How many voluntary organisations are there?

Overview

In 2021/22 there were approximately 166,000 voluntary organisations in the UK.

Our analysis of the voluntary sector is based on the ‘general charities’ definition. This allows us to compare Charity Commission figures from year to year.

Trends often vary according to organisation size. So, the Almanac categorises organisations into six different income bands:

  • Micro (less than £10,000)
  • Small (£10,000 to £100,000)
  • Medium (£100,000 to £1m)
  • Large (£1m to £10m)
  • Major (£10m to £100m)
  • Super-major (more than £100m)

Based on these categories:

  • 80% of organisations earned under £100,000  (micro and small organisations)
  • 16% of organisations earned between £100,000 and £1m (medium organisations)
  • 4% of organisations earned more than £1m (large, major and super-major organisations)

Changes over time

Since 2000/01, the total number of voluntary organisations has increased by around 14%.

  • There was an initial period of strong growth. But after the 2008 global financial crisis the sector saw a significant drop in the number of voluntary organisations. Since then, numbers have been recovering – leading to an overall steady growth in the last two decades.
  • Micro organisations have gradually declined in their proportion of the sector, from 58% in 2000/01 to 49% in 2021/22.
  • Small organisations have remained relatively stable, accounting for around 31% of the sector.
  • Medium organisations  have grown from 10% in 2000/01 to 16% in 2021/22.
  • Large, major and super-major organisations have more than doubled their proportion of the sector from 1.6% in 2020/21 to 4.4% in 2021/22.

Finances by size

Organisations earning over £1m (large, major and super-major organisations) make up the smallest proportion of the sector. But they account for:

  • 84% of income
  • 84% of spending
  • 78% of assets.

In contrast, organisations earning less than £100,000 (micro and small organisations) have the biggest proportion but account for only 3% of income and spending, and 5% of assets.

In 2021/22, the median income was approximately:

  • £3,500 for a micro organisation
  • £37,834 for a small organisation

Distribution by location

In 2021/22, the majority of voluntary organisations remained located in England. In London and the south-east there were:

  • 17,400 micro organisations
  • 20,000 small organisations

However, compared to the previous year, the overall number of micro organisations has increased by 7% in 2021/22. The biggest changes were in:

  • Northern Ireland, where numbers more than doubled
  • Scotland, where numbers increased by 9%
  • Wales, where numbers increased by 11.6%

Changes in the number of micro organisations in the English regions were smaller, and there was no increase in London.

Charity registrations and closures

Applications

According to Charity Commission data, applications to register as a charity have remained fairly stable year on year:

  • in 2021/22 there were 8,005 applications, a slight drop on the previous year
  • in 2022/23 there were 9,008 applications.

However, in 2021/22 the rate of successful applications dropped to 52%, from 60% the previous year.

In 2023/24 the success rate increased to 56% and therefore suggests a post-pandemic recovery.

The majority of the data we use in the Almanac is for 2021/22, when charity applications had dropped. This means any signs of recovery will not yet be reflected in those areas.

Removals

The number of charities removed from the Charity Commission register has fallen.

  • In 2023/24, 3,885 charities were removed.

Compared to:

  • 4,146 in 2022/23
  • 5,252 in 2021/22.

These higher numbers in previous years likely reflect a backlog or delay in decisions about charities closing down during the covid-19 pandemic. As processes have got back to normal, the number of charities being removed from the register has decreased.

Putting the numbers into context

The growth of larger organisations is partly linked to inflation, which naturally expands income bands over time. For example, an organisation with an income of £90,000 in 2000/01 would have an income of approximately £162,000 in 2021/22, shifting it from the small to the medium income band.

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