Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851

Analysis

Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 is a registered charity in England and Wales, based in London. It was registered in September 1962, 64 years ago. Its declared purposes cover education/training, which this site groups under education and training. It says it makes grants to individuals and makes grants to organisations.

In the financial year ending December 2025, Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 reported income of £1.7m and spending of £6.7m, spending 390% of what it took in. Across the 5 years on record, from December 2021 to December 2025, income fell from £2.3m to £1.7m (-24%), an average of -6.7% a year. The sharpest change came in the year to December 2025, when income dropped by 25%. Over the whole period it spent 272% of the income it received.

Among 21,402 England and Wales charities whose main cause is education and training and that reported income, Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 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 Lindley Educational Trust Limited (£1.7m), Alpha Preparatory School, Ltd (£1.7m) and Medeshamstede Education Trust (£1.7m).

In its latest detailed accounts, income came from investments 100%. Charitable activities took 93% of spending and raising funds 6.9%. Grants to other organisations totalled £1.1m. It employed 5 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.