WORCESTERSHIRE ASSOCIATION FOR THE BLIND

Registered charity 1136716 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · also known as SIGHT CONCERN WORCESTERSHIRE

We provide access to information, advice and guidance - Supporting people to make informed choices. We provide access to expert support - Supporting people to lead independent lives. We provide access to social and leisure activities - Supporting people to lead full and active lives.

Objects

4. Charitable objects4.1 The charity’s objects are specifically restricted to the following:a) To support visually impaired people, primarily those living in Worcestershire.b) The provision of services to increase the independence and reduce the social isolation of vision impaired people of all ages, and at all stages of their vision impairment journey. c) The promotion and support of the emotional and physical wellbeing of blind and partially sighted people, and their families. d) The provision of information, resources and advocacy to support and empower people living with impaired vision to make informed choices. e) Working collaboratively with other service providers and agencies, ensuring people affected by sight loss receive the best services. f) The provision of similar services to people with other sensory impairment or needs.

Area of benefit: WORCESTERSHIRE

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 · Disability · website · Get email alerts

Registered contact address: Worcester, West Midlands, England (from the postcode on the register)

Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts

The accounts state that the charity holds £363,000 in free/unrestricted reserves, which exceeds its designated contingency requirements of £253,000, leaving £106,000 for general operations. The trustees confirm the charity has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. The organization relies heavily on fundraising, with total income of £461,358, of which £346,802 came from donations, legacies, and grants.

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

What the accounts disclose

Accounts independently examined (not a full audit). 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
• 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
• 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.

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

Public fundraising profile: JustGiving — Sensory Matters Worcestershire (matched by registered charity number).

Property (HM Land Registry)

1 registered title 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 31/03/2021)

Reported reserves equal ~0.0 months of spending — in the bottom quarter for charities its size (median 7.2 months; benchmarks).

Per its annual return, cost of raising funds: 8.2% of total income — above the median for charities its size (3.2%) (benchmarks).

Register events

• Received assets from another charity (24/07/2014) — per the register’s event history; asset transfers typically record mergers or reorganisations.

Trustees · trustee networks

• Hazel Margaret Shawchair
• Andrew William Hall
• ELIZABETH BAIO · trustee of 1 other charity
• Harriet Elizabeth Charnock Struthers · trustee of 1 other charity

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

Operates in: Worcestershire

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 WARWICKSHIRE ASSOCIATION FOR THE BLIND.

• WARWICKSHIRE ASSOCIATION FOR THE BLIND income £565k
• PORTSMOUTH ASSOCIATION FOR THE BLIND income £64k
• TEESSIDE AND DISTRICT SOCIETY FOR THE BLIND income £161k
• HAMPSHIRE ASSOCIATION FOR THE CARE OF THE BLIND income £535k
• MERTHYR TYDFIL INSTITUTE FOR THE BLIND income £2.4m
• RINGWOOD AND FORDINGBRIDGE CLUB FOR THE BLIND income £2k

Side by side with its peers

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