BT Benevolent Fund

Analysis

BT Benevolent Fund is a registered charity in England and Wales, based in Bristol. It was registered in April 1963, 63 years ago. Its declared purposes cover the prevention or relief of poverty, which this site groups under poverty relief. It says it makes grants to individuals.

In the financial year ending December 2025, BT Benevolent Fund reported income of £1.6m and spending of £1.1m, leaving 30% of income unspent that year. Across the 5 years on record, from December 2021 to December 2025, income grew from £1.1m to £1.6m (+38%), an average of +8.4% a year. The sharpest change came in the year to December 2025, when income rose by 27%. Over the whole period it spent 73% of the income it received.

Among 15,276 England and Wales charities whose main cause is poverty relief and that reported income, BT Benevolent Fund 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 95th percentile. Charities of a similar size with the same main cause include Pure Insight 1628 (£1.5m), William Harding's Charity (£1.6m) and Newport Cab (£1.5m).

In its latest detailed accounts, income came from donations and legacies 86%, investments 12% and trading 1.8%. Gifts in wills alone brought in £321k. Charitable activities took 88% of spending and raising funds 9.4%. Reserves of £7.2m would cover about 78 months of spending at that rate. It employed 7 people.