--- title: "Oxfam vs UNICEF UK: Key Differences & Ratings" description: "Oxfam vs UNICEF UK compared: humanitarian, development and campaigning work against poverty vs fundraising for UNICEF’s work for children, from 2024–25 reports." source: https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/compare/oxfam-vs-unicef-uk retrieved: 2026-10-23T13:09:25.366Z date_note: "Retrieval time is not the filing, register-extract or editorial-review date; cite those dates from the content." license: "Charity data © Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0" --- [OX](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/oxfam-gb) [OXFAM](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/oxfam-gb) 60/100 3★ Reg. 202918 compared with [TU](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-united-kingdom-committee-for-unicef) [THE UNITED KINGDOM COMMITTEE FOR UNICEF](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-united-kingdom-committee-for-unicef) 57/100 2★ Reg. 1072612 # Oxfam vs UNICEF UK **In short:** Oxfam GB runs humanitarian, development and campaigning work as an Oxfam International affiliate and sells donated goods in its UK shops. UNICEF UK raises money for UNICEF’s work for children and runs UK children’s-rights schemes. Last reviewed 23 October 2026 by CharityCompare editorial. Oxfam GB works against poverty for people of any age, while UNICEF UK raises funds for UNICEF’s work for children. In 2024/25 Oxfam GB put 52% of its charitable spending into humanitarian work and reports 9.21 million people supported in countries where it is the executing affiliate. UNICEF UK recorded most of its 2025 charitable spending for UNICEF programmes. Neither figure measures lasting change. ## Oxfam vs UNICEF UK: key differences | What to compare | OXFAM | THE UNITED KINGDOM COMMITTEE FOR UNICEF | | --- | --- | --- | | Registered work and operating model | Humanitarian relief, development and campaigning against poverty, as an affiliate of Oxfam International, with UK shops. | UNICEF national committee raising funds for UNICEF’s work for children worldwide, plus UK programmes. | | What to consider | Its 9.21 million people covers only countries where Oxfam GB is the executing affiliate, not the whole confederation. Its £124.0 million of humanitarian spending includes £24.2 million of donated goods distributed to people. | In 2025, £73 million went to programmes or countries chosen by donors and £23 million to UNICEF’s core programmes, while £10 million funded its UK advocacy and programmes. It works with UNICEF under a co-operation agreement. | | Access and practical checks | Check whether an appeal is for a named emergency or general funds. Donated goods are sold through its 515 high street shops, and its trading company, Oxfam Activities Limited, sells bought-in goods. | Check whether a gift is for a named country or emergency or for UNICEF’s core work. Its UK programmes, such as the Rights Respecting Schools Award, are taken up by schools, health services and local areas. | | Sourced result or evidence gap | 9.21 million: People supported with partners. 2024/25, countries where Oxfam GB is the executing affiliate; 8.05 million through humanitarian response and 51% women and girls. A charity-reported output with no counting method given. | Over 3.25 million: Children reached through its three UK programmes. 2025, UK. A charity-reported output, and the report does not say whether a child in more than one programme is counted once. | ## What the latest filings show Figures from the accounts held in our dated dataset; the live register may contain newer filings. Ratios can span multiple years, as labelled. Clarity scores use our [methodology](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology). Cost to raise £1 of donations is not part of the score; legacies make it lumpy, and it is withheld where trading costs would distort it ([how it works](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology#cost-to-raise)). These snapshots have different latest accounts years. Compare the same period in the full profiles before drawing a conclusion from a financial difference. | Metric | OXFAM | THE UNITED KINGDOM COMMITTEE FOR UNICEF | | --- | --- | --- | | Latest accounts year in our snapshot | 2025 | 2024 | | Financial snapshot refreshed | 2026-09-06 | 2026-09-06 | | Ratio reporting window | 3-yr avg | 3-yr avg | | Overall score | 60/100 (3★) | 57/100 (2★) | | Accountability & Finance | 75/100 | 100/100 | | Spend on charitable activities | 68% of expenditure | 74% of expenditure | | Fundraising efficiency | £3.1 total income per £1 fundraising (2023–2025, disclosed years) | £4.8 total income per £1 fundraising (2022–2024, disclosed years) | | Cost to raise £1 of donations | Not shown for 2025: trading income was 93% of donations | 29p per £1 (2024) · 22p over 2022–2024 | | Latest income | £339m | £135m | | Fundraising spend | 32% of expenditure | 21% of expenditure | | Reserves | 2 months | 1 month | | Accounts filing | Late | On time | | Data confidence | medium | high | | Charity number | 202918 | 1072612 | [OXFAM on the register](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/charity-details/?regId=202918&subId=0) · [THE UNITED KINGDOM COMMITTEE FOR UNICEF on the register](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/charity-details/?regId=1072612&subId=0) ## Considering Oxfam GB - You want to fund humanitarian response, development and campaigning against poverty, not limited to children. - You can give goods as well as money, through its high street shops. [Full profile →](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/oxfam-gb) ## Considering UNICEF UK - You want your gift to support UNICEF’s work for children, through a programme you choose or through core funding. - You also value UK children’s-rights programmes in schools and health services. [Full profile →](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity/the-united-kingdom-committee-for-unicef) ## Oxfam vs UNICEF UK: questions answered ### Oxfam or UNICEF UK: which should I support? There is no universal winner. Oxfam GB works on poverty through humanitarian, development and campaigning work for people of any age; UNICEF UK raises funds for UNICEF’s work for children and runs UK children’s-rights programmes. Choose the focus you want, then check the appeal and accounts period. A financial rating is not an impact assessment. ### Does money given to Oxfam GB go to Oxfam International? Some does. In 2024/25 Oxfam GB paid £9.5 million to Oxfam International, £7.1 million of it as a contribution to the Oxfam International Secretariat, and made £22,296,000 in grants to other Oxfam affiliates. Oxfam International is a separate charitable foundation registered in the Netherlands, and affiliates do not control one another. ### How does UNICEF UK relate to UNICEF? UNICEF UK is a UK charitable company (charity 1072612, also registered in Scotland) and one of 32 UNICEF national committees. It raises funds for UNICEF’s emergency and development work, and a co-operation agreement sets out how UNICEF and its national committees work together. 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. [Compare these charities side-by-side](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/compare-charities?ids=oxfam-gb,the-united-kingdom-committee-for-unicef) [Back to compare](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/compare-charities) **Information only** — not donation advice. We do not tell you where to give. Sources: [Oxfam GB: Registered activities, identity and accounts](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/charity-details/?regId=202918&subId=0), [Oxfam GB: Annual Report 2024/25 (year to 31 March 2025)](https://www.oxfam.org.uk/documents/1077/Oxfam__GB_Annual_Report_2024-2025.pdf), [UNICEF UK: Registered activities, identity and accounts](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/charity-details/?regId=1072612&subId=0), [UNICEF UK: 2025 Annual Report (year to 31 December 2025)](https://www.unicef.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/UUK-Annual-Report-2025-Digital-version.pdf). See also [how we score](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/compare-charities#how-we-score).