Cancer Research UK
Analysis
Cancer Research UK is a registered charity in England and Wales, based in London. It was registered in November 2001, 25 years ago. Its declared purposes cover education/training and the advancement of health or saving of lives, which this site groups under health and saving lives. Legally it is a charitable company (Companies House number 04325234). It says it makes grants to individuals, makes grants to organisations and provides services.
In the financial year ending March 2025, Cancer Research UK reported income of £734.8m and spending of £714.7m, spending 97% of its income. Across the 5 years on record, from March 2021 to March 2025, income grew from £582.1m to £734.8m (+26%), an average of +6.0% a year. Over the whole period it spent 97% of the income it received.
Among 24,651 England and Wales charities whose main cause is health and saving lives and that reported income, Cancer Research UK sits at the 100th 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 100th percentile. Charities of a similar size with the same main cause include Lloyd's Register Foundation (£691.7m), Save the Children International (£955.4m) and Cardiff University (£634.1m).
In its latest detailed accounts, income came from donations and legacies 72%, trading 18%, charitable activities 8.0% and investments 1.1%. Gifts in wills alone brought in £287.6m. Charitable activities took 63% of spending and raising funds 18%. Grants to other organisations totalled £307.0m. Reserves of £363.4m would cover about 6 months of spending at that rate. It employed 5,169 people.
Income and spending
Where the income comes from
- Donations 33%
- Legacies 39%
- Charitable activities 8.0%
- Trading 18%
- Investments 1.1%
- Other 0.4%
In the charity's own words
Cancer Research UK is dedicated to saving lives through research. Our mission is to prevent, control and cure cancer through our ground-breaking research and in the last 40 years our work has helped double survival rates. But there is more work to be done. The only charity fighting over 200 types of cancer, we rely on every pound donated to help get us closer to beating cancer.
Similar-sized charities, same cause
| Charity | Location | Income |
|---|---|---|
| Lloyd's Register Foundation | London | £691.7m |
| Save the Children International | London | £955.4m |
| Cardiff University | Cardiff | £634.1m |
| Nuffield Health | Epsom | £1.48bn |