--- title: "Practical Action — charity rating & review | CharityCompare" description: "Is Practical Action a legitimate UK charity? Clarity Score 86/100. Accounts 2025: income £33m · 90% on charitable activities. Reg 247257." source: https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/practical-action retrieved: 2026-08-18T03:19:17.140Z license: "Charity data © Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0" --- Quick answer ## Is Practical Action a good charity? Practical Action scores 86/100 (4 stars, Good) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, calculated from its UK regulator filings. Its latest accounts year is 2025 (£33m total income, 90% 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. Coventry · UK-wide · CV21 2SD | Reg [247257](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/practical-action) | Registered charity | [Official website](https://www.practicalaction.org/) | [Charity Commission register](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/247257) Donate ## How can you give to PRACTICAL ACTION? You leave CharityCompare to complete a donation on the official PRACTICAL ACTION form. We do not process payments or take commission. Opens their official online donation form. [Donate](https://www.practicalaction.org/?utm_source=charitycompare&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=donate&utm_content=247257) ## What does Practical Action do? Practical Action is a registered charity (no. 247257) working in international aid across the United Kingdom. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 90% of spending to charitable activities, holding roughly 3 months 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 — Practical Action hasn't added its own description yet. [Work here? Add it free →](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/claim?charity=practical-action) **In short:** PRACTICAL ACTION scores 86 out of 100 (4 stars). 90% average program spend (3-year average). Filings are up to date with no major concerns. ## What is Practical Action? Practical Action has a Clarity Score of 86 out of 100 on CharityCompare (4 stars, Good). Charity Commission registration number 247257. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: International aid. Latest accounts year 2025: total income £33m, with 90% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: up to date. Reserves: approximately 3 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](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/), last updated 17 July 2026. Overall score 86/100 4★ · Good Cause spend 90% 3-yr avg · charitable activities Accountability 100/100 Finance beacon Income £33m Latest year 2025 Reserves 3 mo Months of running costs Accounts filing On time Charity Commission £12.1 raised per £1 fundraising (3-yr avg) · 10% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: high ## How does PRACTICAL ACTION compare? Clarity Score percentile against similar UK charities — the share of peers PRACTICAL ACTION scores higher than. Income band (£10m+)80thpercentile **Scores higher than 80% of 943 charities in its income band** · 86/100 vs 77 peer average (marker). International aid charities80thpercentile **Scores higher than 80% of 618 charities in this cause** · 86/100 vs 75 peer average (marker). ## How reliable is Practical Action'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 Practical Action'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% | 13 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. 87/100 | Metric | Score | Value | | --- | --- | --- | | Reserves (months of cash) 3–24 months = full marks, tapering on both sides · 0 months or 4+ years (hoarding) = 0 pts. | 100% | 3 months · 15/15 pts | | Income stability / growth +20% or more over the window = 10 pts · flat = 5 pts · −20% or worse = 0 pts, scaled between. | 100% | 10/10 pts · 3-year average | | Liabilities to assets 0% liabilities-to-assets = 5 pts, scaling down to 0 pts at 60%+ debt. | 20% | 49% · 1/5 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% | 90% · 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% | 8p per £1 income · 10/10 pts (3-year average) | ### Community Support Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff. 0/100 | Metric | Score | Value | | --- | --- | --- | | Volunteer-to-staff ratio Volunteers at 2x staff or more = full marks · no volunteers = 0 pts, scaled between. | 0% | Not reported · 0/10 pts | [How we calculate beacon scores →](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology) ## What is Practical Action's Clarity Score? 86/100 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 87/100 Financial Health 100/100 Financial Efficiency 0/100 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 oversight13 trustees · 15/15 pts Declared policies10/10 pts ### Financial Health Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts. 87/100 Reserves (months of cash)3 months · 15/15 pts Income stability / growth10/10 pts · 3-year average Liabilities to assets49% · 1/5 pts ### Financial Efficiency How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios. 100/100 Program expense ratio90% · 10/10 pts (3-year average) Fundraising efficiency8p 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 ## How much does Practical Action raise and spend? Latest filed year 2025 · Source: Charity Commission filings | Category | Amount | % of spend | | --- | --- | --- | | Total income | £33m | — | | Total expenditure | £32m | — | | Charitable activities | £28m | 86% | | Fundraising | £2.4m | 8% | | Governance & admin | £446k | 1% | 86%On charitable activities ## Where does the money go? Latest accounts (2025) · £32m spent - Charitable activities86% · £28m - Fundraising8% · £2.4m - Governance1% · £446k - Other spending5% · £1.6m ## What trust indicators does Practical Action 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) 13 trustees on the Charity Commission register Fundraising Regulator Status not yet checked 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 247257 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/247257) ### Trustees & officers - MARTIN CHARLES TYLER since 2020 - Fayezul Haque CHOUDHURY since 2020 - Shivani Wadhwa since 2021 - Matthew James Haikin since 2021 - Mourad Wahba since 2021 - William Fu Wei Liao since 2021 - Sazini Mojapelo since 2024 - Claire Ireland since 2024 - Aki Temiseva since 2024 - Jane Louise Sloane since 2024 - Isabel Studer Noguez since 2024 - Philip Hunter Smith since 2025 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 Practical Action'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 Practical Action? Overall score 86/100 (4★) Income £33m Cause spend 90% of expenditure Reg number 247257 Scope UK-wide Reserves 3 months Trustees 13 Accounts year 2025 Filing up to date ## How does PRACTICAL ACTION compare, and where else can you look? [Compare PRACTICAL ACTION with others](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/compare-charities?ids=practical-action) [More international aid charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/international) [How we score charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology) ### Where PRACTICAL ACTION sits The causes this charity is classified under, and other charities working nearby. - [international charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/international) - [poverty charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/poverty) - [environment charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/environment) - [health charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/health) - [Charities in Coventry](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/cities/coventry) ### Similar international aid charities Top-rated peers by CharityCompare score - [THE ZAHRA TRUST](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-zahra-trust) 100/100 · £5.9m - [ORISON CHARITABLE TRUST](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/orison-charitable-trust) 100/100 · £2.8m - [HELP THE NEEDY CHARITABLE TRUST](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/help-the-needy-charitable-trust) 100/100 · £2.6m - [MAJLIS ANSARULLAH (UK) LTD](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/majlis-ansarullah-uk-ltd) 100/100 · £1.9m ## How can you share Practical Action's rating? Share: [X](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Practical%20Action%20%E2%80%94%2086%2F100%20Clarity%20Score%20on%20CharityCompare&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.charitycompare.org.uk%2Fcharity%2Fpractical-action)[LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.charitycompare.org.uk%2Fcharity%2Fpractical-action)[Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.charitycompare.org.uk%2Fcharity%2Fpractical-action)[Bluesky](https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=Practical%20Action%20%E2%80%94%2086%2F100%20Clarity%20Score%20on%20CharityCompare%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.charitycompare.org.uk%2Fcharity%2Fpractical-action) Copy link Print / save as PDFOpens a printer-friendly view of this profile for Practical Action. For this charity ## How do you add Practical Action's rating to your site? 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 86/100 ★★★★★](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/practical-action) Lightweight HTML badge (no iframe) — paste anywhere ♥ CharityCompare Clarity Score 86/100 ★★★★★ Copy code ## Frequently asked questions Common questions about Practical Action's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status. Is Practical Action a good charity? + Practical Action scores 86 out of 100 (4 stars — Good) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its UK regulator filings. Around 90% 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 Practical Action a legitimate charity? + Yes — Practical Action is a legitimate registered charity (charity number 247257). Verify it on the official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/247257. Registration proves status; Clarity Score then summarises filing transparency on paper, not programme impact. What is Practical Action's charity number? + Practical Action's charity number is 247257. 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 Practical Action's charity rating? + Practical Action scores 86 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 Practical Action have reviews and complaints? + CharityCompare does not host public user reviews for Practical Action. 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 Practical Action? + According to its 2025 regulator filing, 90% of Practical Action'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 Practical Action's overheads? + According to its 2025 regulator filing, fundraising costs were about 8% of total expenditure and combined overheads (fundraising plus governance) were about 10% of total expenditure at Practical Action. The filings CharityCompare uses do not publish CEO or senior-staff pay, so we cannot say what Practical Action'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 Practical Action receive? + Practical Action reported £33m total income in its 2025 accounts, based on UK regulator filings. Five-year trend: stable. Are Practical Action'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 Practical Action based? + Practical Action is listed at Coventry · UK-wide · CV21 2SD and operates UK-wide, focused on international aid. How does CharityCompare score Practical Action? + We calculate a Clarity Score of 0–100 from four pillars in Practical Action'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 Practical Action'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.