The Society of Operations Engineers

Analysis

The Society of Operations Engineers is a registered charity in England and Wales, based in London. It was registered in July 2000, 26 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 03667147). It says it provides services and provides advocacy/advice/information.

In the financial year ending December 2025, The Society of Operations Engineers reported income of £2.1m and spending of £2.4m, spending 112% of what it took in. Across the 5 years on record, from December 2021 to December 2025, income fell from £2.3m to £2.1m (-5.4%), an average of -1.4% a year. The sharpest change came in the year to December 2022, when income rose by 16%. Over the whole period it spent 109% of the income it received.

Among 21,402 England and Wales charities whose main cause is education and training and that reported income, The Society of Operations Engineers sits at the 95th percentile: it is larger than about 95% of them. Against every charity in England and Wales with reported income it ranks in the 96th percentile. Charities of a similar size with the same main cause include Thistledown Education Trust (£2.1m), Clervaux Garden School (£2.1m) and Coram Intercountry Adoption Centre (£2.1m).

In its latest detailed accounts, income came from charitable activities 90%, trading 6.2% and investments 3.4%. Charitable activities took 84% of spending and raising funds 0.7%. Reserves of £3.9m would cover about 17 months of spending at that rate. It employed 20 people.

Data notes from the register: Spending has exceeded income in each of the last three reported years, so the charity has been drawing on reserves or other funds.