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BeaconAccountability & Transparency
40 points — filing history (15), trustee oversight (15, scaling up to a board of three or more), declared policies (10).
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Compare charities side-by-side
Select up to four charities — Clarity scores (0–100) and filing data from Charity Commission accounts. Information only, not donation advice.
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Information only — not donation advice. Methodology · Charity Commission annual returns for England & Wales.
Top & bottom lists
Editorial rankings by metric — from Charity Commission filings. Information only.
Bottom 10 by filing timeliness
Charities with the weakest filing records in our set — late or missing accounts on the register.
Top 10 by accountability
Highest Accountability & Transparency pillar scores in our curated directory.
Top 10 by cause spend
Highest program expense ratios — share of spending on charitable activities.
Top 10 by fundraising efficiency
Most efficient fundraising — most income raised per pound spent on fundraising.
Top 10 by financial health
Strong financial-health signals — reserves, income trend, and overhead efficiency.
Top 10 charities by overall score
Highest Clarity Scores (0–100) in our curated set — the four-pillar rating built from Charity Commission filings.
Clarity Score
How we score
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) — each scored on a continuous scale, not pass/fail cutoffs. A statutory inquiry sets the score to 0 automatically.
90+Exceptional
75+Good
60+Needs improvement
1+Poor
0+Not rated
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BeaconFinancial Health
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).
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BeaconFinancial Efficiency
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).
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BeaconCommunity Support
10 points — volunteer-to-staff ratio from Charity Commission workforce data, scaling continuously up to a 2:1 ratio.
Overall score (0–100)
Sum of all pillar points. Display stars map the 0–100 score onto a familiar 5★ scale (≈20 points per star): 90–100 → 5★, 70–89 → 4★, 50–69 → 3★, 30–49 → 2★, 1–29 → 1★.
Overall score (0–100)
Sum of all pillar points. Display stars map the 0–100 score onto a familiar 5★ scale (≈20 points per star): 90–100 → 5★, 70–89 → 4★, 50–69 → 3★, 30–49 → 2★, 1–29 → 1★.
Pillar breakdown
Each sub-metric awards fixed points (e.g. 15/15, 10/10). Pillar rings show the percentage of that pillar’s maximum earned.
Red flags
Factual cards — statutory inquiry, fewer than three trustees, late filings, high fundraising spend, sharp income drops, very high reserves.
Give with Confidence
Score 75+ (about 4★ on the 5-star display), no serious red flags, filings up to date, no statutory inquiry.
What we exclude
Scotland (OSCR) and Northern Ireland (CCNI) in v1. Charities under £100k income. Optional donor support never influences ratings.
Information only — not donation advice. Source: Charity Commission register and annual returns for England & Wales. Changelog →
Common questions
Is comparing star scores donation advice?
No. Our scores summarise official filings. A higher score on one metric does not mean you should donate there. Read the full profile, the scoring guide below, and the charity’s own accounts before giving.
How many charities can I compare at once?
Up to four from our directory — Clarity scores (0–100), beacon breakdowns, income, cause-spend percentages and filing status appear side-by-side.
Where does the data come from?
Charity Commission annual returns and the public register for England & Wales. Every profile cites primary sources and carries a last-reviewed date.