Heritage · Reg 1079639
The Bowes Museum
Charity rating & review
54/100 Clarity Score · 2 stars · Charity Commission filings · How we score
Clarity score
Poor
Quick answer
Is The Bowes Museum a good charity?
The Bowes Museum scores 54/100 (2 stars, Poor) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, calculated from its UK regulator filings. Its latest accounts year is 2025 (£3.9m total income, 64% 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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What does The Bowes Museum do?
The Bowes Museum is a registered charity (no. 1079639) working in heritage in DL12 8NP. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 64% of spending to charitable activities, holding roughly 1 month of reserves, though its recent accounts were filed late. Reported income has been growing (≈17% 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 Bowes Museum hasn't added its own description yet. Work here? Add it free →
In short: THE BOWES MUSEUM scores 54 out of 100 (2 stars). 64% average program spend (3-year average). Review the pillar breakdown below.
What is The Bowes Museum?
The Bowes Museum has a Clarity Score of 54 out of 100 on CharityCompare (2 stars, Poor). Charity Commission registration number 1079639. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: Heritage. Latest accounts year 2025: total income £3.9m, with 64% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: late. Reserves: approximately 1 month 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, last updated .
Overall score
54/100
2★ · Poor
Cause spend
64%
3-yr avg · charitable activities
Accountability
55/100
Finance beacon
Income
£3.9m
Latest year 2025
Reserves
1 mo
1 month of running costs
Accounts filing
Late
Check register
£3.1 raised per £1 fundraising (3-yr avg) · 38% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: medium
How does THE BOWES MUSEUM compare?
Clarity Score percentile against similar UK charities — the share of peers THE BOWES MUSEUM scores higher than.
Scores higher than 5% of 2,776 charities in its income band · 54/100 vs 78 peer average (marker).
Scores higher than 7% of 151 charities in this cause · 54/100 vs 77 peer average (marker).
How reliable is The Bowes Museum's data?
- Source
- Charity Commission (England & Wales)
- Accounts year
- 2025
- Filing date
- Profile reviewed
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, Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator and Charity Commission for Northern Ireland. Open Government Licence v3.0 .
What is The Bowes 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.
55/100
| 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). | 100% | 14 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.
67/100
| Metric | Score | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Reserves (months of cash) 3–24 months = full marks, tapering on both sides · 0 months or 4+ years (hoarding) = 0 pts. | 33% | 1 month · 5/15 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% | 3% · 5/5 pts |
Financial Efficiency
How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios.
30/100
| Metric | Score | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Program expense ratio 90%+ on charitable activities = full marks, scaling down to 0 pts at 50% or below. | 40% | 64% · 4/10 pts (3-year average) |
| Fundraising efficiency ≤10p to raise £1 = full marks, scaling down to 0 pts at 40p or above (fundraising cost ÷ income). | 20% | 34p per £1 income · 2/10 pts (3-year average) |
Community Support
Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff.
60/100
| Metric | Score | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Volunteer-to-staff ratio Volunteers at 2x staff or more = full marks · no volunteers = 0 pts, scaled between. | 60% | 95 volunteers / 82 staff · 6/10 pts |
What is The Bowes Museum's Clarity Score?
54/100 total · Poor · 2 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.
55/100
Financial Health
Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts.
67/100
Financial Efficiency
How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios.
30/100
Community Support
Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff.
60/100
How much does The Bowes Museum raise and spend?
Latest filed year 2025 · Source: Charity Commission filings
| Category | Amount | % of spend |
|---|---|---|
| Total income | £3.9m | — |
| Total expenditure | £3.5m | — |
| Charitable activities | £2.3m | 66% |
| Fundraising | £1.2m | 34% |
Where does the money go?
Latest accounts (2025) · £3.5m spent
- Charitable activities66% · £2.3m
- Fundraising34% · £1.2m
What trust indicators does The Bowes Museum 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)
14 trustees on the Charity Commission register
-
Workforce on register
82 employees · 95 volunteers (1:1 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 1079639
Full trustee list, accounts, and regulatory history on the Charity Commission.
View on Charity Commission →Trustees & officers
- Peter Mothersill
- Dr Ken Partington since 2019
- Dr Steve Howell since 2020
- Eliot Smith since 2021
- Deborah Corbett since 2021
- Alison Thain since 2021
- Rebecca Jane Blackwood since 2021
- Jennie Collingwood since 2021
- Gordon Morrison since 2025
- Christina Pascoe since 2025
- Michelle Brown since 2025
- Jennifer Frances since 2025
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.
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 Bowes 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 The Bowes Museum?
- Overall score
- 54/100 (2★)
- Income
- £3.9m
- Cause spend
- 64% of expenditure
- Reg number
- 1079639
- Scope
- Local (—)
- Reserves
- 1 month
- Trustees
- 14
- Accounts year
- 2025
- Filing
- late
How does THE BOWES MUSEUM compare, and where else can you look?
Where THE BOWES MUSEUM sits
The causes this charity is classified under, and other charities working nearby.
Similar heritage charities
Top-rated peers by CharityCompare score
- HARTLEBURY CASTLE PRESERVATION TRUST 100/100 · £612k
- ST BARTHOLOMEW'S HERITAGE 99/100 · £5.7m
- JANE AUSTEN'S HOUSE MUSEUM 98/100 · £2.0m
- MILTON KEYNES MUSEUM TRUST LIMITED 98/100 · £763k
How can you share The Bowes Museum's rating?
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How do you add The Bowes Museum's rating to your site?
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What red flags does The Bowes Museum have?
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about The Bowes Museum's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status.
Is The Bowes Museum a good charity? +
The Bowes Museum scores 54 out of 100 (2 stars — Poor) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its UK regulator filings. Around 64% 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 Bowes Museum a legitimate charity? +
Yes — The Bowes Museum is a legitimate registered charity (charity number 1079639). Verify it on the official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/1079639. Registration proves status; Clarity Score then summarises filing transparency on paper, not programme impact.
What is The Bowes Museum's charity number? +
The Bowes Museum's charity number is 1079639. 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 Bowes Museum's charity rating? +
The Bowes Museum scores 54 out of 100 on CharityCompare (2 stars — Poor). 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 Bowes Museum have reviews and complaints? +
CharityCompare does not host public user reviews for The Bowes Museum. 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 Bowes Museum? +
According to its 2025 regulator filing, 64% of The Bowes 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 The Bowes Museum's overheads? +
According to its 2025 regulator filing, fundraising costs were about 36% of total expenditure and combined overheads (fundraising plus governance) were about 38% of total expenditure at The Bowes Museum. The filings CharityCompare uses do not publish CEO or senior-staff pay, so we cannot say what The Bowes 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 The Bowes Museum receive? +
The Bowes Museum reported £3.9m total income in its 2025 accounts, based on UK regulator filings. Five-year trend: growing.
Are The Bowes Museum'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 Bowes Museum based? +
The Bowes Museum is listed at DL12 8NP, focused on heritage.
How does CharityCompare score The Bowes Museum? +
We calculate a Clarity Score of 0–100 from four pillars in The Bowes 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 The Bowes 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.