Children & youth · Reg 286967
THE HEALTH FOUNDATION
Charity rating & review
62/100 Clarity Score · 2 stars · Charity Commission filings · How we score
Clarity score
Needs improvement
Is THE HEALTH FOUNDATION a good charity?
THE HEALTH FOUNDATION scores 62/100 (Needs improvement) on our Clarity Score, with 78% of spending going to charitable activities and accounts up to date. 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 HEALTH FOUNDATION
You leave CharityCompare to complete a donation on the official THE HEALTH FOUNDATION form. We do not process payments or take commission. Opens their official online donation form.
Mission
THE HEALTH FOUNDATION is a registered charity (no. 286967) working in children & youth across the United Kingdom. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 78% of spending to charitable activities, and files its annual accounts on time. 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 HEALTH FOUNDATION scores 62 out of 100 (2 stars). 78% average program spend (3-year average). Review the pillar breakdown below.
Overview
THE HEALTH FOUNDATION has a Clarity Score of 62 out of 100 on CharityCompare (2 stars, Needs improvement). Charity Commission registration number 286967. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: Children & youth. Latest accounts year 2020: total income £16m, with 78% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: up to date. 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, last updated .
Overall score
62/100
2★ · Needs improvement
Cause spend
78%
3-yr avg · charitable activities
Accountability
93/100
Finance beacon
Income
£16m
Latest year 2020
Reserves
—
Months of running costs
Accounts filing
On time
Charity Commission
£1.2 raised per £1 fundraising (3-yr avg) · 23% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: high
How THE HEALTH FOUNDATION compares
Clarity Score benchmarked against similar UK charities — higher is better.
Ranks higher than 14% of 1,022 charities in its income band.
Ranks higher than 15% of 3,988 charities in this cause.
Data & confidence
- Source
- Charity Commission (E&W)
- Accounts year
- 2020
- Filing date
- 2026-06-24 00:00:00.0000000
- Profile reviewed
- 2026-06-25
High confidence — complete filing data
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.
93/100
| 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 · one or two = 0 pts (governance red flag). | 100% | 12 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.
50/100
| 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% | Not stated · 0/15 pts |
| Income stability / growth Positive or stable three-year revenue trend = 10 pts · sustained decline = 0 pts. | 100% | 10/10 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.
50/100
| Metric | Score | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Program expense ratio ≥ 75% on charitable activities = 10 pts · 60–75% = 5 pts · below 60% = 0 pts. | 100% | 78% · 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). | 0% | 86p per £1 income · 0/10 pts (3-year average) |
Community Support
Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff.
0/100
| Metric | Score | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Volunteer-to-staff ratio More volunteers than paid staff = 10 pts · equal mix = 5 pts · no volunteers = 0 pts. | 0% | 3 volunteers / 273 staff · 0/10 pts |
Clarity Score
62/100 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.
93/100
Financial Health
Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts.
50/100
Financial Efficiency
How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios.
50/100
Community Support
Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff.
0/100
Revenue & expenses
Latest filed year 2020 · Source: Charity Commission annual accounts
| Category | Amount | % of spend |
|---|---|---|
| Total income | £16m | — |
| Total expenditure | £57m | — |
| Charitable activities | £43m | 74% |
| Fundraising | £15m | 26% |
| Governance & admin | £118k | 0% |
Where the money goes
Latest accounts (2020) · £57m spent
- Charitable activities74% · £43m
- Fundraising26% · £15m
- Governance0% · £118k
Trust indicators
Pulled from the Charity Commission register — filing behaviour, board size, and workforce where reported.
-
Accounts filed on time
up to date · last filing 2026-06-24 00:00:00.0000000
-
Trustee board size (3–12)
12 trustees on the Charity Commission register
-
Workforce on register
273 employees · 3 volunteers (0:1 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 286967
Full trustee list, accounts, and regulatory history on the Charity Commission.
View on Charity Commission →Trustees & officers
- Loraine Hawkins since 2017
- Dr Ruth Hussey since 2018
- David Smart since 2019
- Professor Dawn Edge since 2021
- Katherine Blacklock since 2021
- Paul John Najsarek since 2023
- James Roland Sinker since 2023
- Rachel Wintour since 2024
- Sir David Behan since 2025
- Karen Reid since 2025
- Professor Kim Samantha Graham FRSE since 2025
- Stian Westlake since 2025
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
- 62/100 (2★)
- Income
- £16m
- Cause spend
- 78% of expenditure
- Reg number
- 286967
- Scope
- UK-wide
- Reserves
- —
- Trustees
- 12
- Accounts year
- 2020
- Filing
- up to date
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 HEALTH FOUNDATION.
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.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about THE HEALTH FOUNDATION's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status.
What is THE HEALTH FOUNDATION's charity rating? +
THE HEALTH FOUNDATION scores 62 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 HEALTH FOUNDATION a good charity to donate to? +
THE HEALTH FOUNDATION scores 62 out of 100 (2 stars — Needs improvement) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its Charity Commission 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 HEALTH FOUNDATION a legitimate UK charity? +
Yes — THE HEALTH FOUNDATION is registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales under registration number 286967. You can verify the entry on the official register.
What is THE HEALTH FOUNDATION's Charity Commission registration number? +
THE HEALTH FOUNDATION's registration number is 286967. Official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/286967
How much income does THE HEALTH FOUNDATION receive? +
THE HEALTH FOUNDATION reported £16m total income in its 2020 accounts, based on Charity Commission filings. Five-year trend: stable.
What percentage of THE HEALTH FOUNDATION's spending goes to charitable activities? +
Approximately 78% of total expenditure went to charitable activities in the latest filed year. Fundraising was 22% and combined overhead (fundraising plus governance) was 23%.
Are THE HEALTH FOUNDATION's accounts up to date? +
Filing status: up to date (last filing 2026-06-24 00:00:00.0000000). CharityCompare flags late or missing accounts separately from the financial score.
Where is THE HEALTH FOUNDATION based? +
THE HEALTH FOUNDATION is listed at London · UK-wide · EC4Y 8AP and operates UK-wide, focused on children & youth.
How does CharityCompare score THE HEALTH FOUNDATION? +
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 HEALTH FOUNDATION? +
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 HEALTH FOUNDATION with other charities? +
Use our free compare tool to put THE HEALTH FOUNDATION side-by-side with other UK charities on scores, finances, and filing status.