The Seafarers' Charity (King George's Fund for Sailors)
Analysis
The Seafarers' Charity (King George's Fund for Sailors) is a registered charity in England and Wales, based in London. It was registered in March 1969, 57 years ago. Its declared purposes cover general charitable purposes, education/training, the advancement of health or saving of lives and disability, which this site groups under health and saving lives. It says it makes grants to organisations, provides other finance and provides human resources.
In the financial year ending December 2025, The Seafarers' Charity (King George's Fund for Sailors) reported income of £3.9m and spending of £5.4m, spending 136% of what it took in. Across the 5 years on record, from December 2021 to December 2025, income grew from £2.9m to £3.9m (+34%), an average of +7.6% a year. The sharpest change came in the year to December 2025, when income rose by 123%. Over the whole period it spent 181% of the income it received.
Among 24,651 England and Wales charities whose main cause is health and saving lives and that reported income, The Seafarers' Charity (King George's Fund for Sailors) sits at the 96th percentile: it is larger than about 96% of them. Against every charity in England and Wales with reported income it ranks in the 98th percentile. Charities of a similar size with the same main cause include The Citizens Foundation (UK) (£3.9m), Aspire ( Association for Spinal Injury Research Rehabilitation and Reintegration ) (£3.9m) and Little Learners Nursery Group (£3.9m).
In its latest detailed accounts, income came from donations and legacies 76%, investments 18% and trading 6.1%. Gifts in wills alone brought in £1.7m. Charitable activities took 77% of spending and raising funds 20%. Grants to other organisations totalled £3.1m. Reserves of £31.8m would cover about 69 months of spending at that rate. It employed 23 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.
Income and spending
Where the income comes from
- Donations 34%
- Legacies 42%
- Trading 6.1%
- Investments 18%
In the charity's own words
Seafarers UK is a charity that helps people in the maritime community, by providing vital funding to support seafarers in need and their families and to those in education or training who are preparing to work or serve at Sea. We do this by giving money to organisations and projects that make a real difference to people's lives.
Similar-sized charities, same cause
| Charity | Location | Income |
|---|---|---|
| The Citizens Foundation (UK) | London | £3.9m |
| Aspire ( Association for Spinal Injury Research Rehabilitation and Reintegration ) | Stanmore | £3.9m |
| Little Learners Nursery Group | London | £3.9m |
| Community Foundation for Surrey | Surrey | £4.0m |