Children & youth · Reg 250556
THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY
Charity rating & review
60/100 Clarity Score · 2 stars · Charity Commission filings · How we score
Clarity score
Needs improvement
Is THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY a good charity?
THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY scores 60/100 (Needs improvement) on our Clarity Score, with 83% of spending going to charitable activities and accounts late. This reflects financial transparency and stewardship from Charity Commission filings — not the real-world impact of its programmes. See the full breakdown.
Donate
Give to THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY
You leave CharityCompare to complete a donation on the official THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY form. We do not process payments or take commission. Opens their official online donation form.
Mission
THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY is a registered charity (no. 250556) working in children & youth across the United Kingdom. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 83% of spending to charitable activities, holding roughly 89 months of reserves, though its recent accounts were filed late. Income has been growing over recent years. 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 BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY scores 60 out of 100 (2 stars). 83% average program spend (3-year average). Review the pillar breakdown below.
Overview
THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY has a Clarity Score of 60 out of 100 on CharityCompare (2 stars, Needs improvement). Charity Commission registration number 250556. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: Children & youth. Latest accounts year 2021: total income £402k, with 83% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: late. Reserves: approximately 89 months of operating costs. 4 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
60/100
2★ · Needs improvement
Cause spend
83%
3-yr avg · charitable activities
Accountability
63/100
Finance beacon
Income
£402k
Latest year 2021
Reserves
89 mo
Months of running costs
Accounts filing
Late
Check register
Fundraising efficiency not stated · 1% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: medium
How THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY compares
Clarity Score benchmarked against similar UK charities — higher is better.
Ranks higher than 14% of 2,492 charities in its income band.
Ranks higher than 12% of 3,988 charities in this cause.
Data & confidence
- Source
- Charity Commission (E&W)
- Accounts year
- 2021
- Filing date
- 2026-06-24 00:00:00.0000000
- Profile reviewed
- 2026-06-25
Medium confidence — some data missing or late
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. Source: Charity Commission for England and Wales . 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.
63/100
| 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 · one or two = 0 pts (governance red flag). | 100% | 10 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.
17/100
| Metric | Score | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Reserves (months of cash) 3–24 months = 15 pts · 1–3 months = 7 pts · under 1 month or over 3 years (hoarding) = 0 pts. | 0% | 89 months · 0/15 pts |
| Income stability / growth Positive or stable three-year revenue trend = 10 pts · sustained decline = 0 pts. | 0% | 0/10 pts · 3-year average |
| Liabilities to assets Low debt (< 30% liabilities to assets) = 5 pts · high debt = 0 pts. | 100% | 2% · 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 ≥ 75% on charitable activities = 10 pts · 60–75% = 5 pts · below 60% = 0 pts. | 100% | 83% · 10/10 pts (3-year average) |
| Fundraising efficiency Spends ≤ £0.20 to raise £1 = 10 pts · £0.21–£0.35 = 5 pts · above £0.35 = 0 pts (fundraising cost ÷ income). | 100% | 0p per £1 income · 10/10 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 More volunteers than paid staff = 10 pts · equal mix = 5 pts · no volunteers = 0 pts. | 100% | 40 volunteers / 3 staff · 10/10 pts |
Clarity Score
60/100 total · Needs improvement · 2 of 4 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.
63/100
Financial Health
Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts.
17/100
Financial Efficiency
How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios.
100/100
Community Support
Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff.
100/100
Revenue & expenses
Latest filed year 2021 · Source: Charity Commission annual accounts
| Category | Amount | % of spend |
|---|---|---|
| Total income | £402k | — |
| Total expenditure | £498k | — |
Where the money goes
Latest accounts (2021) · £498k spent
- Other spending100% · £498k
Trust indicators
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)
10 trustees on the Charity Commission register
-
Workforce on register
3 employees · 40 volunteers (13:1 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 250556
Full trustee list, accounts, and regulatory history on the Charity Commission.
View on Charity Commission →Trustees & officers
- RICHARD DAVID OSBORNE
- ALISTAIR DRUMMOND SCOTT
- COLIN MALCOLM PHILP Chair · since 2011
- Fabrizio Bernardini since 2017
- Stephen George Christopher Salmon since 2019
- Robin Hughes Brand since 2023
- Leslie Patrick Shoulder since 2023
- Jerry Stone since 2025
- Swetha Kotichintala since 2025
- Dr Richard James Soilleux since 2026
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). A statutory inquiry sets the score to 0 automatically.
Accountability & Transparency
Scored from filings
40 points — filing history (15), trustee oversight (15), declared policies (10).
Financial Health
Scored from filings
30 points — reserves (15), income stability (10), liabilities to assets (5).
Financial Efficiency
Scored from filings
20 points — program expense ratio (10), fundraising efficiency (10). Kept at 20% to avoid punishing legitimate infrastructure costs.
Community Support
Scored from filings
10 points — volunteer-to-staff ratio from Charity Commission workforce data.
Overall score
Sum of all pillar points. Translated to stars: 90–100 Exceptional (4★), 75–89 Good (3★), 60–74 Needs improvement (2★), below 60 Poor (1★).
Five-year trends
- Income
- Spending
- Cause spend
Values in £ thousands · Source: Charity Commission accounts
Key facts
- Overall score
- 60/100 (2★)
- Income
- £402k
- Cause spend
- 83% of expenditure
- Reg number
- 250556
- Scope
- UK-wide
- Reserves
- 89 months
- Trustees
- 10
- Accounts year
- 2021
- Filing
- late
Compare & explore
Similar children & youth charities
Top-rated peers by CharityCompare score
- Felix Charity 100/100 · £72m
- ELIM FOURSQUARE GOSPEL ALLIANCE 100/100 · £66m
- THE INSTITUTION OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY 100/100 · £53m
- MOVEMBER EUROPE 100/100 · £27m
Share & export
Opens a printer-friendly view of this profile for THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY.
For this charity
Add your 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.
Red flags
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status.
What is THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY's charity rating? +
THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY scores 60 out of 100 on CharityCompare (2 stars — Needs improvement). 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).
Is THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY a good charity to donate to? +
THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY scores 60 out of 100 (2 stars — Needs improvement) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its Charity Commission filings. Around 83% 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 BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY a legitimate UK charity? +
Yes — THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY is registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales under registration number 250556. You can verify the entry on the official register.
What is THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY's Charity Commission registration number? +
THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY's registration number is 250556. Official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/250556
How much income does THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY receive? +
THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY reported £402k total income in its 2021 accounts, based on Charity Commission filings. Five-year trend: growing.
What percentage of THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY's spending goes to charitable activities? +
Approximately 83% of total expenditure went to charitable activities in the latest filed year. Fundraising was 0% and combined overhead (fundraising plus governance) was 1%.
Are THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY's accounts up to date? +
Filing status: late (last filing 2026-06-24 00:00:00.0000000). CharityCompare flags late or missing accounts separately from the financial score.
Where is THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY based? +
THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY is listed at London · UK-wide · SW8 1SZ and operates UK-wide, focused on children & youth.
How does CharityCompare score THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY? +
We analyse Charity Commission annual accounts using three-year averages for program expense, fundraising efficiency, and overhead; 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.
Does CharityCompare recommend donating to THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY? +
No. CharityCompare provides independent scores and facts from official filings. We do not tell you where to donate or earn commission from charities.
How can I compare THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY with other charities? +
Use our free compare tool to put THE BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY side-by-side with other UK charities on scores, finances, and filing status.