The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education

Analysis

The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education is a registered charity in England and Wales, based in Gloucester. It was registered in June 1997, 29 years ago. Its declared purposes cover education/training, which this site groups under education and training. Legally it is a charitable company (Companies House number 03344784). It says it provides services and provides advocacy/advice/information.

In the financial year ending July 2025, The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education reported income of £10.1m and spending of £10.6m, spending 106% of what it took in. Across the 5 years on record, from July 2021 to July 2025, income grew from £8.3m to £10.1m (+21%), an average of +4.9% a year. The sharpest change came in the year to July 2022, when income rose by 18%. Over the whole period it spent 98% of the income it received.

Among 21,402 England and Wales charities whose main cause is education and training and that reported income, The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education sits at the 98th percentile: it is larger than about 98% of them. 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 Heath Mount School Trust Ltd (£10.1m), The Magdalen College Development Trust (£10.1m) and The Beacon Educational Trust Limited (£10.0m).

In its latest detailed accounts, income came from charitable activities 97% and investments 2.5%. Charitable activities took 99% of spending and raising funds 0.2%. Grants to other organisations totalled £228k. Reserves of £6.2m would cover about 7 months of spending at that rate. It employed 126 people.