--- title: "The British Red Cross Society rating | CharityCompare" description: "Is The British Red Cross Society a legitimate UK charity? Clarity Score 77/100. Accounts 2024: income £287m · 78% on charitable activities. Reg 220949." source: https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-british-red-cross-society retrieved: 2026-08-18T01:28:04.319Z license: "Charity data © Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0" --- Quick answer ## Is The British Red Cross Society a good charity? The British Red Cross Society scores 77/100 (4 stars, Good) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, calculated from its UK regulator filings. Its latest accounts year is 2024 (£287m total income, 78% 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 · EC2Y 9AL | Reg [220949](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-british-red-cross-society) | Registered charity | [Official website](https://www.redcross.org.uk/) | [Charity Commission register](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/220949) Donate ## How can you give to THE BRITISH RED CROSS SOCIETY? You leave CharityCompare to complete a donation on the official THE BRITISH RED CROSS SOCIETY form. We do not process payments or take commission. Opens their official online donation form. [Donate](https://www.redcross.org.uk/?utm_source=charitycompare&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=donate&utm_content=220949) ## What does The British Red Cross Society do? The British Red Cross Society is a registered charity (no. 220949) working in international aid across the United Kingdom. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 78% of spending to charitable activities, holding roughly 2 months of reserves, and files its annual accounts on time. Reported income has been broadly stable 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. Summarised from public filings — The British Red Cross Society hasn't added its own description yet. [Work here? Add it free →](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/claim?charity=the-british-red-cross-society) **In short:** THE BRITISH RED CROSS SOCIETY scores 77 out of 100 (4 stars). 78% average program spend (3-year average). Filings are up to date with no major concerns. ## What is The British Red Cross Society? The British Red Cross Society has a Clarity Score of 77 out of 100 on CharityCompare (4 stars, Good). Charity Commission registration number 220949. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: International aid. Latest accounts year 2024: total income £287m, with 78% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: up to date. Reserves: approximately 2 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](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/), last updated 17 July 2026. Overall score 77/100 4★ · Good Cause spend 78% 3-yr avg · charitable activities Accountability 100/100 Finance beacon Income £287m Latest year 2024 Reserves 2 mo Months of running costs Accounts filing On time Charity Commission £4.9 raised per £1 fundraising (3-yr avg) · 23% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: high ## How does THE BRITISH RED CROSS SOCIETY compare? Clarity Score percentile against similar UK charities — the share of peers THE BRITISH RED CROSS SOCIETY scores higher than. Income band (£10m+)47thpercentile **Scores higher than 47% of 943 charities in its income band** · 77/100 vs 77 peer average (marker). International aid charities56thpercentile **Scores higher than 56% of 618 charities in this cause** · 77/100 vs 75 peer average (marker). ## How reliable is The British Red Cross Society's data? Source Charity Commission (England & Wales) Accounts year 2024 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 The British Red Cross Society'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% | 12 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. 47/100 | Metric | Score | Value | | --- | --- | --- | | Reserves (months of cash) 3–24 months = full marks, tapering on both sides · 0 months or 4+ years (hoarding) = 0 pts. | 67% | 2 months · 10/15 pts | | Income stability / growth +20% or more over the window = 10 pts · flat = 5 pts · −20% or worse = 0 pts, scaled between. | 0% | 0/10 pts · 3-year average | | Liabilities to assets 0% liabilities-to-assets = 5 pts, scaling down to 0 pts at 60%+ debt. | 80% | 10% · 4/5 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% | 78% · 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% | 21p 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% | 10,200 volunteers / 3286 staff · 10/10 pts | [How we calculate beacon scores →](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology) ## What is The British Red Cross Society's Clarity Score? 77/100 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 47/100 Financial Health 65/100 Financial Efficiency 100/100 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 oversight12 trustees · 15/15 pts Declared policies10/10 pts ### Financial Health Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts. 47/100 Reserves (months of cash)2 months · 10/15 pts Income stability / growth0/10 pts · 3-year average Liabilities to assets10% · 4/5 pts ### Financial Efficiency How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios. 65/100 Program expense ratio78% · 7/10 pts (3-year average) Fundraising efficiency21p per £1 income · 6/10 pts (3-year average) ### Community Support Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff. 100/100 Volunteer-to-staff ratio10,200 volunteers / 3286 staff · 10/10 pts ## How much does The British Red Cross Society raise and spend? Latest filed year 2024 · Source: Charity Commission filings | Category | Amount | % of spend | | --- | --- | --- | | Total income | £287m | — | | Total expenditure | £310m | — | | Charitable activities | £238m | 77% | | Fundraising | £72m | 23% | | Governance & admin | £2.9m | 1% | 77%On charitable activities ## Where does the money go? Latest accounts (2024) · £310m spent - Charitable activities77% · £238m - Fundraising23% · £72m - Governance1% · £2.9m ## What trust indicators does The British Red Cross Society 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) 12 trustees on the Charity Commission register - ✓ Workforce on register 3286 employees · 10,200 volunteers (3:1 volunteer-to-staff) Fundraising Regulator Not listed as member 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 220949 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/220949) ### Trustees & officers - Yaseer Ahmed since 2019 - Dennis Dunn MBE JP DL since 2018 - Louise Halpin since 2020 - Katie Igras since 2021 - Kirsty Robeson since 2021 - Sir John Eaton Holmes since 2022 - Howard Ashley Bell since 2023 - Alan House QFSM since 2023 - MARK PETER BEDDY since 2025 - Carl David Cowling since 2025 - Gabrielle Inglis since 2026 - Helen Frances Bennett since 2026 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 British Red Cross Society'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 British Red Cross Society? Overall score 77/100 (4★) Income £287m Cause spend 78% of expenditure Reg number 220949 Scope UK-wide Reserves 2 months Trustees 12 Accounts year 2024 Filing up to date ## How does THE BRITISH RED CROSS SOCIETY compare, and where else can you look? [Compare THE BRITISH RED CROSS SOCIETY with others](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/compare-charities?ids=the-british-red-cross-society) [More international aid charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/international) [How we score charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology) ### Where THE BRITISH RED CROSS SOCIETY sits The causes this charity is classified under, and other charities working nearby. - [international charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/international) - [poverty charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/poverty) - [disability charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/disability) - [health charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/health) - [Charities in London](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/cities/london) - [international charities in London](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/international/london) ### Similar international aid charities Top-rated peers by CharityCompare score - [THE ZAHRA TRUST](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-zahra-trust) 100/100 · £5.9m - [ORISON CHARITABLE TRUST](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/orison-charitable-trust) 100/100 · £2.8m - [HELP THE NEEDY CHARITABLE TRUST](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/help-the-needy-charitable-trust) 100/100 · £2.6m - [MAJLIS ANSARULLAH (UK) LTD](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/majlis-ansarullah-uk-ltd) 100/100 · £1.9m ## How can you share The British Red Cross Society's rating? 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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 77/100 ★★★★★](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-british-red-cross-society) Lightweight HTML badge (no iframe) — paste anywhere ♥ CharityCompare Clarity Score 77/100 ★★★★★ Copy code ## Frequently asked questions Common questions about The British Red Cross Society's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status. Is The British Red Cross Society a good charity? + The British Red Cross Society scores 77 out of 100 (4 stars — Good) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its UK regulator filings. Around 78% 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 British Red Cross Society a legitimate charity? + Yes — The British Red Cross Society is a legitimate registered charity (charity number 220949). Verify it on the official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/220949. Registration proves status; Clarity Score then summarises filing transparency on paper, not programme impact. What is The British Red Cross Society's charity number? + The British Red Cross Society's charity number is 220949. 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 British Red Cross Society's charity rating? + The British Red Cross Society scores 77 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 The British Red Cross Society have reviews and complaints? + CharityCompare does not host public user reviews for The British Red Cross Society. Instead you get a filing-based Clarity Score, cause spend, reserves and red flags such as late accounts. 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 British Red Cross Society? + According to its 2024 regulator filing, 78% of The British Red Cross Society'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 British Red Cross Society's overheads? + According to its 2024 regulator filing, fundraising costs were about 22% of total expenditure and combined overheads (fundraising plus governance) were about 23% of total expenditure at The British Red Cross Society. The filings CharityCompare uses do not publish CEO or senior-staff pay, so we cannot say what The British Red Cross Society'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 British Red Cross Society receive? + The British Red Cross Society reported £287m total income in its 2024 accounts, based on UK regulator filings. Five-year trend: stable. Are The British Red Cross Society'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 British Red Cross Society based? + The British Red Cross Society is listed at London · UK-wide · EC2Y 9AL and operates UK-wide, focused on international aid. How does CharityCompare score The British Red Cross Society? + We calculate a Clarity Score of 0–100 from four pillars in The British Red Cross Society'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 British Red Cross Society'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.