--- title: "The Royal National Institute of Bl… rating | CharityCompare" description: "The Royal National Institute of Blind People scores 72/100 (Needs improvement). Latest accounts 2025: income £96m · 62% on charitable activities. Reg 226227." source: https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-royal-national-institute-of-blind-people retrieved: 2026-08-18T01:38:37.780Z license: "Charity data © Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0" --- Quick answer ## Is The Royal National Institute of Blind People a good charity? The Royal National Institute of Blind People scores 72/100 (3 stars, Needs improvement) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, calculated from its UK regulator filings. Its latest accounts year is 2025 (£96m total income, 62% 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 · N1 9JE | Reg [226227](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-royal-national-institute-of-blind-people) | Registered charity | [Official website](https://www.rnib.org.uk/) | [Charity Commission register](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/226227) Donate ## How can you give to THE ROYAL NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF BLIND PEOPLE? You leave CharityCompare to complete a donation on the official THE ROYAL NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF BLIND PEOPLE form. We do not process payments or take commission. Opens their official online donation form. [Donate](https://www.rnib.org.uk/?utm_source=charitycompare&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=donate&utm_content=226227) ## What does The Royal National Institute of Blind People do? The Royal National Institute of Blind People is a registered charity (no. 226227) working in sight & hearing across the United Kingdom. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 62% of spending to charitable activities, holding roughly 7 months of reserves, though its recent accounts were filed late. 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 Royal National Institute of Blind People hasn't added its own description yet. [Work here? Add it free →](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/claim?charity=the-royal-national-institute-of-blind-people) **In short:** THE ROYAL NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF BLIND PEOPLE scores 72 out of 100 (3 stars). 62% average program spend (3-year average). Review the pillar breakdown below. ## What is The Royal National Institute of Blind People? The Royal National Institute of Blind People has a Clarity Score of 72 out of 100 on CharityCompare (3 stars, Needs improvement). Charity Commission registration number 226227. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: Sight & hearing. Latest accounts year 2025: total income £96m, with 62% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: late. Reserves: approximately 7 months of operating costs. 1 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 72/100 3★ · Needs improvement Cause spend 62% 3-yr avg · charitable activities Accountability 75/100 Finance beacon Income £96m Latest year 2025 Reserves 7 mo Months of running costs Accounts filing Late Check register £5.4 raised per £1 fundraising (3-yr avg) · 21% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: medium ## How does THE ROYAL NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF BLIND PEOPLE compare? Clarity Score percentile against similar UK charities — the share of peers THE ROYAL NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF BLIND PEOPLE scores higher than. Income band (£10m+)31stpercentile **Scores higher than 31% of 943 charities in its income band** · 72/100 vs 77 peer average (marker). Sight & hearing charities22ndpercentile **Scores higher than 22% of 45 charities in this cause** · 72/100 vs 83 peer average (marker). ## How reliable is The Royal National Institute of Blind People's data? Source Charity Commission (England & Wales) Accounts year 2025 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 Royal National Institute of Blind People'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. 75/100 | 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. | 33% | 5/15 pts | | Trustee oversight Three or more trustees on the register = 15 pts, scaled down for fewer (governance red flag below three). | 100% | 9 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. 73/100 | 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% | 7 months · 15/15 pts | | Income stability / growth +20% or more over the window = 10 pts · flat = 5 pts · −20% or worse = 0 pts, scaled between. | 20% | 2/10 pts · 3-year average | | Liabilities to assets 0% liabilities-to-assets = 5 pts, scaling down to 0 pts at 60%+ debt. | 100% | 5% · 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 90%+ on charitable activities = full marks, scaling down to 0 pts at 50% or below. | 30% | 62% · 3/10 pts (3-year average) | | Fundraising efficiency ≤10p to raise £1 = full marks, scaling down to 0 pts at 40p or above (fundraising cost ÷ income). | 70% | 19p per £1 income · 7/10 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% | 2,851 volunteers / 1286 staff · 10/10 pts | [How we calculate beacon scores →](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology) ## What is The Royal National Institute of Blind People's Clarity Score? 72/100 total · Needs improvement · 3 of 5 stars Four pillars (40 + 30 + 20 + 10 points) from Charity Commission filings — see methodology for full weightings. 75/100 Accountability & Transparency 73/100 Financial Health 50/100 Financial Efficiency 100/100 Community Support ### Accountability & Transparency Baseline trust from filing discipline, board oversight, and declared governance policies. 75/100 Filing history (5 years)5/15 pts Trustee oversight9 trustees · 15/15 pts Declared policies10/10 pts ### Financial Health Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts. 73/100 Reserves (months of cash)7 months · 15/15 pts Income stability / growth2/10 pts · 3-year average Liabilities to assets5% · 5/5 pts ### Financial Efficiency How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios. 50/100 Program expense ratio62% · 3/10 pts (3-year average) Fundraising efficiency19p per £1 income · 7/10 pts (3-year average) ### Community Support Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff. 100/100 Volunteer-to-staff ratio2,851 volunteers / 1286 staff · 10/10 pts ## How much does The Royal National Institute of Blind People raise and spend? Latest filed year 2025 · Source: Charity Commission filings | Category | Amount | % of spend | | --- | --- | --- | | Total income | £96m | — | | Total expenditure | £95m | — | | Charitable activities | £57m | 60% | | Fundraising | £21m | 22% | | Governance & admin | £850k | 1% | 60%On charitable activities ## Where does the money go? Latest accounts (2025) · £95m spent - Charitable activities60% · £57m - Fundraising22% · £21m - Governance1% · £850k - Other spending17% · £17m ## What trust indicators does The Royal National Institute of Blind People 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) 9 trustees on the Charity Commission register - ✓ Workforce on register 1286 employees · 2,851 volunteers (2:1 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 226227 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/226227) ### Trustees & officers - Anna Tylor since 2020 - Elizabeth Ann Walker since 2019 - Deborah Womack since 2020 - Alice Collins since 2020 - Tanya Catherine Castell MBE since 2023 - Mary Elliott since 2024 - Anouschka Elliott since 2025 - Andrew Barry since 2025 - Sir James Alan Harra since 2025 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 Royal National Institute of Blind People'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 Royal National Institute of Blind People? Overall score 72/100 (3★) Income £96m Cause spend 62% of expenditure Reg number 226227 Scope UK-wide Reserves 7 months Trustees 9 Accounts year 2025 Filing late ## How does THE ROYAL NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF BLIND PEOPLE compare, and where else can you look? [Compare THE ROYAL NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF BLIND PEOPLE with others](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/compare-charities?ids=the-royal-national-institute-of-blind-people) [More sight & hearing charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/blind-deaf) [How we score charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology) ### Where THE ROYAL NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF BLIND PEOPLE sits The causes this charity is classified under, and other charities working nearby. - [blind deaf charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/blind-deaf) - [homelessness charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/homelessness) - [disability charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/disability) - [arts charities](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/arts) - [Charities in London](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/cities/london) - [blind deaf charities in London](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/browse/blind-deaf/london) ### Similar sight & hearing charities Top-rated peers by CharityCompare score - [KENT ASSOCIATION FOR THE BLIND](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/kent-association-for-the-blind) 100/100 · £5.5m - [THE TORCH TRUST FOR THE BLIND](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-torch-trust-for-the-blind) 100/100 · £987k - [LOOK NATIONAL FEDERATION OF FAMILIES WITH VISUALLY IMPAIRED CHILDREN](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/look-national-federation-of-families-with-visually-impaired-children) 100/100 · £606k - [DERBYSHIRE ASSOCIATION OF THE BLIND LTD](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/derbyshire-association-of-the-blind-ltd) 99/100 · £732k ## How can you share The Royal National Institute of Blind People's rating? 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For this charity ## How do you add The Royal National Institute of Blind People'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 72/100 ★★★★★](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-royal-national-institute-of-blind-people) Lightweight HTML badge (no iframe) — paste anywhere ♥ CharityCompare Clarity Score 72/100 ★★★★★ Copy code ## What red flags does The Royal National Institute of Blind People have? ## Frequently asked questions Common questions about The Royal National Institute of Blind People's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status. Is The Royal National Institute of Blind People a good charity? + The Royal National Institute of Blind People scores 72 out of 100 (3 stars — Needs improvement) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its UK regulator filings. Around 62% 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 Royal National Institute of Blind People a legitimate charity? + Yes — The Royal National Institute of Blind People is a legitimate registered charity (charity number 226227). Verify it on the official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/226227. Registration proves status; Clarity Score then summarises filing transparency on paper, not programme impact. What is The Royal National Institute of Blind People's charity number? + The Royal National Institute of Blind People's charity number is 226227. 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 Royal National Institute of Blind People's charity rating? + The Royal National Institute of Blind People scores 72 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 Royal National Institute of Blind People have reviews and complaints? + CharityCompare does not host public user reviews for The Royal National Institute of Blind People. Instead you get a filing-based Clarity Score, cause spend, reserves and red flags such as late accounts (1 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 Royal National Institute of Blind People? + According to its 2025 regulator filing, 62% of The Royal National Institute of Blind People'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 Royal National Institute of Blind People's overheads? + According to its 2025 regulator filing, fundraising costs were about 20% of total expenditure and combined overheads (fundraising plus governance) were about 21% of total expenditure at The Royal National Institute of Blind People. The filings CharityCompare uses do not publish CEO or senior-staff pay, so we cannot say what The Royal National Institute of Blind People'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 Royal National Institute of Blind People receive? + The Royal National Institute of Blind People reported £96m total income in its 2025 accounts, based on UK regulator filings. Five-year trend: stable. Are The Royal National Institute of Blind People'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 Royal National Institute of Blind People based? + The Royal National Institute of Blind People is listed at London · UK-wide · N1 9JE and operates UK-wide, focused on sight & hearing. How does CharityCompare score The Royal National Institute of Blind People? + We calculate a Clarity Score of 0–100 from four pillars in The Royal National Institute of Blind People'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 Royal National Institute of Blind People'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.