WESTCOUNTRY RIVERS TRUST
Registered charity 1135007 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · Wikidata: Q7987320 · Wikipedia
Farm visits and educate farmers to adopt sustainable practices; conferences and work with institutions to educate the public about resource protection issues; catchment restoration to restore rivers and improve land management; research based on habitat protection and species conservation including fish stocks and migration; liaise with policy makers to benefit the public through conservation.
Objects
A) TO CONSERVE, PROTECT, REHABILITATE AND IMPROVE THE RIVERS, STREMS, WATERCOURSES AND WATER IMPOUNDMENTS OF THE CATCHMENTS COMPRISING THE RIVERS WITHIN THE WESTCOUNTRY, INCLUDING ADJACENT ESTUARINE AND COASTAL AREAS.B) TO ADVANCE THE EDUCATION OF THE PUBLIC, OR ANY ASSOCIATION, COMPANY, LOCAL AUTHORITY, ADMINISTRATIVE OR GOVERNMENTAL AGENCY OR PUBLIC BODY OR REPRESENTATIVE BODY IN:1) THE UNDERSTANDING OF RIVERS, RIVER CORRIDORS AND CATCHMENTS, INCLUDING THEIR FAUNA, FLORA AND ECONOMIC OR SOCIAL ACTIVITY, AND RIVER CATCHMENT MANAGEMENT2) THE NEED FOR, AND BENEFITS OF, CONSERVATION, PROTECTION, REHABILITATION AND IMPROVEMENT OF AQUATIC ENVIRONMENTS.
Area of benefit: THE WESTCOUNTRY,
The charity’s charitable objects and area of benefit, quoted from its governing document as held on the Charity Commission register.
Causes: Education/training · Environment/conservation/heritage · Recreation · Grant history (this charity is a funder) · website · Get email alerts
Registered contact address: Cornwall, South West, England (from the postcode on the register)
Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts
The accounts state that the charity maintained a strong financial position with unrestricted reserves of £1,689,160 and net current assets of £2,078,352. The trustees confirmed that no material uncertainties exist regarding the charity's ability to continue as a going concern. The charity aims to maintain cash reserves equivalent to approximately six months of operating costs, targeting £1,600,000 based on the 2026 budget.
Automated summary of the FY2025 accounts; the evidenced findings below carry the verbatim passages.
What the accounts disclose
Reserves policy: six months of operating costs (reserves figure: £1.6m)
“The Charity aims to maintain unrestricted cash reserves equivalent to approximately six months of operating costs, which based on the 2026 budget is £1,600k” — page 11
Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.
Related-party transaction: In the prior year, the charity paid a grant of £1,050 to Stoodleigh Moor Farm, owned by trustee Andy Torrance.
“During the prior year, the charity paid a grant of £1,050 to Stoodleigh Moor Farm, owned by Andy Torrance, as part of the Upstream Thinking initiative. Andy Torrance is a trustee of the charity.” — page 36
Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.
Accounts audited by PKF Francis Clark. 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
- Engaging external speakers at charity events policy and procedures
- Financial reserves policy and procedures
- Internal charity financial controls policy and procedures
- Internal risk management policy and procedures
- Investing charity funds policy and procedures
- Investment
- 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.
Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/12/2025
- Volunteers: 1,041
- Government income: £1,908,052 — contracts £190,476 (23), grants £1,717,576 (40); 42% of the £4,582,556 total gross income on the same return
- Employees paid over £60,000: 3 (£70,001–£80,000: 2; £90,001–£100,000: 1)
- Has a trading subsidiary
Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/12/2024
- Volunteers: 762
- Government income: £1,558,524 — contracts £74,371 (12), grants £1,484,153 (37); 39% of the £4,004,141 total gross income on the same return
- Employees paid over £60,000: 5 (£60,001–£70,000: 2; £80,001–£90,000: 2; £90,001–£100,000: 1)
- Has a trading subsidiary
Self-declared on the annual return for the financial year ending 31/12/2023
- Volunteers: 613
- Government income: £905,854 — contracts £81,126 (11), grants £824,728 (37); 27% of the £3,413,397 total gross income on the same return
- Employees paid over £60,000: 3 (£60,001–£70,000: 2; £80,001–£90,000: 1)
- Has a trading subsidiary
Source: this charity’s annual returns on the Charity Commission register.
Corporate structure
WESTCOUNTRY RIVERS LIMITED — per its own Companies House accounts
Public fundraising profile: JustGiving — Westcountry Rivers Trust (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.
- JARROLD, Michael David, Dr — director, appointed 15/10/2026on trustee list
- SUTTON, Joseph Leslie — director, appointed 27/04/2026on trustee list
- PENNEY, Yvonne Kay — director, appointed 25/09/2025on trustee list
- BUNNEY, Sarah Louise, Dr — director, appointed 12/06/2025on trustee list
- BLUNDELL, Andrew Martin — director, appointed 13/06/2024on trustee list
- PHILLIPS, Jonathan Mark — director, appointed 12/05/2022on trustee list
- THOMPSON, Ian Nicholas — director, appointed 27/11/2020on trustee list
- SOUTHALL, Andrew Charles — director, appointed 14/10/2016on trustee list
- GRAY, Andrew John — director, appointed 30/10/2015on trustee list
- TORRANCE, Andrew Graham, Dr — director, appointed 05/06/2009not on trustee list
- HOWE, Sarah Louise — secretary, appointed 05/07/2022
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.
Structured financials (annual return, FY ending 31/12/2025)
Cost of raising funds
£27k
Reported reserves equal ~4.5 months of spending — below the median for charities its size (median 4.7 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: 0.6% of total income — below the median for charities its size (5.3%) (benchmarks).
Register events
- Received assets from another charity (01/08/2011) — per the register’s event history; asset transfers typically record mergers or reorganisations.
- Andrew Southallchair
- Andrew John Gray
- Andrew Martin Blundell
- DR A. TORRANCE
- Dr Michael David Jarrold
- Dr Sarah Bunney
- Ian Nicholas Thompson
- Jonathan Mark Phillips · trustee of 1 other charity
- Joseph Leslie Sutton
- Yvonne Kay Penney
Trustee list from the Charity Commission register (current, not historical).
Operates in: Cornwall · Devon · Dorset · Somerset
Income and spending
Common questions
Is WESTCOUNTRY RIVERS TRUST financially healthy?
Per its FY2025 accounts: The accounts state that the charity maintained a strong financial position with unrestricted reserves of £1,689,160 and net current assets of £2,078,352. The trustees confirmed that no material uncertainties exist regarding the charity's ability to continue as a going concern. The charity aims to maintain cash reserves equivalent to approximately six months of operating costs, targeting £1,600,000 based on the 2026 budget. Its FY2025 accounts were audited by PKF Francis Clark.
Who funds WESTCOUNTRY RIVERS TRUST?
Funders whose own accounts filings name WESTCOUNTRY RIVERS TRUST as a grant recipient include VISCOUNT AMORY'S CHARITABLE TRUST, The A and J Charitable Trust, WILFRID AND CONSTANCE CAVE FOUNDATION.
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 WEST WALES RIVERS TRUST.
Side by side with its peers
Each row is that charity’s latest analysed filing; every value is quote-backed on its own page.