Checking to see if charities waste money is difficult.
It is easy just to donate to a well-known charity in the hope that your money will help lots of people.
But many charities waste so much money.
The easiest monetary waste to find is on inflated salaries for executives.
Another thing to look at is how many people are helped with the money that is spent which is harder to find out.
Table of Contents:
1. The realisation that charities waste money
I wanted to give some money to a number of charities, but what charity should I donate to?
In my eyes, it was a substantial amount and I want to give money to the poor and the needy and not have it lost in paying massive CEO and Executive charity salaries.
So I got to work and looked up the top 100 most popular charities. 1
I listed them and made note of all the employee salaries over £60,000 2 The list is further down the page and it does not include health/medical charities and animal charities.
Unfortunately, I found it very demoralising and unbelievable that the majority of those most popular charities paid their Executives salaries in excess of £100,000 per year.
What do you think?
Personally, I could not sit in meetings to discuss the dire situations of people in severe poverty who were getting just a few pounds a year, while I was being paid a huge salary.
But then I discovered it was not just the money wasted on specific salaries, but on how many people were actually helped per the money spent.
Charity Science explains it like this:
there are many charities that have no scientific evidence of impact.
‘How charities are actually wasting your money’ Charity Science. 3
It’s the norm, in fact.
And there’s a fair few that have active evidence finding that they don’t work, such as Scared Straight, and PlayPumps.
Yet they’re still actively seeking and accepting funding.
And don’t count on them telling you outright that they have no evidence, or evidence that they don’t work.
Any fundraiser caught doing that would be fired immediately.
What if the charity does have evidence that it works though?
Then they’re probably not wasting your money, right?
Not really. While the charity not actually working is a very big problem, it’s not the biggest.
The biggest problem is charities being inefficient at accomplishing their goals.
Take for example giving children an education in a developing country.
The classic way to do this is to directly pay for a kid’s education in the form of a scholarship.
If you spend $100 on scholarships, you get about 3 months of education.
That’s $33 per month; not bad.
The reason many kids don’t go to school isn’t money, however, it’s health.
They’re too unwell to go.
One common health reason is snail fever, a worm that infects children through the water and literally sucks their blood.
It only costs 50 cents to cure, but their family can’t afford it.
If you spend $100 on deworming children, you increase time spent at school by 13.9 years.”
Christian-type charities are often seen as being better, but is that true, check out the real figures here.
When you are the victim of fraud it is difficult to cope with the aftermath, not only the loss of money but the self-blame, etc.
2. Charities spend how much money on each person they help?
Annoyingly many charities promote how much they spend on certain projects, but there is a huge lack of how many people are helped.
For example Unicef UK:
£32.5 million raised to support humanitarian emergencies for children in more than 52 countries.
‘UNICEF UK Annual Report 2021’ UNICEF (UNICEF UK). 4
UK supporters donated more than £19.5 million for UNICEF’s response to the global coronavirus crisis.
£6.8 million committed to prevent children dying from preventable diseases…”
Some charities state how many people they have helped since their start date, which is no help in seeing how many people have been helped in the last financial year.
Our impact is far reaching.
‘Age UK Annual Report 2022’ Age UK. 5
We’re a trusted source of information and since 2011 the Age UK Advice Line has responded to over 2.8 million enquiries, helping older people and their families find the answers they need, 365 days a year.”
So having established how difficult it is to figure out how many people are helped by a charity in one year, I sieved through the charity websites.
Where there was a possibility of a definitive number I then calculated how much it cost per person helped.
If these figures are correct, some are low and seem acceptable.
For others which involve expensive equipment and running costs, like London’s Air Ambulance, one can expect to have a high figure per person saved.
Also, the equipment and specialist time given to recovering soldiers will obviously be expensive.
But others seem to be high if the figures are correct.
Another obvious observation is that money tends to go a lot further in poor countries:
Sightsavers charity (Royal Commonwealth Society for the Blind)
This charity works with partners in developing countries to eliminate avoidable blindness.
For the financial year ending 31 December 2021: Total expenditure: £213,622,000
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was 172,000,000
£213,622,000 divided by 172,000,000 = about £1.24 per person helped.
Christian Aid charity
Christian Aid works with the world’s poorest people to tackle the causes and consequences of poverty.
For the financial year ending 31 March 2022: Total expenditure: £75,600,000
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was 33,699,081.
£75,600,000 divided by 33,699,081 = about £2.24 per person helped.
ActionAid charity
ActionAid provides support and humanitarian assistance to people living in poverty and on the margins of survival.
For the financial year ending 31 December 2022: Total expenditure: £58,063,490
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped by their outreach 15,000,000
£58,063,490 divided by 15,000,000 = about £3.87 per person helped.
Medecins Sans Frontieres charity
This charity relieves sickness and provides medical aid to the injured and provides medical supplies, personnel and procedures to overcome disease, injury or malnutrition in any part of the world.
For the financial year ending 31 December 2021: Total expenditure: £71,889,130
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was 15,265,400
£71,889,130 divided by 15,265,400 = about £4.70 per person helped.
Voluntary Services Overseas
VSO has programmes in over 20 developing countries delivering sustainable change.
For the financial year ending 31 July 2022: Total expenditure: £38,809,000
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was 8,200,000
£38,809,000 divided by 8,200,000 = about £4.73 per person helped.
The Fairtrade Foundation
Fairtrade seeks to provide an independent certification of the trade supply chain, it facilitates the market so that producers can sell to traders and retailers and raises awareness among consumers.
For the financial year ending 31 December 2021 Total expenditure: £11,591,000
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was over 1.9 million:
£11,591,000 divided by 1,900,000 = about £6 per person helped.
WaterAid charity
WaterAid aims to make clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene normal for everyone.
For the financial year ending 31 December 2021: Total expenditure: £84,496,000
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was 13,644,823
£84,496,000 divided by 13,644,823 = about £6.19 per person helped.
Samaritans charity
The Samaritans coordinate the 201 Samaritans branches located across the UK and Ireland. They provide a safe place for people to talk, round the clock, every single day of the year.
For the financial year ending 31 March 2022: Total expenditure: £27,755,875
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped by their telephone calls which was 3,650,000
£27,755,875 divided by 3,650,000 = about £7.60 per person helped.
Charity Projects
Charity Projects are the principal activities of Comic Relief.
For the financial year ending 31 July 2022: Total expenditure: £44,267,000
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was 4,100,000
£44,267,000 divided by 4,100,000 = about £10.80 per person helped.
The Oxfam charity
Oxfam aims to prevent and relieve poverty and protect the vulnerable anywhere in the world.
Total expenditure for the financial year ending 31 March 2022: £329,100,000
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was more than 8 million:
£329,100,000 divided by 8,000,000 = about £41.13 per person.
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution
The RNLI saves lives, promotes safety and provides relief from disasters at sea and on inland and flood waters.
Total expenditure for the financial year ending 31 March 2022: £188,000,000
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped 4,039,680 were aided by lifeboat and lifeguard incidents. (Water safety experts spreading knowledge not included):
£188,000,000 divided by 4,039,680 = about £46.53 per person.
The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award
The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award provides activities that develop the whole person in an environment of social interaction and team working.
For the financial year ending 31 March 2022: Total expenditure: £17,156,000For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped by starting their awards 321,000
£17,156,000 divided by 321,000 = about £53.44 per person helped.
BBC Children in Need charity
The BBC Children in Need relieves need, hardship, sickness, handicap and distress amongst children and young persons.
For the financial year ending 30 June 2022: Total expenditure: £74,523,835
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was 460,000 children.
£74,523,835 divided by 460,000 = about £162 per person helped.
Combat Stress charity
The charity provides welfare support and clinical treatment for Veterans of the services who suffer from mental health problems.
For the financial year ending 31 March 2022: Total expenditure: £10,193,000
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was 14,000
£10,193,000 divided by 14,000 = about £728 per person helped.
The Barnardo’s charity
Barnardo’s helps to improve the lives of vulnerable children, young people and their families.
For the financial year ending 31 March 2022: Total expenditure: £278,770,000
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of children, youth, parents and carers helped which was 357,276.
£278,770,000 divided by 357,276 = about £780 per person helped.
The Prince’s Trust
The charity helps young people transform their lives by developing the confidence and skills to live, learn and earn.
For the financial year ending 31 March 2022: Total expenditure: £71,150,000
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was 60,046.
£71,150,000 divided by 60,046 = about £1184 per person helped.
The Shelter charity
Shelter helps people struggling with bad housing and homelessness through advice, support and legal services.
For the financial year ending 31 March 2022: Total expenditure: £73,525,000
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was 49,392 via helpline, webchats and local hubs.
£73,525,000 divided by 49,392 = about £1488 per person helped.
The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association
The charity provides guide dogs, mobility and other rehabilitation services to people who are blind and partially sighted.
For the financial year ending 31 December 2021: Total expenditure: £116,000,000
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was 57500.
£116,000,000 divided by 57500 = about £2017 per person helped.
Hearing Dogs for Deaf People charity
Hearing Dogs provides animal-assisted intervention in the relief of human deafness, disability, sickness, suffering or distress.
For the financial year ending 31 March 2022 Total expenditure: £11,228,381
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was 3,176:
£11,228,381 divided by 3,176 = about £3535 per person helped.
London’s Air Ambulance charity
The charity in particular provides the provision of a helicopter ambulance service or other emergency transport.
For the financial year ending 31 March 2022: Total expenditure: £13,020,746
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was 1713 critically injured patients.
£13,020,746 divided by 1713 = about £7600 per person helped.
Help for Heroes charity
Help for Heroes works closely with the Armed Forces, other Service Charities and organisations to provide support for the wounded, injured and sick.
For the financial year ending 30 September 2021: Total expenditure: £36,350,000
For a very rough calculation divide the amount spent by the number of people helped which was 3289.
£36,350,000 divided by 3289 = about £11,050 per person helped.
3. Charities waste money, we have been warned before
In looking further into this I found that the charities have been warned on a number of occasions and still these high salaries are being paid:
The Guardian in 2017 stated:
Charity bosses have not learned from criticism around remuneration and risk distancing themselves further from their supporters.”
‘When it comes to salaries, charity CEOs still want to have their cake and eat it’ By Toby Porter. The Guardian. 6
Then earlier, the Guardian 2013 stated:
Today the Telegraph reported that at Britain’s 14 leading foreign aid charities, the number of executives paid more than £100,000 has risen from 19 to 30.
‘Are charity chiefs paid too much?’ The Guardian. 7
William Shawcross, the chairman of the Charity Commission, said that ‘in these difficult times, when many charities are experiencing shortfalls, trustees should consider whether very high salaries are really appropriate, and fair to both the donors and the taxpayers who fund charities.’ “
And below is a message received from a monthly donor by one of the UK’s best-loved charities in 2013, following sustained media coverage about the high pay of chief executives in the UK voluntary sector:
It says here in this letter you sent that £4 from me could help save a life. So how about your CEO takes £40,000 less salary next year and saves 10,000 lives?”
A monthly donor to one of the UK’s best-loved charities in August 2013
And earlier still, the Guardian in 2009 stated:
An ‘insidious’ and ‘excessive’ City pay culture is creeping into some of Britain’s charities, with bosses earning more than the prime minister, it is claimed.
‘Wage concern: excessive City pay culture infecting charities, warns union’ The Guardian 8
The Unite union is calling for a curb on remuneration packages as it attacks the salaries of executives at some leading charities and not-for-profit organisations.”
Charities are extremely important and people must not stop giving money.
But we need to be careful which charities we should donate to.
We are called to be good stewards of our money.
The next article looks at how to donate to charity.
4. A list of our favourite charities starting with the highest salaries:
The majority of this list has excessive salaries showing the worst charities that expect us to donate to.
It was composed in November 2020 and the figures are correct as of that date from the official UK government website (see references).
(This does not include health/medical charities and animal charities).
Starting with the highest figures first, you decide how many of these charities’ salaries are acceptable:
The National Trust charity
The N.T. looks after places of historic interest or natural beauty permanently for the benefit of the nation.
As at 28 February 2022:
Total income and donations: £634,339,000 now: £643,329,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £8,790,000 to £10,040,000
The two highest getting between £150k to £200k each.
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution
Total income and donations: £197,211,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £5,980,000 to £6,810,000
The highest getting between £150k to £200k.
The Oxfam charity
Total income and donations: £434,100,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £5,980,000 to £6,810,000
The two highest getting between £130k to £140k each.
The British Red Cross charity
The British Red Cross helps people in crisis, whoever and wherever they are.
Total income and donations: £244,900,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £5,650,000 to £6,460,000
The highest getting between £150k to £200k.
The Canal and River Trust charity
This charity is the guardian of 2,000 miles of historic waterways across England and Wales and maintains listed heritage structures, as well as museums, archives, and wildlife sites.
Total income and donations: £210,000,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £5,310,000 to £6,110,000
The two highest getting between £200k to £250k each.
The Barnardo’s charity
Total income and donations: £305,961,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £4,600,000 to £5,250,000
The highest getting between £150k to £200k.
The Prince’s Trust
Total income and donations: £67,407,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £4,470,000 to £5,130,000
The two highest getting between £150k to £200k each.
The Royal Shakespeare Company
This charity aims to conserve, advance and disseminate the dramatic heritage of Shakespeare in the UK and throughout the world.
Total income and donations: £86,439,384
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £4,340,000 to £4,980,000
The highest getting between £200k to £250k.
Age UK charity
Age UK aims to create a world where older people can live their lives free from poverty, isolation and neglect.
Total income and donations: £127,790,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £3,980,000 to £4,550,000
The three highest getting between £150k to £200k each.
The Royal British Legion
This charity safeguards the welfare, interests and memory of those who are serving or who have served in the Armed Forces. (The Poppy Lottery is run as a separate charity).
Total income and donations: £175,883,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £3,240,000 to £3,670,000
The highest getting between £140k to £150k.
WaterAid charity
Total income and donations: £91,393,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £3,150,000 to £3,580,000
The highest getting between £130k to £140k.
Sightsavers charity (Royal Commonwealth Society for the Blind)
Total income and donations: £340,877,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £2,990,000 to £3,390,000
The three highest getting between £130k to £140k each.
Voluntary Services Overseas
Total income and donations: £63,027,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £2,630,000 to £2,950,000
The two highest getting between £130k to £140k each.
The Salvation Army charity
This charity provides Christian Worship in buildings and the open air. It has centres, lunch clubs, parent and toddler groups, debt advice, youth clubs, after-school clubs & emergency food parcels. (The Salvation Army Social Work is run as a separate charity)
Total income and donations: £237,728,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £2,108,000 to £3,830,000
The highest getting between £150k to £200k.
Charity Projects
Total income and donations: £85,988,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £2,100,000 to £2,450,000
The highest getting between £200k to £250k.
The Shelter charity
Total income and donations: £71,661,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £2,090,000 to £2,370,000
The highest getting between £130k to £140k.
Christian Aid charity
Total income and donations: £120,400,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £2,000,000 to £2,280,000
The highest getting between £130k to £140k.
The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association
Total income and donations: £122,200,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £1,910,000 to £2,210,000
The highest getting between £150k to £200k.
UNICEF UK charity
This charity raises funds for emergency and development work around the world and advocates for lasting change for children worldwide.
Total income and donations: £101,390,518
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £1,810,000 to £2,070,000
The highest getting between £150k to £200k.
Help for Heroes charity
For financial year ending 30 September 2019:
Total income and donations: £26,854,028
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £1,520,000 to £1,720,000
The highest getting between £120k to £130k.
The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award
Total income and donations: £18,332,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £1,370,000 to £1,550,000
The three highest getting between £100k to £110k each.
The Church of England Children’s Society
The Children’s Society focuses on 10 to 18-year-olds who live with significant disadvantages, poverty, and neglect and who have complex needs and face multiple risks.
Total income and donations: £49,046,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £1,330,000 to £1,510,000
The three highest getting between £100k to £110k each.
ActionAid charity
Total income and donations: £49,105,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £1,230,000 to £1,410,000
The highest getting between £110k to £120k.
The Salvation Army Social Work
The charity provides supported accommodation for homeless people, older people housing and support Work to help unemployed people back into work, Anti-Human Trafficking work, etc.
Total income and donations: £155,071,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £1,220,000 to £1,370,000
The highest getting between £130k to £140k.
Samaritans charity
Total income and donations: £20,321,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £1,020,000 to £1,150,000
The highest getting between £130k to £140k.
London’s Air Ambulance charity
Total income and donations: £11,786,303
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £1,020,000 to £1,140,000
The highest getting between £130k to £140k.
BBC Children in Need charity
Total income and donations: £64,906,370
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £970,000 to £1,090,000
The highest getting between £130k to £140k.
Amnesty International UK Section Charitable Trust
Amnesty promotes Human Rights, by way of education, research and related activities.
Total income and donations: £20,004,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £900,000 to £1,020,000
The four highest getting between £100k to £110k each.
Combat Stress charity
Total income and donations: £16,375,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £830,000 to £770,000
The two highest getting between £140k to £150k each.
The Woodland Trust
The charity aims to conserve, restore and re-establish trees, plants and all forms of wildlife.
Total income and donations: £56,082,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £670,000 to £760,000
The highest getting between £90k to £100k.
National Council of Young Men’s Christian Associations
The YMCA supports YMCA groups all over England and Wales, helping them transform communities so that all young people truly belong, contribute and thrive.
Total income and donations: £15,653,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £660,000 to £740,000
The two highest getting between £110k to £120k each.
Medecins Sans Frontieres charity
Total income and donations: £64,645,331
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £600,000 to £690,000
The highest getting between £90k to £100k.
The Climate Change Organisation
Climate Change’s mission is to accelerate climate action to achieve a world of no more than 1.5 degrees C of global warming and greater prosperity for all.
Total income and donations: £8,074,994
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £560,000 to £630,000
The highest getting between £100k to £110k.
The British and Foreign Bible Society
The Bible Society works to make the Bible available and accessible worldwide and build people’s confidence in it.
Total income and donations: £18,771,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £540,000 to £610,000
The highest getting between £110k to £120k.
The Fire Fighters Charity
The Fire Fighters Charity provides services that enhance the quality of life for serving and retired firefighters, fire personnel and their families.
Total income and donations: £9,950,988
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £370,000 to £410,000
The highest getting between £110k to £120k.
Friends of the Earth charity
Friends of the Earth is committed to the conservation, protection and improvement of the environment.
Total income and donations: £11,180,640
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £370,000 to £420,000
The highest getting between £100k to £110k.
The Fairtrade Foundation
Total income and donations: £11,978,000
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £330,000 to £370,000
The highest getting between £100k to £110k.
Hearing Dogs for Deaf People charity
Total income and donations: £9,433,266
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £210,000 to £230,000
The highest getting between £130k to £140k.
Keep Britain Tidy charity
This charity inspires the people of Britain to eliminate litter and end waste for now and future generations.
Total income and donations: £4,855,212
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: Between £160,000 to £180,000
The highest getting between £90k to £100k.
The Royal British Legion Poppy Lottery Ltd
The charity has been established as a subsidiary charity of The Royal British Legion to raise funds in support of the charitable objects of the legion.
Total income and donations: £6,175,624
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: None
Show Racism The Red Card charity
This is an anti-racist educational charity.
Total income and donations: £992,183
Total paid out to employees getting more than £60k: None
5. Do you think these charity salaries are acceptable or even morally correct?
What do you think about the charities that pay such huge salaries?
It’s only while they can get away with these things, the charities will continue to spend so much money on their executives.
We need to keep complaining to them and bringing it up in the national press and social media.
We need to act!
Also, charities need to be more clear on how many people they help and not just say how much they spend in a year.
One charity might spend one million pounds to help 500,000 people.
Another charity helps only one thousand people with that million pounds, so I want to know.
Charities do vary in their outreach tasks, but there must be a better way of seeing what is actually being done with colossal amounts of money.
Can we trust? Wikipedia, education, TV, newspapers? Wikipedia can be very good at supplying information on factual things but they can be very biased on creation and how that lines up with science facts, political topics, etc.
How good is it to follow celebrities?
An example of extremely biased reporting from a local newspaper.
References – open in new tabs:
Taken from The most popular charities & organisations in the UK ↩
‘How charities are actually wasting your money’ Charity Science. 18 February 2015 ↩
‘When it comes to salaries, charity CEOs still want to have their cake and eat it’ By Toby Porter The Guardian 20 January 2017 ↩
Are charity chiefs paid too much?’ The Guardian 6 August 2013 ↩
‘Wage concern: excessive City pay culture infecting charities, warns union’ The Guardian. 9 November 2009 ↩
2 responses to “5. How to check if charities waste money”
Thanks Linda and Brian. I’ve now written the second article which hopefully gives some solutions…
Hi Peter I have always been aware of the dispassionate Charity organisations and never support them for the very reason you indicate.. Just how a Director can rob the beneficiaries of the Charity’s ‘reason d’etre’ beats me.. and is wholly un – Christ like !! Well done for raising this again !! Linda & Brian