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DISASTERS EMERGENCY COMMITTEE

Registered charity 1062638 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · Wikidata: Q5281362 · Wikipedia · also known as DEC, DEC SECRETARIAT, THE DEC

DEC brings together 15 of the UK's leading humanitarian agencies. At times of major humanitarian crisis, DEC works with its members, broadcast and other partners to launch a fundraising appeal to the UK public. The proceeds of each appeal are distributed to DEC's member agencies to enable them to deliver humanitarian programmes to help those most affected.

Objects

TO SUPPORT UK CHARITABLE SECTOR NGO'S ("AGENCIES") IN THEIR TASK OF ALLEVIATING ACUTE HUMAN SUFFERING AMONGST THOSE LEAST ABLE TO WITHSTAND THE EFFECTS OF A MAJOR OVERSEAS DISASTER, BY:- (A) PROVIDING AN ACCREDITED NATIONAL FORUM FOR JOINT FUNDRAISING BY UK CHARITABLE VOLUNTARY SECTOR NGO'S ("AGENCIES") IN ORDER TO MAXIMISE THE FUNDS RAISED AND FACILITATE IMMEDIATE COMMITMENT FROM PARTICIPATING AGENCIES; (B) CREATING A FOCAL POINT FOR THE RESPONSE OF THE PUBLIC, THE BROADCASTERS AND OTHERS OF SUCH DISASTERS; (C) FACILITATING AGENCY CO-OPERATION, CO-ORDINATION AND COMMUNICATION (D) ENSURING THAT FUNDS RAISED ARE USED IN AN EFFECTIVE, TIMELY FULLY ACCOUNTABLE WAY.

Area of benefit: NATIONAL.

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

Causes: Overseas Aid/famine Relief · website · Get email alerts

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

Latest income
£40.8m
Latest spending
£48.3m
Registered
1997
Accounts read
FY2026

Financial health, per its FY2026 accounts

The accounts state that the charity is in a robust financial position with unrestricted free reserves of £4.8 million, which aligns with its stated policy target of twelve months' core overhead costs. Total income for the year was £40.8 million, while total expenditure amounted to £48.2 million, resulting in a net expenditure for the period. The trustees confirm there are no material uncertainties regarding the charity's ability to continue as a going concern.

Automated summary of the FY2026 accounts; the evidenced findings below carry the verbatim passages.

What the accounts disclose

Reserves policy: twelve months’(+/- three months) core overhead costs (held: £4.8m)
“The target range of free reserves (net of designated and general funds) has been set at twelve months’(+/- three months) core overhead costs, which is currently budgeted at £4.8 million for 2026/27.”
Per its FY2026 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.
Related-party transaction: Member charities made donations of £1,000k (2025: £1,000k) in the year to the charity. In addition, £25,000 (2025: £44,000) was collected in the year by member charities on behalf of the charity. This was £25,000 for the Myanmar Earthquake Appeal (2025: £nil) and £nil (2025: £44,000) for the Middle East Humanitarian Appeal.
“The charity trustees disclosed on pages 44 and 45 include executives of all member charities. The material transactions are disclosed in note 4. The member charities made donations of £1,000k (2025: £1,000k) in the year to the charity. In addition, £25,000 (2025: £44,000) was collected in the year by member charities on behalf of the charity.” — page 38
Per its FY2026 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

Accounts audited by Crowe U.K. 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.

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.

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/03/2026

  • Government income: £58,000 — grants £58,000 (2); under 1% of the £40,822,000 total gross income on the same return
  • Employees paid over £60,000: 9 (£60,001–£70,000: 3; £70,001–£80,000: 1; £80,001–£90,000: 1; £90,001–£100,000: 3; £130,001–£140,000: 1)

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/03/2025

  • Government income: £56,000 — grants £56,000 (2); under 1% of the £50,801,000 total gross income on the same return
  • Employees paid over £60,000: 8 (£60,001–£70,000: 3; £80,001–£90,000: 3; £90,001–£100,000: 1; £120,001–£130,000: 1)

Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/03/2024

  • Government income: £45,000 — grants £45,000 (2); under 1% of the £32,906,000 total gross income on the same return
  • Employees paid over £60,000: 6 (£60,001–£70,000: 1; £80,001–£90,000: 4; £120,001–£130,000: 1)

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

In the news

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

Corporate structure

Public fundraising profile: JustGiving — Disasters Emergency Committee (matched by registered charity number).

Leadership, per the charity’s website

Listed on the charity’s own website when we last crawled it; roles may have changed. Pay-band disclosures above are anonymous statutory disclosures and are not attributed to any named individual.

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.

Official officers record.

Property (HM Land Registry)

1 registered title in England and Wales held by the charity’s company or corporate body (0 freehold); recorded price paid £125k. All charity-held property. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright, OGL v3.0.

Public profiles (found on the charity’s own website): facebook (148,062 followers) · instagram (23K followers)

Advertised salaries (public job ads)

Roles this charity has advertised on CharityJob, matched on the exact employer name. A different source from the statutory pay bands above: these are asking salaries for vacancies, not what anyone was paid.

Structured financials (annual return, FY ending 31/03/2026)

Total income
£40.8m
Total spending
£48.3m
Cost of raising funds
£6.6m
Reserves (reported)
£17.0m
Employees
41

Reported reserves equal ~4.2 months of spending — below the median for charities its size (median 4.6 months; benchmarks).

Per its annual return, largest income source: Charitable activities (90% 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: 16.2% of total income — in the top quarter for charities its size (median 3.7%) (benchmarks).

Register events

Trustees · trustee networks

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

Operates in: Camden

Income and spending

Financial year endIncomeSpending
31/03/2026£40.8m£48.3m
31/03/2025£50.8m£61.8m
31/03/2024£32.9m£53.7m
31/03/2023£215.7m£262.4m
31/03/2022£274.3m£180.4m

Common questions

Is DISASTERS EMERGENCY COMMITTEE financially healthy?

Per its FY2026 accounts: The accounts state that the charity is in a robust financial position with unrestricted free reserves of £4.8 million, which aligns with its stated policy target of twelve months' core overhead costs. Total income for the year was £40.8 million, while total expenditure amounted to £48.2 million, resulting in a net expenditure for the period. The trustees confirm there are no material uncertainties regarding the charity's ability to continue as a going concern. Its FY2026 accounts were audited by Crowe U.K. LLP.

Who funds DISASTERS EMERGENCY COMMITTEE?

Funders whose own accounts filings name DISASTERS EMERGENCY COMMITTEE as a grant recipient include INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE, U.K, THE LAWSON TRUST CIO, THE PENNIES FOUNDATION, GOFUNDME.ORG.UK, THE MASTER CHARITABLE TRUST.

Known funders

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

FunderYearAmountPurpose (as stated by the funder)
INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE, U.KFY2023£150.0mPage 7 states: 'the IRC along with other leading charities raised 150 million GBP'. This is money raised by the DEC/IRC network, not a grant paid out by IRC UK
INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE, U.KFY2023£26.3mPage 22 states: 'Funding from these appeals totals £26,288,330.' This is income received by IRC UK from the DEC. Not a grant paid out.
THE LAWSON TRUST CIOFY2021£1.0m
THE PENNIES FOUNDATIONFY2022£804k
GOFUNDME.ORG.UKFY2022£635kDisasters Emergency Committee (DEC) - charity organisations providing humanitarian relief and bringing charities together to provide relief.
THE MASTER CHARITABLE TRUSTFY2022£388k
CHK FoundationFY2023£300k
THE QUILTER FOUNDATIONFY2022£231kAfghanistan, Ukraine, Pakistan, Syria/Turkey
BELRON RONNIE LUBNER CHARITABLE FOUNDATIONFY2023Unverified read£221kGift of Giving
THE ROSELINE FOUNDATIONFY2023£200kTurkey Earthquake Appeal
PRISM THE GIFT FUNDFY2024£200kHumanitarian Aid
THE NFU MUTUAL CHARITABLE TRUSTFY2022£150k
BELRON RONNIE LUBNER CHARITABLE FOUNDATIONFY2024£125k
THE PAYBACK TIME TRUSTFY2025Unverified read£111k
THE SOUTH STREET GREEN ROOM FOUNDATIONFY2022£100kUkraine Humanitarian Appeal
THE TUIXEN FOUNDATIONFY2021£100k
THE TUIXEN FOUNDATIONFY2023£100k
THE SOUTH STREET GREEN ROOM FOUNDATIONFY2024£100k
THE SOUTH STREET GREEN ROOM FOUNDATIONFY2021£100keffective humanitarian response
CHK FoundationFY2022£92kGrants to charitable institutions
THE BROOK TRUSTFY2022£70k
THE SHANLY FOUNDATIONFY2023£60k
THE TANLAW FOUNDATIONFY2023£52kOverseas Aid
THE BROOK TRUSTFY2023£50k
COLONEL W H WHITBREAD CHARITABLE TRUSTFY2023£50kGrants, Other
THE RAYNE FOUNDATIONFY2022£50kTowards DEC Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal.
MONTPELIER FOUNDATION LIMITEDFY2024£50k
THE AJS CHARITABLE TRUSTFY2024£50k
THE SHANLY FOUNDATIONFY2025£50k
THE SOUTH STREET GREEN ROOM FOUNDATIONFY2023£50kTurkey-Syria Appeal following the devastating earthquake in February 2023
THE A TEAM FOUNDATION LIMITEDFY2022£50k
THE AJS CHARITABLE TRUSTFY2022£50k
CHK FoundationFY2023£50k
THE HISCOX FOUNDATIONFY2024£49k
BC Partners FoundationFY2023£46k
THE CHARIS TRUSTFY2023£44kCoronavirus Appeal
DAVID AND ELAINE POTTER FOUNDATIONFY2022£40kNon-Strategic
THE ROBERT GAVRON CHARITABLE TRUSTFY2022£37k
Howden FoundationFY2023£34kTurkey-Syria Earthquakes support
WATES FAMILY ENTERPRISE TRUSTFY2022£30kGroup Awards (DEC Ukraine)
THE HOSKING CHARITABLE TRUSTFY2025£30k
THE 29TH MAY 1961 CHARITYFY2022£30ksupporting victims of war in Ukraine
THE 29TH MAY 1961 CHARITYFY2022£30kcosts of supporting victims of the war in Ukraine
THE RAYNE TRUSTFY2023£25kTowards DEC Appeal for Turkey-Syria Earthquake
THE BARRY AND PEGGY HIGH FOUNDATIONFY2022£25k
THE HAWTHORNE CHARITABLE TRUSTFY2022£25kGrants to other charitable institutions
THE QUILTER FOUNDATIONFY2025£25kMyanmar Earthquake
THE SHANLY FOUNDATIONFY2022£20k
THE BROOK TRUSTFY2025£20k
THE CRUCIBLE FOUNDATIONFY2025£20k

Grants marked “Unverified read” were flagged by automated checks as possibly misread from the funder’s filed accounts. They are listed, but left out of the totals, counts and funder relationships this site computes.

Government & lottery funding

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

FunderDateAmountPurpose
Foundation Scotland25/09/2025£15kGrant to Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC)
Community Foundation North East30/06/2022£1kGrant to Disasters Emergency Committee Ukraine Appeal
Community Foundation North East14/04/2022£750Grant to Disasters Emergency Committee Ukraine Appeal
Foundation Scotland14/03/2022£5kEmergency support to Ukraine
UK government01/04/2018£4.0mUK Aid Match Funding for the Disasters Emergency Committee DEC Cyclone Idai Appeal 2019
UK government01/04/2018£2.0mUK Aid Match Funding for the Disasters Emergency Committee DEC Indonesia Tsunami Appeal 2018
UK government—£130kFinancial Assistance/Support

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.

FunderSimilar charities fundedAmount to them
WORSHIPFUL COMPANY OF INSURERS CHARITABLE TRUST1£52k
FESTIVAL MEDICAL SERVICES1£35k
THE ANNABEL ARBIB FOUNDATION1£25k
THE VALENTINE CHARITABLE TRUST1£21k
THE ALICE ELLEN COOPER-DEAN CHARITABLE FOUNDATION1£20k
THE EDWARD GOSTLING FOUNDATION1£20k
THE DWF FOUNDATION1£7k
THE EDWARD CADBURY CHARITABLE TRUST1£4k

Charities like this

Semantically similar by activities and financial character, from our analysed corpus. Compare with DEWSBURY WELFARE TRUST.

Side by side with its peers

CharityIncomeTop pay bandStaff >£60kReserves vs policyFundraising costGoing concern
DISASTERS EMERGENCY COMMITTEE£40.8m——within—no doubt
DEWSBURY WELFARE TRUST FY2025£1.4m—0unclear—no doubt
THE CHESTER DIOCESAN BOARD OF FINANCE FY2025£14.5m——below—no doubt
DESTINY INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN ASSEMBLY FY2025£305k——unclear—no doubt
DORCHESTER POVERTY ACTION FY2026£90k—0unclear—no doubt
INTERNATIONAL DISASTER & EMERGENCY AID WITH LONG TERM SUPPORT FY2025£623k—0below—no doubt

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