Arts & culture · Reg 209603
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution
Charity rating & review
90/100 Clarity Score · 5 stars · Charity Commission filings · How we score
Clarity score
Exceptional
Quick answer
Is The Royal National Lifeboat Institution a good charity?
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution scores 90/100 (5 stars, Exceptional) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, calculated from its Charity Commission filings. Its latest accounts year is 2024 (£251m total income, 77% 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.
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Mission
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution is a registered charity (no. 209603) working in arts & culture across the United Kingdom. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 77% of spending to charitable activities, holding roughly 8 months of reserves, and files its annual accounts on time. Reported income has been growing (≈6% 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.
In short: THE ROYAL NATIONAL LIFEBOAT INSTITUTION scores 90 out of 100 (5 stars). 77% average program spend (3-year average). Filings are up to date with no major concerns.
Overview
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution has a Clarity Score of 90 out of 100 on CharityCompare (5 stars, Exceptional). Charity Commission registration number 209603. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: Arts & culture. Latest accounts year 2024: total income £251m, with 77% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: up to date. Reserves: approximately 8 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
90/100
5★ · Exceptional
Cause spend
77%
3-yr avg · charitable activities
Accountability
100/100
Finance beacon
Income
£251m
Latest year 2024
Reserves
8 mo
Months of running costs
Accounts filing
On time
Charity Commission
£4.4 raised per £1 fundraising (3-yr avg) · 23% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: high
How THE ROYAL NATIONAL LIFEBOAT INSTITUTION compares
Clarity Score percentile against similar UK charities — the share of peers THE ROYAL NATIONAL LIFEBOAT INSTITUTION scores higher than.
Scores higher than 91% of 943 charities in its income band · 90/100 vs 77 peer average (marker).
Scores higher than 90% of 624 charities in this cause · 90/100 vs 76 peer average (marker).
Data & confidence
- Source
- Charity Commission (E&W)
- Accounts year
- 2024
- Filing date
- Profile reviewed
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. Sources: Charity Commission for England and Wales, Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator and Charity Commission for Northern Ireland. 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.
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% | 8 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.
90/100
| 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% | 8 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. | 70% | 7/10 pts · 3-year average |
| Liabilities to assets 0% liabilities-to-assets = 5 pts, scaling down to 0 pts at 60%+ debt. | 100% | 2% · 5/5 pts |
Financial Efficiency
How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios.
65/100
| Metric | Score | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Program expense ratio 90%+ on charitable activities = full marks, scaling down to 0 pts at 50% or below. | 70% | 77% · 7/10 pts (3-year average) |
| Fundraising efficiency ≤10p to raise £1 = full marks, scaling down to 0 pts at 40p or above (fundraising cost ÷ income). | 60% | 23p per £1 income · 6/10 pts (3-year average) |
Community Support
Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff.
100/100
| Metric | Score | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Volunteer-to-staff ratio Volunteers at 2x staff or more = full marks · no volunteers = 0 pts, scaled between. | 100% | 22,498 volunteers / 1859 staff · 10/10 pts |
Clarity Score
90/100 total · Exceptional · 5 of 5 stars
Four pillars (40 + 30 + 20 + 10 points) from Charity Commission filings — see methodology for full weightings.
Accountability & Transparency
Baseline trust from filing discipline, board oversight, and declared governance policies.
100/100
Financial Health
Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts.
90/100
Financial Efficiency
How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios.
65/100
Community Support
Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff.
100/100
Revenue & expenses
Latest filed year 2024 · Source: Charity Commission annual accounts
| Category | Amount | % of spend |
|---|---|---|
| Total income | £251m | — |
| Total expenditure | £251m | — |
| Charitable activities | £195m | 78% |
| Fundraising | £55m | 22% |
| Governance & admin | £1.1m | 0% |
Where the money goes
Latest accounts (2024) · £251m spent
- Charitable activities78% · £195m
- Fundraising22% · £55m
- Governance0% · £1.1m
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
-
Trustee board size (3–12)
8 trustees on the Charity Commission register
-
Workforce on register
1859 employees · 22,498 volunteers (12:1 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 209603
Full trustee list, accounts, and regulatory history on the Charity Commission.
View on Charity Commission →Trustees & officers
- Dr Philip Goodwin since 2018
- Denis Woulfe OBE since 2019
- Fiona Catherine Fell since 2020
- Dr John James Killeen since 2020
- Paddy McLaughlin since 2020
- Mark Gregory Wordsworth since 2021
- Jamshaid Islam since 2022
- Janet Legrand Chair · since 2023
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) — each scored on a continuous scale, not pass/fail cutoffs. A statutory inquiry sets the score to 0 automatically.
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 map the 0–100 score onto a familiar 5★ scale (≈20 points per star): 90–100 → 5★, 70–89 → 4★, 50–69 → 3★, 30–49 → 2★, 1–29 → 1★.
Five-year trends
- Income
- Spending
- Cause spend
Values in £ thousands · Cause spend plotted only when the filing discloses a split · Source: Charity Commission accounts
Key facts
- Overall score
- 90/100 (5★)
- Income
- £251m
- Cause spend
- 77% of expenditure
- Reg number
- 209603
- Scope
- UK-wide
- Reserves
- 8 months
- Trustees
- 8
- Accounts year
- 2024
- Filing
- up to date
Compare & explore
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Top-rated peers by CharityCompare score
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- PALLANT HOUSE GALLERY 99/100 · £3.0m
- CREATE (ARTS) LIMITED 99/100 · £1.6m
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Frequently asked questions
Common questions about The Royal National Lifeboat Institution's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status.
Is The Royal National Lifeboat Institution a good charity? +
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution scores 90 out of 100 (5 stars — Exceptional) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its Charity Commission filings. Around 77% 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 The Royal National Lifeboat Institution a legitimate charity? +
Yes — The Royal National Lifeboat Institution is registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales under registration number 209603. You can verify the entry on the official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/209603
What is The Royal National Lifeboat Institution's charity rating? +
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution scores 90 out of 100 on CharityCompare (5 stars — Exceptional). 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).
How much of my donation reaches The Royal National Lifeboat Institution? +
According to its 2024 Charity Commission filing, 77% of The Royal National Lifeboat Institution'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 The Royal National Lifeboat Institution's overheads? +
According to its 2024 Charity Commission filing, fundraising costs were about 23% of total expenditure and combined overheads (fundraising plus governance) were about 23% of total expenditure at The Royal National Lifeboat Institution. The filings CharityCompare uses do not publish CEO or senior-staff pay, so we cannot say what The Royal National Lifeboat Institution'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 The Royal National Lifeboat Institution receive? +
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution reported £251m total income in its 2024 accounts, based on Charity Commission filings. Five-year trend: growing.
Are The Royal National Lifeboat Institution'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 The Royal National Lifeboat Institution based? +
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution is listed at Bournemouth · UK-wide · BH15 1HZ and operates UK-wide, focused on arts & culture.
How does CharityCompare score The Royal National Lifeboat Institution? +
We analyse Charity Commission annual accounts using three-year averages for program expense, fundraising efficiency, and overhead (disclosed years only); 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. 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 Charity Commission data available to CharityCompare, and The Royal National Lifeboat Institution's most recent accounts cover 2024. Scores and figures refresh whenever we re-ingest the register, so the page reflects our latest data pull rather than a one-off review.