Plymouth Diocesan Trust

Analysis

Plymouth Diocesan Trust is a registered charity in England and Wales, based in Devon. It was registered in August 1964, 62 years ago. Its declared purposes cover education/training, the prevention or relief of poverty and religious activities, which this site groups under poverty relief. Legally it is a charitable trust. It says it makes grants to individuals, makes grants to organisations and provides human resources.

In the financial year ending March 2025, Plymouth Diocesan Trust reported income of £7.6m and spending of £11.1m, spending 146% of what it took in. Across the 5 years on record, from March 2021 to March 2025, income grew from £5.8m to £7.6m (+29%), an average of +6.6% a year. The sharpest change came in the year to March 2022, when income rose by 33%. Over the whole period it spent 155% of the income it received.

Among 15,276 England and Wales charities whose main cause is poverty relief and that reported income, Plymouth Diocesan Trust sits at the 99th 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 99th percentile. Charities of a similar size with the same main cause include Heart of England Young Men’s Christian Association (£7.5m), The King's Trust International (£7.6m) and The Hygiene Bank (£7.4m).

In its latest detailed accounts, income came from donations and legacies 69%, charitable activities 14%, investments 13% and trading 1.8%. Gifts in wills alone brought in £576k. Charitable activities took 92% of spending and raising funds 7.2%. Grants to other organisations totalled £258k. Reserves of £30.5m would cover about 33 months of spending at that rate. It employed 128 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.