UNIVERSITIES UK

Registered charity 1001127 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · also registered in Scotland as SC052497 (OSCR)

Our mission is to be the voice of universities, helping to maintain the world-leading strength of the UK university sector and supporting our members to achieve their aims and objectives.

Causes: Education/training · website · Get email alerts

Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts

The accounts state that the group reported a consolidated deficit of £721,000 for the year ended 31 July 2025, primarily due to a £934,000 transfer to UCEA for USS governance review and lower restricted income. Per the trustees' report, free reserves under SORP were £3,763,000, which the trustees consider sufficient to meet current commitments given the nature of the organisation's risks.

Automated summary of the FY2025 accounts; the evidenced findings below carry the verbatim passages.

What the accounts disclose

Accounts audited by HaysMac LLP. Discloses 5 of 6 completeness components.

Year-over-year changes

• Employees paid over £60,000: 41 (FY2024) → 43 (FY2025).

Comparing this charity’s FY2024 and FY2025 accounts as analysed by this site.

In the news

Recent coverage mentioning this charity by name (automated match; headlines belong to their publishers).

• Universities UK urges Burnham to stabilize university policy | ETIH EdTech News edtechinnovationhub.com · 21/07/2026
• Scientific and technological innovation on show as Universities UK chief visits Harper Adams farminglife.com · 02/03/2026
• Palestine societies at universities UK-wide using 7 October as ‘resistance’ event day jewishnews.co.uk · 06/10/2025

Corporate structure

• Registered company of the charity Companies House 02517018
• Trading subsidiary: WOBURN HOUSE CONFERENCE CENTRE LIMITED Companies House 03031467

Company officers (Companies House)

Current officers of the charity’s own company per the Companies House register, cross-checked against the Charity Commission trustee list by name. A director not on the trustee list is usually a timing or naming difference between the two registers — check both records before drawing conclusions.

• WARING, Alison Shan, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2026not on trustee list
• SANDERS, Julie Christina, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2026not on trustee list
• LARNER, Wendy Joan, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2026not on trustee list
• JENNINGS, Nicholas Robert, Professor — director, appointed 01/01/2026on trustee list
• JONES, Timothy Simon, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2025on trustee list
• BARTHOLOMEW, Paul, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2025on trustee list
• EVANS, Elwen Mair, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2025on trustee list
• MILLER, James Alexander, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2025on trustee list
• WELCH, Evelyn Kathleen, Professor — director, appointed 01/10/2024on trustee list
• JONES, Andrew Malcolm, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2024on trustee list
• ROSENEIL, Sasha, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2024on trustee list
• EGBU, Charles Odita, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2024on trustee list
• BALDWIN, Graham, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2024on trustee list
• BEECH, Peter Nicholas Hugh, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2023on trustee list
• HARRINGTON, Jane, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2023on trustee list
• HOLFORD, Karen Margaret, Professor Dame — director, appointed 01/08/2023on trustee list
• ROBERTS, Lisa Oriel, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2022on trustee list
• PRESS, Malcolm Colin, Professor — director, appointed 01/01/2022on trustee list
• HIGHAM, Jennifer Mary, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2019on trustee list
• MAPSTONE, Sally Louise, Professor — director, appointed 01/08/2017on trustee list

Official officers record.

Structured financials (annual return, FY ending 31/07/2025)

Reported reserves equal ~2.4 months of spending — below the median for charities its size (median 4.6 months; benchmarks).

Per its annual return, largest income source: Charitable activities (84% of income) — components as reported reconcile to the return’s total income; not from the accounts narrative.

Per its annual return, cost of raising funds: 5.7% of total income — above the median for charities its size (3.8%) (benchmarks).

Trustees · trustee networks

• PROFESSOR KAREN MARGARET HOLFORD
• Professor Andrew Malcolm Jones
• Professor Charles Egbu
• Professor Elwen Mair Evans · trustee of 2 other charities
• Professor Evelyn Welch
• Professor Graham Baldwin
• Professor James Alexander Miller · trustee of 1 other charity
• Professor Jane Harrington
• Professor Jennifer Mary Higham
• Professor Lisa Oriel Roberts
• Professor Malcolm Colin Press
• Professor Nicholas Jennings · trustee of 1 other charity
• Professor Paul Bartholomew
• Professor Paul Croney
• Professor Peter Nicholas Hugh Beech
• Professor SALLY LOUISE MAPSTONE
• Professor Sasha Roseneil
• Professor Steven West
• Professor Timothy Simon Jones

Trustee list from the Charity Commission register (current, not historical).

Operates in: Belgium · Northern Ireland · Scotland

Income and spending

Common questions

Funders of similar charities

Funders whose accounts show grants to charities similar to this one (and no recorded grant to this charity) — a starting list for fundraisers.

Charities like this

Semantically similar by activities and financial character, from our analysed corpus. Compare with University of California Trust.

• University of California Trust income £1.7m
• UNION OF UEA STUDENTS LIMITED income £6.9m
• PRIFYSGOL ABERYSTWYTH income £127.4m
• CONSERVATOIRES UK income £110k
• COMMITTEE OF UNIVERSITY CHAIRS income £423k
• UNIVERSITY OF WALES:TRINITY SAINT DAVID income £209.8m

Side by side with its peers

Each row is that charity’s latest analysed filing; every value is quote-backed on its own page.