British Refugee Council

Analysis

British Refugee Council is a registered charity in England and Wales, based in London. It was registered in October 1992, 34 years ago. Its declared purposes cover general charitable purposes, education/training, economic/community development/employment and human rights/religious or racial harmony/equality or diversity, which this site groups under human rights and equality. Legally it is a charitable company (Companies House number 02727514). It says it provides services, provides advocacy/advice/information and sponsors or undertakes research.

In the financial year ending March 2025, British Refugee Council reported income of £14.9m and spending of £19.6m, spending 132% of what it took in. Across the 5 years on record, from March 2021 to March 2025, income grew from £12.6m to £14.9m (+18%), an average of +4.3% a year. The sharpest change came in the year to March 2025, when income dropped by 28%. Over the whole period it spent 97% of the income it received.

Among 700 England and Wales charities whose main cause is human rights and equality and that reported income, British Refugee Council sits at the 99th percentile: it is one of the largest 1% in its cause. Against every charity in England and Wales with reported income it ranks in the 99th percentile. Charities of a similar size with the same main cause include Khodorkovsky Foundation (£9.7m), Article 19 (£15.3m) and The Haddad Foundation (£7.9m).

In its latest detailed accounts, income came from charitable activities 77%, donations and legacies 21% and investments 1.1%. Gifts in wills alone brought in £554k. Charitable activities took 85% of spending and raising funds 14%. Grants to other organisations totalled £22k. Reserves of £1.2m would cover about 1 months of spending at that rate. It employed 349 people.