Skip to content

UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION

Charity rating & review

67/100 Clarity Score · 2 stars · Charity Commission filings · How we score

Verified · Charity Commission data
67 /100

Clarity score

Needs improvement

Donate

Is UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION a good charity?

UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION scores 67/100 (Needs improvement) on our Clarity Score, with 100% 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.

Glasgow · GU9 7DS Reg 1165619 Registered charity Official website Charity Commission register

Mission

UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION is a registered charity (no. 1165619) working in children & youth in Glasgow · GU9 7DS. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 100% of spending to charitable activities, holding roughly 1 months of reserves, though its recent accounts were filed late. Reported income has been declining 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: UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION scores 67 out of 100 (2 stars). 100% average program spend (3-year average). Review the pillar breakdown below.

Overview

UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION has a Clarity Score of 67 out of 100 on CharityCompare (2 stars, Needs improvement). Charity Commission registration number 1165619. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: Children & youth. Latest accounts year 2021: total income £442k, with 100% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: late. Reserves: approximately 1 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, last updated .

Overall score

67/100

2★ · Needs improvement

Cause spend

100%

3-yr avg · charitable activities

Accountability

50/100

Finance beacon

Income

£442k

Latest year 2021

Reserves

1 mo

Months of running costs

Accounts filing

Late

Check register

Fundraising efficiency not stated · 0% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: medium

How UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION compares

Clarity Score benchmarked against similar UK charities — higher is better.

Income band (£100k–£500k)67 vs 77 avg

Ranks higher than 26% of 2,492 charities in its income band.

Children & youth charities67 vs 78 avg

Ranks higher than 22% 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.

50/100

Accountability & Transparency metrics for UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION
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 · one or two = 0 pts (governance red flag).

100% 9 trustees · 15/15 pts
Declared policies

Safeguarding (4) · conflict of interest (3) · volunteer management (3) — from Charity Commission annual return.

0% 0/10 pts

Financial Health

Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts.

57/100

Financial Health metrics for UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION
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.

47% 1 months · 7/15 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.

0% 34% · 0/5 pts

Financial Efficiency

How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios.

100/100

Financial Efficiency metrics for UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION
Metric Score Value
Program expense ratio

≥ 75% on charitable activities = 10 pts · 60–75% = 5 pts · below 60% = 0 pts.

100% 100% · 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

Community Support metrics for UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION
Metric Score Value
Volunteer-to-staff ratio

More volunteers than paid staff = 10 pts · equal mix = 5 pts · no volunteers = 0 pts.

100% 300 volunteers / 16 staff · 10/10 pts

How we calculate beacon scores →

Clarity Score

67/100 total · Needs improvement · 2 of 4 stars

Four pillars (40 + 30 + 20 + 10 points) from Charity Commission filings — see methodology for full weightings.

50/100
Accountability & Transparency
57/100
Financial Health
100/100
Financial Efficiency
100/100
Community Support

Accountability & Transparency

Baseline trust from filing discipline, board oversight, and declared governance policies.

50/100

Filing history (5 years)5/15 pts
Trustee oversight9 trustees · 15/15 pts
Declared policies0/10 pts

Financial Health

Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts.

57/100

Reserves (months of cash)1 months · 7/15 pts
Income stability / growth10/10 pts · 3-year average
Liabilities to assets34% · 0/5 pts

Financial Efficiency

How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios.

100/100

Program expense ratio100% · 10/10 pts (3-year average)
Fundraising efficiency0p per £1 income · 10/10 pts (3-year average)

Community Support

Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff.

100/100

Volunteer-to-staff ratio300 volunteers / 16 staff · 10/10 pts

Revenue & expenses

Latest filed year 2021 · Source: Charity Commission annual accounts

UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION revenue and expenses for 2021
Category Amount % of spend
Total income £442k
Total expenditure £433k
0%On charitable activities

Where the money goes

Latest accounts (2021) · £433k spent

  • Other spending100%

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)

    9 trustees on the Charity Commission register

  • Workforce on register

    16 employees · 300 volunteers (19:1 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 1165619

Full trustee list, accounts, and regulatory history on the Charity Commission.

View on Charity Commission →

Trustees & officers

  • Martin Dodd since 2023
  • Phoebe Daniels since 2024
  • Castiel Sanderson since 2024
  • Dr Emily Caroline Linnemann since 2025
  • Leena Patel since 2025
  • Shayaike Hassan since 2025
  • Joshua James Singh-Hill since 2025
  • Alyson Beth Aylott since 2026
  • Rizwan Irfan Teladia 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.

Full methodology →

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

£0k £300k £600k £900k £1200k 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Income 2021: £442k Spending 2021: £433k Cause spend 2021: £325k Income 2022: £698k Spending 2022: £728k Cause spend 2022: £486k Income 2023: £702k Spending 2023: £725k Cause spend 2023: £725k Income 2024: £782k Spending 2024: £777k Cause spend 2024: £777k Income 2025: £847k Spending 2025: £829k Cause spend 2025: £829k
  • Income
  • Spending
  • Cause spend

Values in £ thousands · Source: Charity Commission accounts

Key facts

Overall score
67/100 (2★)
Income
£442k
Cause spend
100% of expenditure
Reg number
1165619
Scope
Local (glasgow)
Reserves
1 months
Trustees
9
Accounts year
2021
Filing
late

Similar children & youth charities

Top-rated peers by CharityCompare score

Share & export

Share: XLinkedInFacebookBluesky

Opens a printer-friendly view of this profile for UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION.

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 UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status.

What is UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION's charity rating? +

UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION scores 67 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 UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION a good charity to donate to? +

UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION scores 67 out of 100 (2 stars — Needs improvement) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its Charity Commission filings. Around 100% 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 UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION a legitimate UK charity? +

Yes — UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION is registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales under registration number 1165619. You can verify the entry on the official register.

What is UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION's Charity Commission registration number? +

UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION's registration number is 1165619. Official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/1165619

How much income does UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION receive? +

UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION reported £442k total income in its 2021 accounts, based on Charity Commission filings. Five-year trend: declining.

What percentage of UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION's spending goes to charitable activities? +

Approximately 100% of total expenditure went to charitable activities in the latest filed year. Fundraising was 0% and combined overhead (fundraising plus governance) was 0%.

Are UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION'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 UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION based? +

UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION is listed at Glasgow · GU9 7DS, focused on children & youth.

How does CharityCompare score UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION? +

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 UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION? +

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 UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION with other charities? +

Use our free compare tool to put UNIVERSITY FOR THE CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS' UNION side-by-side with other UK charities on scores, finances, and filing status.