--- title: "Sir John Soane's Museum rating & legitimacy | CharityCompare" description: "Is Sir John Soane" source: https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/sir-john-soane-s-museum retrieved: 2026-08-18T02:07:03.261Z license: "Charity data © Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0" --- Quick answer ## Is Sir John Soane's Museum a good charity? Sir John Soane's Museum scores 86/100 (4 stars, Good) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, calculated from its UK regulator filings. Its latest accounts year is 2025 (£4.2m total income, 72% 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 · WC2A 3BP | Reg [313609](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/sir-john-soane-s-museum) | Registered charity | [Official website](https://www.soane.org/) | [Charity Commission register](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/313609) Donate ## How can you give to SIR JOHN SOANE'S MUSEUM? You leave CharityCompare to complete a donation on the official SIR JOHN SOANE'S MUSEUM form. We do not process payments or take commission. Opens their official online donation form. [Donate](https://www.soane.org/?utm_source=charitycompare&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=donate&utm_content=313609) ## What does Sir John Soane's Museum do? Sir John Soane's Museum is a registered charity (no. 313609) working in heritage across the United Kingdom. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 72% of spending to charitable activities, holding roughly 14 months of reserves, and files its annual accounts on time. Reported income has been growing (≈11% 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 — Sir John Soane's Museum hasn't added its own description yet. [Work here? Add it free →](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/claim?charity=sir-john-soane-s-museum) **In short:** SIR JOHN SOANE'S MUSEUM scores 86 out of 100 (4 stars). 72% average program spend (3-year average). Filings are up to date with no major concerns. ## What is Sir John Soane's Museum? Sir John Soane's Museum has a Clarity Score of 86 out of 100 on CharityCompare (4 stars, Good). Charity Commission registration number 313609. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: Heritage. Latest accounts year 2025: total income £4.2m, with 72% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: up to date. Reserves: approximately 14 months of operating costs. 1 filing concern(s) noted on this profile. 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 72% 3-yr avg · charitable activities Accountability 100/100 Finance beacon Income £4.2m Latest year 2025 Reserves 14 mo Months of running costs Accounts filing On time Charity Commission £3.9 raised per £1 fundraising (3-yr avg) · 29% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: high ## How does SIR JOHN SOANE'S MUSEUM compare? Clarity Score percentile against similar UK charities — the share of peers SIR JOHN SOANE'S MUSEUM scores higher than. Income band (£1m–£5m)71stpercentile **Scores higher than 71% of 2,776 charities in its income band** · 86/100 vs 78 peer average (marker). Heritage charities74thpercentile **Scores higher than 74% of 151 charities in this cause** · 86/100 vs 77 peer average (marker). ## How reliable is Sir John Soane's Museum'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 Sir John Soane's Museum'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% | 14 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% | 14 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% | 3% · 5/5 pts | ### Financial Efficiency How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios. 50/100 | Metric | Score | Value | | --- | --- | --- | | Program expense ratio 90%+ on charitable activities = full marks, scaling down to 0 pts at 50% or below. | 50% | 72% · 5/10 pts (3-year average) | | Fundraising efficiency ≤10p to raise £1 = full marks, scaling down to 0 pts at 40p or above (fundraising cost ÷ income). | 50% | 25p per £1 income · 5/10 pts (3-year average) | ### Community Support Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff. 90/100 | Metric | Score | Value | | --- | --- | --- | | Volunteer-to-staff ratio Volunteers at 2x staff or more = full marks · no volunteers = 0 pts, scaled between. | 90% | 136 volunteers / 74 staff · 9/10 pts | [How we calculate beacon scores →](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology) ## What is Sir John Soane's Museum'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 90/100 Financial Health 50/100 Financial Efficiency 90/100 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 oversight14 trustees · 15/15 pts Declared policies10/10 pts ### Financial Health Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts. 90/100 Reserves (months of cash)14 months · 15/15 pts Income stability / growth7/10 pts · 3-year average Liabilities to assets3% · 5/5 pts ### Financial Efficiency How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios. 50/100 Program expense ratio72% · 5/10 pts (3-year average) Fundraising efficiency25p per £1 income · 5/10 pts (3-year average) ### Community Support Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff. 90/100 Volunteer-to-staff ratio136 volunteers / 74 staff · 9/10 pts ## How much does Sir John Soane's Museum raise and spend? Latest filed year 2025 · Source: Charity Commission filings | Category | Amount | % of spend | | --- | --- | --- | | Total income | £4.2m | — | | Total expenditure | £4.0m | — | | Charitable activities | £2.8m | 71% | | Fundraising | £1.1m | 29% | | Governance & admin | £53k | 1% | 71%On charitable activities ## Where does the money go? Latest accounts (2025) · £4.0m spent - Charitable activities71% · £2.8m - Fundraising29% · £1.1m - Governance1% · £53k ## What trust indicators does Sir John Soane's Museum 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) 14 trustees on the Charity Commission register - ✓ Workforce on register 74 employees · 136 volunteers (2:1 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 →](https://www.fundraisingregulator.org.uk/members/) Official register Reg 313609 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/313609) ### Trustees & officers - Professor Jonathan Felix Ashmore FRS since 2017 - Alison Ross Green since 2019 - Dr Frank Edwin Salmon since 2020 - Anne Desmet RA since 2021 - Lord James Sassoon since 2022 - Professor Kerensa Jennings since 2022 - Amin Taha since 2022 - Amicia Kathryn de Moubray since 2022 - Lucie Annabel Kitchener since 2022 - Andrew Hamish Forsyth since 2022 - John Frederick Clappier since 2024 - Zoe Nicole Whitley Richmond since 2024 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 Sir John Soane's Museum'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 Sir John Soane's Museum? Overall score 86/100 (4★) Income £4.2m Cause spend 72% of expenditure Reg number 313609 Scope UK-wide Reserves 14 months Trustees 14 Accounts year 2025 Filing up to date ## How does SIR JOHN SOANE'S MUSEUM compare, and where else can you look? [Compare SIR JOHN SOANE'S MUSEUM with others](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/compare-charities?ids=sir-john-soane-s-museum) [More heritage charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/heritage) [How we score charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology) ### Where SIR JOHN SOANE'S MUSEUM sits The causes this charity is classified under, and other charities working nearby. - [heritage charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/heritage) - [environment charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/environment) - [arts charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/arts) - [education charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/education) - [Charities in London](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/cities/london) - [heritage charities in London](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/heritage/london) ### Similar heritage charities Top-rated peers by CharityCompare score - [HARTLEBURY CASTLE PRESERVATION TRUST](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/hartlebury-castle-preservation-trust) 100/100 · £612k - [ST BARTHOLOMEW'S HERITAGE](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/st-bartholomew-s-heritage) 99/100 · £5.7m - [JANE AUSTEN'S HOUSE MUSEUM](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/jane-austen-s-house-museum) 98/100 · £2.0m - [MILTON KEYNES MUSEUM TRUST LIMITED](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/milton-keynes-museum-trust-limited) 98/100 · £763k ## How can you share Sir John Soane's Museum's rating? Share: [X](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Sir%20John%20Soane)[LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.charitycompare.org.uk%2Fcharity%2Fsir-john-soane-s-museum)[Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.charitycompare.org.uk%2Fcharity%2Fsir-john-soane-s-museum)[Bluesky](https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=Sir%20John%20Soane) Copy link Print / save as PDFOpens a printer-friendly view of this profile for Sir John Soane's Museum. For this charity ## How do you add Sir John Soane's Museum'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/sir-john-soane-s-museum) Lightweight HTML badge (no iframe) — paste anywhere ♥ CharityCompare Clarity Score 86/100 ★★★★★ Copy code ## What red flags does Sir John Soane's Museum have? ## Frequently asked questions Common questions about Sir John Soane's Museum's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status. Is Sir John Soane's Museum a good charity? + Sir John Soane's Museum scores 86 out of 100 (4 stars — Good) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its UK regulator filings. Around 72% 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 Sir John Soane's Museum a legitimate charity? + Yes — Sir John Soane's Museum is a legitimate registered charity (charity number 313609). Verify it on the official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/313609. Registration proves status; Clarity Score then summarises filing transparency on paper, not programme impact. What is Sir John Soane's Museum's charity number? + Sir John Soane's Museum's charity number is 313609. 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 Sir John Soane's Museum's charity rating? + Sir John Soane's Museum 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 Sir John Soane's Museum have reviews and complaints? + CharityCompare does not host public user reviews for Sir John Soane's Museum. Instead you get a filing-based Clarity Score, cause spend, reserves and red flags such as late accounts (1 filing concern(s) noted on this profile). For formal complaints about a charity, contact the Charity Commission, OSCR, CCNI or the Fundraising Regulator as appropriate. How much of my donation reaches Sir John Soane's Museum? + According to its 2025 regulator filing, 72% of Sir John Soane's Museum'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 Sir John Soane's Museum's overheads? + According to its 2025 regulator filing, fundraising costs were about 28% of total expenditure and combined overheads (fundraising plus governance) were about 29% of total expenditure at Sir John Soane's Museum. The filings CharityCompare uses do not publish CEO or senior-staff pay, so we cannot say what Sir John Soane's Museum'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 Sir John Soane's Museum receive? + Sir John Soane's Museum reported £4.2m total income in its 2025 accounts, based on UK regulator filings. Five-year trend: growing. Are Sir John Soane's Museum'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 Sir John Soane's Museum based? + Sir John Soane's Museum is listed at London · UK-wide · WC2A 3BP and operates UK-wide, focused on heritage. How does CharityCompare score Sir John Soane's Museum? + We calculate a Clarity Score of 0–100 from four pillars in Sir John Soane's Museum'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 Sir John Soane's Museum'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.