BRITISH REFUGEE COUNCIL

Registered charity 1014576 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · Wikidata: Q7307651 · Wikipedia · also known as REFUGEE COUNCIL, THE REFUGEE COUNCIL

The Refugee Council is one of the leading charities in the UK working directly with refugees, and supporting them to rebuild their lives. We also speak up for refugees using our direct work as an evidence base, ensuring refugees have a stronger and more influential voice in decisions that will affect them. We work with a range of partners and in collaboration to ensure we best support our clients.

Objects

A)TO PROVIDE RELIEF FOR REFUGEES AND THEIR DEPENDANTS WHO ARE IN CONDITIONS OF NEED, HARDSHIP OR DISTRESS B) TO PRESERVE AND PROTECT THE PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH OF REFUGEES AND THEIR DEPENDANTS INCLUDING (BUT NOT LIMITED TO) PROTECTING THE RIGHTS OF THOSE INDIVIDUALS C) TO ADVANCE THE EDUCATION AND TRAINING OF REFUGEES AND THEIR DEPENDANTS IN NEED THEREOF SO AS TO ADVANCE THEM IN LIFE AND ASSIST IN THEIR REHABILITATION WITHIN A NEW COMMUNITY D) TO PROMOTE RESEARCH INTO THE CONDITIONS OF LIFE OF REFUGEES THROUGHOUT THE WORLD AND WAYS OF PROVIDING CHARITABLE RELIEF FOR THEM AND TO PUBLISH THE RESULTS OF ALL SUCH RESEARCH E) TO ADVANCE PUBLIC EDUCATION ABOUT THE POSITION OF REFUGEES AND THE SITUATIONS WHICH GIVE RISE TO REFUGEE MOVEMENTS.

Area of benefit: WORLDWIDE

The charity’s charitable objects and area of benefit, quoted from its governing document as held on the Charity Commission register.

Causes: General Charitable Purposes · Education/training · Economic/community Development/employment · Human Rights/religious Or Racial Harmony/equality Or Diversity · website · Get email alerts

Registered contact address: Newham, London, England (from the postcode on the register)

Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts

The accounts state that total income decreased to £14.9m from £20.7m in the prior year, largely due to the absence of a significant one-off legacy received in 2023/24. Despite this drop, the charity maintained its unrestricted general reserves at £6.1m, which remains above the trustees' stated policy target range of £3.5m to £4.5m.

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

What the accounts disclose

Accounts audited by Sayer Vincent LLP. Discloses 4 of 6 completeness components.

Policies the charity declares

In its annual return the charity told the Commission that it has the policies listed below. This is self-declared: it is not verified by the Commission or by this site, and it is not evidence of how a policy works in practice.

• Bullying and harassment policy and procedures
• Campaigns and political activity policy and procedures
• Complaints handling
• Complaints policy and procedures
• Conflicting interests
• Financial reserves policy and procedures
• Internal charity financial controls policy and procedures
• Internal risk management policy and procedures
• Investing charity funds policy and procedures
• Paying staff
• Risk management
• Safeguarding policy and procedures
• Safeguarding vulnerable beneficiaries
• Serious incident reporting policy and procedures
• Social media policy and procedures
• Trustee conflicts of interest policy and procedures
• Trustee expenses policy and procedures
• Volunteer management

From the charity’s annual return (Part A, self-declared)

Answers and figures the charity gave in Part A of its annual return to the Charity Commission. They are self-declared: not verified by the Commission or by this site. Only positive answers and figures are listed; items not listed are simply not shown.

Source: this charity’s annual returns on the Charity Commission register.

Corporate structure

• Registered company of the charity Companies House 02727514

Public fundraising profile: JustGiving — Refugee Council (matched by registered charity number).

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.

• BROWN, Nicola Claire — director, appointed 01/08/2025not on trustee list
• PATEL, Kavish — director, appointed 01/08/2025not on trustee list
• FAWCETT, Diana Sarah — director, appointed 30/11/2023not on trustee list
• HANHAM, Ian David — director, appointed 29/09/2022not on trustee list
• OPPENHEIMER, Harriet Ruth — director, appointed 29/09/2022not on trustee list
• ORR, Rachael Marion — director, appointed 26/05/2016not on trustee list

Official officers record.

Public-sector contracts awarded

From the official Contracts Finder and Find a Tender notices (supplier matched by exact registered name). Contract income is distinct from grants.

Property (HM Land Registry)

3 registered titles in England and Wales held by the charity’s company or corporate body (0 freehold). All charity-held property. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright, OGL v3.0.

Structured financials (annual return, FY ending 31/03/2025)

Reported reserves equal ~0.8 months of spending — in the bottom quarter for charities its size (median 4.6 months; benchmarks).

Per its annual return, cost of raising funds: 18.1% of total income — in the top quarter for charities its size (median 3.7%) (benchmarks).

Operates in: Throughout England

Income and spending

Common questions

Known funders

Grants to this charity found in funders’ own accounts filings.

Government & lottery funding

Grants to this charity published as open data by government and lottery funders (360Giving).

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 REFUGEE ACTION.

• REFUGEE ACTION income £6.9m
• REFUGEASE income £289k
• WELSH REFUGEE COUNCIL income £1.9m
• FAMILY REFUGEE SUPPORT PROJECT income £255k
• REFUGEES AT HOME income £924k
• SUFFOLK REFUGEE SUPPORT income £769k

Side by side with its peers

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