---
title: "Charity accounts coverage: register research"
description: "CharityCompare analysis of missing and older accounts dates and zero financial figures in the England and Wales register."
source: https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/research/register-data-quality
retrieved: 2026-09-20T13:37:20.552Z
license: "Charity data © Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0"
---

[← All charity research](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/research) Accounts over three years old

3.3%

of registered parent records

Parent records analysed

171,859

England and Wales · linked records excluded

Open and reproducible

Every observation

Definitions, source checksum and [downloadable data](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/research-data/register-observations.csv)

Of 171,859 registered parent records, 5,723 (3.3%) have a latest accounts period ending more than three years before the extract. This is a data-freshness signal, not a count of closed charities.

## What we found
| Measure | Records | Share | Interpretation |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| No latest accounts-period date | 9,121 | 5.3% | A missing date can include a newly registered charity; it is not a late-filing finding. |
| Latest accounts period over three years old | 5,723 | 3.3% | Measured against the extract date, not a statutory filing deadline. |
| Explicit zero income and expenditure | 9,854 | 5.7% | Both fields must contain zero. Empty fields are excluded. |
| Older accounts or both zero figures | 14,381 | 8.4% | Union of those groups; each parent registration counted once. |

## What these findings mean

Fresh register downloads can still contain old financial periods. Always read both dates: when the directory refreshed its source and which year the charity’s accounts cover.

We retain useful historical profiles, label exceptional register statuses and keep historical ratings out of current promotional rankings. Zero activity, an old date or a missing field is not proof of wrongdoing or closure.

## Population, methods and limitations

We parsed the Charity Commission’s tab-separated full extract and selected records marked Registered with linked-charity suffix 0. This yields 171,859 parent registrations. We excluded 13,780 registered linked records from the analysis and did not combine Scottish or Northern Irish registers. This is not a count of every UK charity or every unique UK organisation.

For income bands, 9,121 records have no income figure and 2 have an invalid or negative value; both are excluded from the 162,736-record denominator. The source uses latest reported financial periods, so the figures do not form a same-year sector income total. Percentages are rounded to one decimal place.

“Over three years” means the recorded accounts end is strictly earlier than the extract date minus three calendar years. Missing dates are a separate group. The union measure removes overlap between old accounts and explicit zero income and expenditure.

Reproduce using `artifacts/web/scripts/build-research.ts`. The downloadable methods include the source checksum and exact definitions. Source text SHA-256: 9668bf0061b8d02721619d4adcb990fd8a16243a55498979ca8b3a0759a64e4f.

## Download, cite or correct

[Download observations CSV](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/research-data/register-observations.csv)[Methods and source metadata](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/research-data/methodology.json)

Suggested citation: CharityCompare, “How current are charity accounts in the register?”, analysis of the Charity Commission for England and Wales extract dated 2026-09-08. Cite this page and retain its limitations when using the figures.

[Official source extract](https://ccewuksprdoneregsadata1.blob.core.windows.net/data/txt/publicextract.charity.zip) · [Open Government Licence v3](https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/) · [Report a data or interpretation error](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/contact).

[Read the companion research report](https://www.charitycompare.org.uk/research/charity-income-distribution)