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Prison Radio Association

Charity rating & review

85/100 Clarity Score · 4 stars · Charity Commission filings · How we score

Verified · Charity Commission data
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85 /100

Clarity score

Good

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Quick answer

Is Prison Radio Association a good charity?

Prison Radio Association scores 85/100 (4 stars, Good) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, calculated from its UK regulator filings. Its latest accounts year is 2025 (£1.7m total income, 93% 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 · EC1V 9DD Reg 1114760 Registered charity Official website Charity Commission register

What does Prison Radio Association do?

Prison Radio Association is a registered charity (no. 1114760) working in education across the United Kingdom. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 93% of spending to charitable activities, holding roughly 5 months of reserves, and files its annual accounts on time. Reported income has been growing (≈14% 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 — Prison Radio Association hasn't added its own description yet. Work here? Add it free →

In short: PRISON RADIO ASSOCIATION scores 85 out of 100 (4 stars). 93% average program spend (3-year average). Filings are up to date with no major concerns.

What is Prison Radio Association?

Prison Radio Association has a Clarity Score of 85 out of 100 on CharityCompare (4 stars, Good). Charity Commission registration number 1114760. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: Education. Latest accounts year 2025: total income £1.7m, with 93% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: up to date. Reserves: approximately 5 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

85/100

4★ · Good

Cause spend

93%

3-yr avg · charitable activities

Accountability

93/100

Finance beacon

Income

£1.7m

Latest year 2025

Reserves

5 mo

Months of running costs

Accounts filing

On time

Charity Commission

£15.1 raised per £1 fundraising (3-yr avg) · 10% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: high

How does PRISON RADIO ASSOCIATION compare?

Clarity Score percentile against similar UK charities — the share of peers PRISON RADIO ASSOCIATION scores higher than.

Income band (£1m–£5m)68thpercentile

Scores higher than 68% of 2,776 charities in its income band · 85/100 vs 78 peer average (marker).

Education charities77thpercentile

Scores higher than 77% of 579 charities in this cause · 85/100 vs 74 peer average (marker).

How reliable is Prison Radio Association'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 Prison Radio Association'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.

93/100

Accountability & Transparency metrics for PRISON RADIO ASSOCIATION
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% 7 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.

93/100

Financial Health metrics for PRISON RADIO ASSOCIATION
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% 5 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.

60% 29% · 3/5 pts

Financial Efficiency

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

100/100

Financial Efficiency metrics for PRISON RADIO ASSOCIATION
Metric Score Value
Program expense ratio

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

100% 93% · 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% 7p 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 PRISON RADIO ASSOCIATION
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 →

What is Prison Radio Association's Clarity Score?

85/100 total · Good · 4 of 5 stars

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

93/100
Accountability & Transparency
93/100
Financial Health
100/100
Financial Efficiency
0/100
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 oversight7 trustees · 15/15 pts
Declared policies7/10 pts

Financial Health

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

93/100

Reserves (months of cash)5 months · 15/15 pts
Income stability / growth10/10 pts · 3-year average
Liabilities to assets29% · 3/5 pts

Financial Efficiency

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

100/100

Program expense ratio93% · 10/10 pts (3-year average)
Fundraising efficiency7p 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 Prison Radio Association raise and spend?

Latest filed year 2025 · Source: Charity Commission filings

PRISON RADIO ASSOCIATION revenue and expenses for 2025
Category Amount % of spend
Total income £1.7m
Total expenditure £1.5m
Charitable activities £1.4m 91%
Fundraising £140k 9%
Governance & admin £40k 3%
91%On charitable activities

Where does the money go?

Latest accounts (2025) · £1.5m spent

  • Charitable activities91%
  • Fundraising9%
  • Governance3%

What trust indicators does Prison Radio Association 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)

    7 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 →

Official register

Reg 1114760

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

View on Charity Commission →

Trustees & officers

  • LAWRENCE GALKOFF
  • David John Franklin since 2017
  • Ryan Joseph Wain since 2017
  • Julia Catherine Howard since 2017
  • Michael Spurr since 2020
  • Debbie Ramsay since 2020
  • Hilary Ineomo-Marcus since 2020
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 Prison Radio Association's finances changed over five years?

£0k £500k £1000k £1500k £2000k 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Income 2021: £1,038k Spending 2021: £900k Cause spend 2021: £790k Income 2022: £1,026k Spending 2022: £1,050k Cause spend 2022: £957k Income 2023: £1,185k Spending 2023: £1,193k Cause spend 2023: £1,111k Income 2024: £1,407k Spending 2024: £1,381k Cause spend 2024: £1,318k Income 2025: £1,732k Spending 2025: £1,535k Cause spend 2025: £1,395k
  • 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 Prison Radio Association?

Overall score
85/100 (4★)
Income
£1.7m
Cause spend
93% of expenditure
Reg number
1114760
Scope
UK-wide
Reserves
5 months
Trustees
7
Accounts year
2025
Filing
up to date

Where PRISON RADIO ASSOCIATION sits

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

Similar education charities

Top-rated peers by CharityCompare score

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Frequently asked questions

Common questions about Prison Radio Association's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status.

Is Prison Radio Association a good charity? +

Prison Radio Association scores 85 out of 100 (4 stars — Good) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its UK regulator filings. Around 93% 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 Prison Radio Association a legitimate charity? +

Yes — Prison Radio Association is a legitimate registered charity (charity number 1114760). Verify it on the official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/1114760. Registration proves status; Clarity Score then summarises filing transparency on paper, not programme impact.

What is Prison Radio Association's charity number? +

Prison Radio Association's charity number is 1114760. 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 Prison Radio Association's charity rating? +

Prison Radio Association scores 85 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 Prison Radio Association have reviews and complaints? +

CharityCompare does not host public user reviews for Prison Radio Association. 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 Prison Radio Association? +

According to its 2025 regulator filing, 93% of Prison Radio Association'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 Prison Radio Association's overheads? +

According to its 2025 regulator filing, fundraising costs were about 7% of total expenditure and combined overheads (fundraising plus governance) were about 10% of total expenditure at Prison Radio Association. The filings CharityCompare uses do not publish CEO or senior-staff pay, so we cannot say what Prison Radio Association'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 Prison Radio Association receive? +

Prison Radio Association reported £1.7m total income in its 2025 accounts, based on UK regulator filings. Five-year trend: growing.

Are Prison Radio Association'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 Prison Radio Association based? +

Prison Radio Association is listed at London · UK-wide · EC1V 9DD and operates UK-wide, focused on education.

How does CharityCompare score Prison Radio Association? +

We calculate a Clarity Score of 0–100 from four pillars in Prison Radio Association'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 Prison Radio Association'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.