 /100

Clarity score

Good

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Quick answer

Is Chain of Hope a good charity?

Chain of Hope scores 84/100 (4 stars, Good) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, calculated from its UK regulator filings. Its latest accounts year is 2025 (£4.9m total income, 82% 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.

London · UK-wide · W6 0NB Reg 1081384 Registered charity Official website Charity Commission register

What does Chain of Hope do?

Chain of Hope is a registered charity (no. 1081384) working in international aid across the United Kingdom. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 82% of spending to charitable activities, holding roughly 2 months of reserves, and files its annual accounts on time. Reported income has been growing (≈25% a year). 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 — Chain of Hope hasn't added its own description yet. Work here? Add it free →

In short: CHAIN OF HOPE scores 84 out of 100 (4 stars). 82% average program spend (3-year average). Filings are up to date with no major concerns.

What is Chain of Hope?

Chain of Hope has a Clarity Score of 84 out of 100 on CharityCompare (4 stars, Good). Charity Commission registration number 1081384. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: International aid. Latest accounts year 2025: total income £4.9m, with 82% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: up to date. Reserves: approximately 2 months 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, last updated .

Overall score

84/100

4★ · Good

Cause spend

82%

3-yr avg · charitable activities

Accountability

100/100

Finance beacon

Income

£4.9m

Latest year 2025

Reserves

2 mo

Months of running costs

Accounts filing

On time

Charity Commission

£5.8 raised per £1 fundraising (3-yr avg) · 19% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: high

How does CHAIN OF HOPE compare?

Clarity Score percentile against similar UK charities — the share of peers CHAIN OF HOPE scores higher than.

Income band (£1m–£5m)65thpercentile

Scores higher than 65% of 2,776 charities in its income band · 84/100 vs 78 peer average (marker).

International aid charities75thpercentile

Scores higher than 75% of 618 charities in this cause · 84/100 vs 75 peer average (marker).

How reliable is Chain of Hope's data?

Source
Charity Commission (England & Wales)
Accounts year
2025
Filing date
Profile reviewed

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, Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator and Charity Commission for Northern Ireland. Open Government Licence v3.0 .

What is Chain of Hope'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

Accountability & Transparency metrics for CHAIN OF HOPE
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% 10 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.

60/100

Financial Health metrics for CHAIN OF HOPE
Metric Score Value
Reserves (months of cash)

3–24 months = full marks, tapering on both sides · 0 months or 4+ years (hoarding) = 0 pts.

67% 2 months · 10/15 pts
Income stability / growth

+20% or more over the window = 10 pts · flat = 5 pts · −20% or worse = 0 pts, scaled between.

40% 4/10 pts · 3-year average
Liabilities to assets

0% liabilities-to-assets = 5 pts, scaling down to 0 pts at 60%+ debt.

80% 16% · 4/5 pts

Financial Efficiency

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

80/100

Financial Efficiency metrics for CHAIN OF HOPE
Metric Score Value
Program expense ratio

90%+ on charitable activities = full marks, scaling down to 0 pts at 50% or below.

80% 82% · 8/10 pts (3-year average)
Fundraising efficiency

≤10p to raise £1 = full marks, scaling down to 0 pts at 40p or above (fundraising cost ÷ income).

80% 17p per £1 income · 8/10 pts (3-year average)

Community Support

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

100/100

Community Support metrics for CHAIN OF HOPE
Metric Score Value
Volunteer-to-staff ratio

Volunteers at 2x staff or more = full marks · no volunteers = 0 pts, scaled between.

100% 200 volunteers / 14 staff · 10/10 pts

How we calculate beacon scores →

What is Chain of Hope's Clarity Score?

84/100 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
60/100
Financial Health
80/100
Financial Efficiency
100/100
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 oversight10 trustees · 15/15 pts
Declared policies10/10 pts

Financial Health

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

60/100

Reserves (months of cash)2 months · 10/15 pts
Income stability / growth4/10 pts · 3-year average
Liabilities to assets16% · 4/5 pts

Financial Efficiency

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

80/100

Program expense ratio82% · 8/10 pts (3-year average)
Fundraising efficiency17p per £1 income · 8/10 pts (3-year average)

Community Support

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

100/100

Volunteer-to-staff ratio200 volunteers / 14 staff · 10/10 pts

How much does Chain of Hope raise and spend?

Latest filed year 2025 · Source: Charity Commission filings

CHAIN OF HOPE revenue and expenses for 2025
Category Amount % of spend
Total income £4.9m
Total expenditure £5.6m
Charitable activities £4.7m 84%
Fundraising £922k 16%
Governance & admin £56k 1%
84%On charitable activities

Where does the money go?

Latest accounts (2025) · £5.6m spent

  • Charitable activities84%
  • Fundraising16%
  • Governance1%

What trust indicators does Chain of Hope have?

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

  • Accounts filed on time

    up to date · last filing

  • Trustee board size (3–12)

    10 trustees on the Charity Commission register

  • Workforce on register

    14 employees · 200 volunteers (14:1 volunteer-to-staff)

Fundraising Regulator

Status not yet checked

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

Check Fundraising Regulator →

Official register

Reg 1081384

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

View on Charity Commission →

Trustees & officers

  • PROFESSOR SIR MAGDI YACOUB FRS, OM
  • Dr IAN GAVIN WRIGHT Chair
  • Dr ALAN GORDON MAGEE since 2011
  • VICTOR TC TSANG since 2011
  • Prof Vibeke Hjortdal since 2021
  • Jason Edel since 2021
  • Maura O'Callaghan since 2022
  • Marc Walden-Lowe since 2024
  • Dr Kuberan Pushparajah since 2025
  • Julie Plumridge since 2025
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 →

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 Chain of Hope's finances changed over five years?

£0k £1500k £3000k £4500k £6000k 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Income 2021: £2,001k Spending 2021: £2,076k Cause spend 2021: £1,779k Income 2022: £2,086k Spending 2022: £2,116k Cause spend 2022: £1,785k Income 2023: £5,053k Spending 2023: £3,908k Cause spend 2023: £3,145k Income 2024: £4,032k Spending 2024: £4,071k Cause spend 2024: £3,340k Income 2025: £4,884k Spending 2025: £5,612k Cause spend 2025: £4,690k
  • 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 Chain of Hope?

Overall score
84/100 (4★)
Income
£4.9m
Cause spend
82% of expenditure
Reg number
1081384
Scope
UK-wide
Reserves
2 months
Trustees
10
Accounts year
2025
Filing
up to date

Where CHAIN OF HOPE sits

The causes this charity is classified under, and other charities working nearby.

Similar international aid charities

Top-rated peers by CharityCompare score

How can you share Chain of Hope's rating?

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Frequently asked questions

Common questions about Chain of Hope's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status.

Is Chain of Hope a good charity? +

Chain of Hope scores 84 out of 100 (4 stars — Good) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its UK regulator filings. Around 82% 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 Chain of Hope a legitimate charity? +

Yes — Chain of Hope is a legitimate registered charity (charity number 1081384). Verify it on the official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/1081384. Registration proves status; Clarity Score then summarises filing transparency on paper, not programme impact.

What is Chain of Hope's charity number? +

Chain of Hope's charity number is 1081384. 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 Chain of Hope's charity rating? +

Chain of Hope scores 84 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 Chain of Hope have reviews and complaints? +

CharityCompare does not host public user reviews for Chain of Hope. 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 Chain of Hope? +

According to its 2025 regulator filing, 82% of Chain of Hope'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 Chain of Hope's overheads? +

According to its 2025 regulator filing, fundraising costs were about 18% of total expenditure and combined overheads (fundraising plus governance) were about 19% of total expenditure at Chain of Hope. The filings CharityCompare uses do not publish CEO or senior-staff pay, so we cannot say what Chain of Hope'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 Chain of Hope receive? +

Chain of Hope reported £4.9m total income in its 2025 accounts, based on UK regulator filings. Five-year trend: growing.

Are Chain of Hope'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 Chain of Hope based? +

Chain of Hope is listed at London · UK-wide · W6 0NB and operates UK-wide, focused on international aid.

How does CharityCompare score Chain of Hope? +

We calculate a Clarity Score of 0–100 from four pillars in Chain of Hope'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 Chain of Hope'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.