---
title: "How to report a concern about a charity | CharityCompare"
description: "Who to contact about a UK charity — the Charity Commission, OSCR, CCNI, the Fundraising Regulator and Action Fraud — what each handles, and what to include."
source: https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/guides/how-to-report-a-charity-concern
retrieved: 2026-08-18T01:26:17.206Z
license: "Charity data © Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0"
---

# How to report a concern about a charity

**In short:** Report serious harm or misuse of funds to the charity's regulator, fundraising complaints to the Fundraising Regulator, and fraud to Action Fraud. Complain to the charity's trustees first for service issues.

Data from [Charity Commission register](https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/), last updated 25 July 2026.

Where to take a concern depends entirely on what the concern is. Sending a fundraising complaint to the Charity Commission, or a safeguarding matter to the Fundraising Regulator, usually just delays it.

## Start with the charity, in most cases

Registered charities are expected to have a complaints procedure, normally published on their website. Regulators generally expect you to have used it before escalating, and most issues — poor service, a rude fundraiser, a disputed refund, a communication you did not consent to — are resolved fastest by the charity itself.

Write to the trustees rather than the individual involved if the complaint concerns staff conduct or how a decision was made.

**Do not go to the charity first** if raising it directly could put a person at risk, allow evidence to be destroyed, or if you suspect fraud, abuse or criminal activity. Report those externally straight away.

## Who handles what
| Concern | Where it goes |
| --- | --- |
| Misuse of charitable funds, serious harm to beneficiaries, criminal activity, trustee misconduct, persistent failure to file accounts | The charity’s regulator — Charity Commission (England and Wales), OSCR (Scotland), CCNI (Northern Ireland) |
| Fundraising conduct: pressure selling, doorstep and street collections, unwanted contact, misleading appeals | Fundraising Regulator (England, Wales, NI) or the Scottish Fundraising Adjudication Panel |
| Fraud, fake appeals, money lost to a scam | Action Fraud, and your bank immediately |
| Unwanted marketing, data-protection and consent breaches | Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) |
| Safeguarding risk to a child or adult at risk | The local authority safeguarding team, or the police if someone is in immediate danger |
| Employment disputes | The charity’s grievance process, then Acas or an employment tribunal |

## What to include in a report

Regulators act on specifics. A useful report contains:

- The charity’s **full name and registration number**.

- **What happened, when, and where**, in date order.

- **Who was involved** and their role, if known.

- **What harm has occurred or is likely** — to funds, beneficiaries or public trust.

- **Evidence** — accounts, emails, photographs, screenshots, receipts.

- **What the charity said** if you have already complained to it.

- Whether you have reported it anywhere else.

Say clearly if you believe someone is at immediate risk, so it can be triaged urgently.

## What happens next

Regulators do not act as a complaints service and usually will not tell you the outcome of an assessment. The Charity Commission triages concerns by risk, and most are resolved through engagement and guidance rather than formal action. Where risk is serious it can open a **statutory inquiry**, appoint an interim manager, freeze accounts or remove trustees.

An open statutory inquiry is public information. On CharityCompare it sets that charity’s [Clarity Score](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/methodology) to 0 automatically and displays a regulatory warning on the profile, because no amount of good financial reporting offsets an active investigation.

## Checking a charity’s record yourself

Before reporting, it is worth checking what is already public. The register shows filing history, trustee names, and whether the charity is in default. Every rated [CharityCompare profile](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/charity-directory) shows filing record, governance signals, red flags and a direct link to the official register entry.

If your concern is that an appeal may be fake rather than that a real charity is failing, read [how to spot charity scams and fake appeals](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/guides/charity-scams-and-fake-appeals) first — the reporting route is different.

## Common questions

### Who regulates charities in the UK?

+ The Charity Commission for England and Wales, the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) for Scotland, and the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland (CCNI). Fundraising standards in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are overseen separately by the Fundraising Regulator, and in Scotland by the Scottish Fundraising Adjudication Panel.

### What can the Charity Commission investigate?

+ It handles serious concerns such as misuse of charitable funds, significant harm to beneficiaries, criminal activity, trustee conflicts of interest and persistent failure to file accounts. It does not resolve service complaints, employment disputes or disagreements about a charity's lawful decisions — those go to the trustees, an employment tribunal or the courts.

### Should I contact the charity before reporting it?

+ For most complaints, yes. Charities are expected to have a complaints procedure, and regulators generally expect you to have used it. The exception is where raising it directly could put someone at risk, destroy evidence, or where you suspect fraud or abuse — in those cases report externally first.

### Can I report a charity anonymously?

+ Yes. The Charity Commission accepts anonymous concerns, though it can be harder to act on them without follow-up detail. Charity workers and volunteers reporting wrongdoing may also have legal protection as whistleblowers.

## Read next

- [How to spot charity scams and fake appeals Charity scams rely on urgency and familiarity. Verify the registration number independently, refuse pressure, never pay by transfer to a personal account, and always donate through the charity's own website.](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/guides/charity-scams-and-fake-appeals)
- [The CharityCompare donor guide Verify the charity number, match the delivery model to what you want funded, then use the four Clarity Score pillars from UK regulator filings — not a single overhead ratio — before you give.](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/guides/donor-guide)
- [What is Gift Aid? Gift Aid lets an eligible UK charity claim an extra 25p per £1 you donate if you have paid enough Income Tax or Capital Gains Tax — it costs you nothing extra, but you must opt in and stay eligible.](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/guides/gift-aid-basics)

Ready to check a specific charity? Every profile shows a free Clarity Score from regulator filings.

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**Information only** — not donation advice.