--- title: "The Bluebell Railway Trust charity rating | CharityCompare" description: "Is The Bluebell Railway Trust a legitimate UK charity? Clarity Score 70/100. Accounts 2024: income £1.5m · 99% on charitable activities. Reg 292497." source: https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-bluebell-railway-trust retrieved: 2026-08-18T05:25:31.135Z license: "Charity data © Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0" --- Quick answer ## Is The Bluebell Railway Trust a good charity? The Bluebell Railway Trust scores 70/100 (3 stars, Needs improvement) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, calculated from its UK regulator filings. Its latest accounts year is 2024 (£1.5m total income, 99% 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. Tunbridge Wells · TN22 3QL | Reg [292497](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-bluebell-railway-trust) | Registered charity | [Official website](https://www.bluebell-railway.co.uk/bluebell/trust) | [Charity Commission register](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/292497) Donate ## How can you give to THE BLUEBELL RAILWAY TRUST? You leave CharityCompare to complete a donation on the official THE BLUEBELL RAILWAY TRUST form. We do not process payments or take commission. Opens their official online donation form. [Donate](https://www.bluebell-railway.co.uk/bluebell/trust?utm_source=charitycompare&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=donate&utm_content=292497) ## What does The Bluebell Railway Trust do? The Bluebell Railway Trust is a registered charity (no. 292497) working in environment in Tunbridge Wells · TN22 3QL. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 99% of spending to charitable activities, holding roughly 11 months of reserves, though its recent accounts were filed late. Reported income has been declining (≈13% 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 — The Bluebell Railway Trust hasn't added its own description yet. [Work here? Add it free →](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/claim?charity=the-bluebell-railway-trust) **In short:** THE BLUEBELL RAILWAY TRUST scores 70 out of 100 (3 stars). 99% average program spend (3-year average). Review the pillar breakdown below. ## What is The Bluebell Railway Trust? The Bluebell Railway Trust has a Clarity Score of 70 out of 100 on CharityCompare (3 stars, Needs improvement). Charity Commission registration number 292497. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: Environment. Latest accounts year 2024: total income £1.5m, with 99% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: late. Reserves: approximately 11 months of operating costs. 3 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 70/100 3★ · Needs improvement Cause spend 99% 3-yr avg · charitable activities Accountability 38/100 Finance beacon Income £1.5m Latest year 2024 Reserves 11 mo Months of running costs Accounts filing Late Check register £149.3 raised per £1 fundraising (3-yr avg) · 1% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: medium ## How does THE BLUEBELL RAILWAY TRUST compare? Clarity Score percentile against similar UK charities — the share of peers THE BLUEBELL RAILWAY TRUST scores higher than. Income band (£1m–£5m)26thpercentile **Scores higher than 26% of 2,776 charities in its income band** · 70/100 vs 78 peer average (marker). Environment charities33rdpercentile **Scores higher than 33% of 460 charities in this cause** · 70/100 vs 76 peer average (marker). ## How reliable is The Bluebell Railway Trust's data? Source Charity Commission (England & Wales) Accounts year 2024 Filing date 24 June 2026 Profile reviewed 17 July 2026 Medium confidence — some data missing or late 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 The Bluebell Railway Trust'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. 38/100 | 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. | 0% | 0/15 pts | | Trustee oversight Three or more trustees on the register = 15 pts, scaled down for fewer (governance red flag below three). | 33% | 1 trustee · 5/15 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. 100/100 | 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% | 11 month · 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. | 100% | 1% · 5/5 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% | 99% · 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% | 1p per £1 income · 10/10 pts (3-year average) | ### Community Support Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff. 50/100 | Metric | Score | Value | | --- | --- | --- | | Volunteer-to-staff ratio Volunteers at 2x staff or more = full marks · no volunteers = 0 pts, scaled between. | 50% | 75 volunteers · 5/10 pts | [How we calculate beacon scores →](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology) ## What is The Bluebell Railway Trust's Clarity Score? 70/100 total · Needs improvement · 3 of 5 stars Four pillars (40 + 30 + 20 + 10 points) from Charity Commission filings — see methodology for full weightings. 38/100 Accountability & Transparency 100/100 Financial Health 100/100 Financial Efficiency 50/100 Community Support ### Accountability & Transparency Baseline trust from filing discipline, board oversight, and declared governance policies. 38/100 Filing history (5 years)0/15 pts Trustee oversight1 trustee · 5/15 pts Declared policies10/10 pts ### Financial Health Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts. 100/100 Reserves (months of cash)11 month · 15/15 pts Income stability / growth10/10 pts · 3-year average Liabilities to assets1% · 5/5 pts ### Financial Efficiency How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios. 100/100 Program expense ratio99% · 10/10 pts (3-year average) Fundraising efficiency1p per £1 income · 10/10 pts (3-year average) ### Community Support Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff. 50/100 Volunteer-to-staff ratio75 volunteers · 5/10 pts ## How much does The Bluebell Railway Trust raise and spend? Latest filed year 2024 · Source: Charity Commission filings | Category | Amount | % of spend | | --- | --- | --- | | Total income | £1.5m | — | | Total expenditure | £1.1m | — | | Charitable activities | £1.1m | 100% | | Fundraising | £6k | 0% | | Governance & admin | £11k | 1% | 100%On charitable activities ## Where does the money go? Latest accounts (2024) · £1.1m spent - Charitable activities100% · £1.1m - Fundraising0% · £6k - Governance1% · £11k ## What trust indicators does The Bluebell Railway Trust have? Pulled from the Charity Commission register — filing behaviour, board size, and workforce where reported. - — Accounts filed on time Filing status: late - — Trustee board size (3–12) 1 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 292497 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/292497) ### Trustees & officers - BRT Trustee Limited since 2018 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 The Bluebell Railway Trust'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 The Bluebell Railway Trust? Overall score 70/100 (3★) Income £1.5m Cause spend 99% of expenditure Reg number 292497 Scope Local (tunbridge-wells) Reserves 11 months Trustees 1 Accounts year 2024 Filing late ## How does THE BLUEBELL RAILWAY TRUST compare, and where else can you look? [Compare THE BLUEBELL RAILWAY TRUST with others](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/compare-charities?ids=the-bluebell-railway-trust) [More environment charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/environment) [How we score charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology) ### Where THE BLUEBELL RAILWAY TRUST sits The causes this charity is classified under, and other charities working nearby. - [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 Tunbridge Wells](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/cities/tunbridge-wells) ### Similar environment charities Top-rated peers by CharityCompare score - [ESSEX AND SUFFOLK RIVERS TRUST](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/essex-and-suffolk-rivers-trust) 100/100 · £963k - [GREAT WESTERN SOCIETY LIMITED](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/great-western-society-limited) 99/100 · £3.9m - [THE MID-NORFOLK RAILWAY PRESERVATION TRUST](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-mid-norfolk-railway-preservation-trust) 99/100 · £2.5m - [THE SHARPHAM TRUST](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-sharpham-trust) 99/100 · £2.2m ## How can you share The Bluebell Railway Trust's rating? Share: [X](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=The%20Bluebell%20Railway%20Trust%20%E2%80%94%2070%2F100%20Clarity%20Score%20on%20CharityCompare&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.charitycompare.org.uk%2Fcharity%2Fthe-bluebell-railway-trust)[LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.charitycompare.org.uk%2Fcharity%2Fthe-bluebell-railway-trust)[Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.charitycompare.org.uk%2Fcharity%2Fthe-bluebell-railway-trust)[Bluesky](https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=The%20Bluebell%20Railway%20Trust%20%E2%80%94%2070%2F100%20Clarity%20Score%20on%20CharityCompare%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.charitycompare.org.uk%2Fcharity%2Fthe-bluebell-railway-trust) Copy link Print / save as PDFOpens a printer-friendly view of this profile for The Bluebell Railway Trust. For this charity ## How do you add The Bluebell Railway Trust'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 70/100 ★★★★★](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-bluebell-railway-trust) Lightweight HTML badge (no iframe) — paste anywhere ♥ CharityCompare Clarity Score 70/100 ★★★★★ Copy code ## What red flags does The Bluebell Railway Trust have? ## Frequently asked questions Common questions about The Bluebell Railway Trust's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status. Is The Bluebell Railway Trust a good charity? + The Bluebell Railway Trust scores 70 out of 100 (3 stars — Needs improvement) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its UK regulator filings. Around 99% of its spending goes to charitable activities and its accounts are late. 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 Bluebell Railway Trust a legitimate charity? + Yes — The Bluebell Railway Trust is a legitimate registered charity (charity number 292497). Verify it on the official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/292497. Registration proves status; Clarity Score then summarises filing transparency on paper, not programme impact. What is The Bluebell Railway Trust's charity number? + The Bluebell Railway Trust's charity number is 292497. 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 The Bluebell Railway Trust's charity rating? + The Bluebell Railway Trust scores 70 out of 100 on CharityCompare (3 stars — Needs improvement). 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 The Bluebell Railway Trust have reviews and complaints? + CharityCompare does not host public user reviews for The Bluebell Railway Trust. Instead you get a filing-based Clarity Score, cause spend, reserves and red flags such as late accounts (3 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 The Bluebell Railway Trust? + According to its 2024 regulator filing, 99% of The Bluebell Railway Trust'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 Bluebell Railway Trust's overheads? + According to its 2024 regulator filing, fundraising costs were about 1% of total expenditure and combined overheads (fundraising plus governance) were about 1% of total expenditure at The Bluebell Railway Trust. The filings CharityCompare uses do not publish CEO or senior-staff pay, so we cannot say what The Bluebell Railway Trust'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 Bluebell Railway Trust receive? + The Bluebell Railway Trust reported £1.5m total income in its 2024 accounts, based on UK regulator filings. Five-year trend: declining. Are The Bluebell Railway Trust's accounts up to date? + Filing status: late (last filing 2026-06-24). CharityCompare flags late or missing accounts separately from the financial score. Where is The Bluebell Railway Trust based? + The Bluebell Railway Trust is listed at Tunbridge Wells · TN22 3QL, focused on environment. How does CharityCompare score The Bluebell Railway Trust? + We calculate a Clarity Score of 0–100 from four pillars in The Bluebell Railway Trust'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 The Bluebell Railway Trust'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.