This is the short path from “I want to give” to a checked donation. It is information, not a recommendation of where to give.
Step 1 — Confirm it is a real charity
Every genuine UK charity has a registration number from the regulator for its nation:
- Charity Commission — England and Wales
- OSCR — Scotland
- CCNI — Northern Ireland
Search the name or number on CharityCompare or the official register — not via the appeal’s own link. Full method: how to check a charity is legitimate.
Step 2 — Decide what you want funded
Cause words hide different businesses. “Cancer” can mean research or patient support. “Animals” can mean inspectorate work or rehoming. “Homelessness” can mean national advice or local beds.
Match the model first. Cause reviews at /causes explain the split; rated lists live at /browse; disease-specific hubs (breast cancer, veterans, hospice) live at /charities.
Step 3 — Read the Clarity Score, not a slogan
Rated profiles carry a Clarity Score from 0–100, built from four pillars in regulator filings:
- Accountability & Transparency (40) — filing history, trustees, declared policies
- Financial Health (30) — reserves, income trend, debt
- Financial Efficiency (20) — cause spend and fundraising cost, on a graduated scale
- Community Support (10) — volunteer-to-staff ratio where published
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 (including an open statutory inquiry). Give with Confidence is 75+ with up-to-date filings and no serious red flags.
The score measures how clearly a charity accounts for money. It is not an impact ranking. Full method: methodology.
Charities without enough published return fields still have a basic register profile — including many smaller organisations and some OSCR/CCNI records. That is a data limit, not a judgement that Scotland or Northern Ireland are excluded.
Step 4 — Check red flags in context
Profiles show factual cards with links to the regulator — late accounts, sharp income drops, high fundraising spend, very high reserves, or an open inquiry. Read the trustees’ annual report for the explanation before you treat a flag as a veto.
Step 5 — Compare like with like
Put two to four similar charities side by side on compare charities. Named head-to-heads (Macmillan vs Cancer Research UK, RSPCA vs Battersea, and others) start from a model choice, then show live filings.
Do not pick the lowest admin figure. Extremely low overhead can mean underinvestment in safeguarding and finance. See charity admin costs.
Step 6 — Give on a channel you typed yourself
If the number, model and filings fit what you want to fund, donate via the charity’s official site. Enable Gift Aid if you are a UK taxpayer who has paid enough tax. We never say “donate here,” and we take no commission.