National vs local homelessness charity — compared
In short: National bodies influence housing policy; local services often provide direct beds and outreach in your city.
Data from Charity Commission register, last updated .
Homelessness charities range from household names running helplines and campaigns to city-based organisations running hostels.
Key differences
| What to compare | Shelter | St Mungo's |
|---|---|---|
| Services | Helplines, research, campaigning | Hostels, outreach, local advice |
| Scale | Millions in income | Often under £10m |
| Measure of success | Policy wins, advice reach | Bed nights, people housed |
What the latest filings show
Figures from the most recent annual accounts on the Charity Commission register. Clarity scores use our methodology.
| Metric | Shelter | St Mungo's |
|---|---|---|
| Overall score | 95/100 (4★) | 82/100 (3★) |
| Accountability & Finance | 100/100 | 100/100 |
| Spend on charitable activities | 83% of expenditure | 85% of expenditure |
| Fundraising efficiency | £10.0 raised per £1 fundraising (3-yr avg) | £10.6 raised per £1 fundraising (3-yr avg) |
| Latest income | £78m | £95m |
| Fundraising spend | 11% of expenditure | 10% of expenditure |
| Reserves | 5 months | 2 months |
| Accounts filing | On time | On time |
| Data confidence | high | high |
| Charity number | 292411 | 1141671 |
St Mungo's may suit you if…
- You want local beds and meals
- You walk past their centre daily
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★).