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HDSK

Charity rating & review

72/100 Clarity Score · 2 stars · Charity Commission filings · How we score

Verified · Charity Commission data
72 /100

Clarity score

Needs improvement

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Is HDSK a good charity?

HDSK scores 72/100 (Needs improvement) on our Clarity Score, with 83% of spending going to charitable activities and accounts up to date. This reflects financial transparency and stewardship from Charity Commission filings — not the real-world impact of its programmes. See the full breakdown.

Birmingham · UK-wide · BN3 5QL Reg 1016818 Registered charity Official website Charity Commission register

Mission

HDSK is a registered charity (no. 1016818) working in children & youth across the United Kingdom. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 83% of spending to charitable activities, holding roughly 46 months of reserves, and files its annual accounts on time. Income has been growing 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: HDSK scores 72 out of 100 (2 stars). 83% average program spend (3-year average). Review the pillar breakdown below.

Overview

HDSK has a Clarity Score of 72 out of 100 on CharityCompare (2 stars, Needs improvement). Charity Commission registration number 1016818. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: Children & youth. Latest accounts year 2020: total income £347k, with 83% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: up to date. Reserves: approximately 46 months of operating costs. 2 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

72/100

2★ · Needs improvement

Cause spend

83%

3-yr avg · charitable activities

Accountability

93/100

Finance beacon

Income

£347k

Latest year 2020

Reserves

46 mo

Months of running costs

Accounts filing

On time

Charity Commission

£4364.2 raised per £1 fundraising (3-yr avg) · 0% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: high

How HDSK compares

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

Income band (£100k–£500k)72 vs 77 avg

Ranks higher than 38% of 2,492 charities in its income band.

Children & youth charities72 vs 78 avg

Ranks higher than 34% of 3,988 charities in this cause.

Data & confidence

Source
Charity Commission (E&W)
Accounts year
2020
Filing date
2026-06-24 00:00:00.0000000
Profile reviewed
2026-06-25

High confidence — complete filing data

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.

93/100

Accountability & Transparency metrics for HDSK
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 · 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.

70% 7/10 pts

Financial Health

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

17/100

Financial Health metrics for HDSK
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% 46 months · 0/15 pts
Income stability / growth

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

0% 0/10 pts · 3-year average
Liabilities to assets

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

100% 0% · 5/5 pts

Financial Efficiency

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

100/100

Financial Efficiency metrics for HDSK
Metric Score Value
Program expense ratio

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

100% 83% · 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.

100/100

Community Support metrics for HDSK
Metric Score Value
Volunteer-to-staff ratio

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

100% 40 volunteers / 7 staff · 10/10 pts

How we calculate beacon scores →

Clarity Score

72/100 total · Needs improvement · 2 of 4 stars

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

93/100
Accountability & Transparency
17/100
Financial Health
100/100
Financial Efficiency
100/100
Community Support

Accountability & Transparency

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

93/100

Filing history (5 years)15/15 pts
Trustee oversight3 trustees · 15/15 pts
Declared policies7/10 pts

Financial Health

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

17/100

Reserves (months of cash)46 months · 0/15 pts
Income stability / growth0/10 pts · 3-year average
Liabilities to assets0% · 5/5 pts

Financial Efficiency

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

100/100

Program expense ratio83% · 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.

100/100

Volunteer-to-staff ratio40 volunteers / 7 staff · 10/10 pts

Revenue & expenses

Latest filed year 2020 · Source: Charity Commission annual accounts

HDSK revenue and expenses for 2020
Category Amount % of spend
Total income £347k
Total expenditure £340k
0%On charitable activities

Where the money goes

Latest accounts (2020) · £340k spent

  • Other spending100%

Trust indicators

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

  • Accounts filed on time

    up to date · last filing 2026-06-24 00:00:00.0000000

  • Trustee board size (3–12)

    3 trustees on the Charity Commission register

  • Workforce on register

    7 employees · 40 volunteers (6:1 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 1016818

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

View on Charity Commission →

Trustees & officers

  • FREDERICK GRANT since 1998
  • ROLAND KLEPZIG since 1991
  • JAMES SHAW Chair · since 1991
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 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 Income 2020: £347k Spending 2020: £340k Cause spend 2020: £255k Income 2021: £547k Spending 2021: £561k Cause spend 2021: £560k Income 2022: £2,320k Spending 2022: £399k Cause spend 2022: £399k Income 2023: £493k Spending 2023: £585k Cause spend 2023: £439k Income 2024: £216k Spending 2024: £561k Cause spend 2024: £421k
  • Income
  • Spending
  • Cause spend

Values in £ thousands · Source: Charity Commission accounts

Key facts

Overall score
72/100 (2★)
Income
£347k
Cause spend
83% of expenditure
Reg number
1016818
Scope
UK-wide
Reserves
46 months
Trustees
3
Accounts year
2020
Filing
up to date

Similar children & youth charities

Top-rated peers by CharityCompare score

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Red flags

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about HDSK's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status.

What is HDSK's charity rating? +

HDSK scores 72 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 HDSK a good charity to donate to? +

HDSK scores 72 out of 100 (2 stars — Needs improvement) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its Charity Commission filings. Around 83% 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 HDSK a legitimate UK charity? +

Yes — HDSK is registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales under registration number 1016818. You can verify the entry on the official register.

What is HDSK's Charity Commission registration number? +

HDSK's registration number is 1016818. Official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/1016818

How much income does HDSK receive? +

HDSK reported £347k total income in its 2020 accounts, based on Charity Commission filings. Five-year trend: growing.

What percentage of HDSK's spending goes to charitable activities? +

Approximately 83% of total expenditure went to charitable activities in the latest filed year. Fundraising was 0% and combined overhead (fundraising plus governance) was 0%.

Are HDSK's accounts up to date? +

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

Where is HDSK based? +

HDSK is listed at Birmingham · UK-wide · BN3 5QL and operates UK-wide, focused on children & youth.

How does CharityCompare score HDSK? +

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 HDSK? +

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 HDSK with other charities? +

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