GIVE A BOOK

Registered charity 1149664 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register

Give a Book is a UK based charity that promotes books and the pleasure of reading in the hardest places. Our main areas of work are in prisons and with disadvantaged children and young people throughout the UK. Our core belief is that to pass on a good read - to give a book - is a transaction of lasting worth.

Objects

TO ADVANCE EDUCATION AND PROMOTE READING FOR PLEASURE FOR THE PUBLIC BENEFIT BY THE PROVISION OF BOOKS AND READING PROJECTS IN PRISONS, SCHOOLS AND WITH DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITIES IN THE UK, REACHING PEOPLE WHO HAVE A NEED DUE TO THEIR SOCIAL AND/OR ECONOMIC CIRCUMSTANCES.

Area of benefit: UNDEFINED. IN PRACTICE, LOCAL.

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 · Other Charitable Purposes · website · Get email alerts

Registered contact address: Kensington and Chelsea, London, England (from the postcode on the register)

Financial health, per its FY2026 accounts

The accounts state that the charity's unrestricted reserves stood at £125,659, of which £80,000 is retained for operational security, leaving £45,659 in free reserves. The charity reported a net surplus of £24,634 for the year, funded entirely by donations and investment income, with no grants made. The trustees confirm adequate resources for going concern, noting the work is entirely reliant on donations.

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

What the accounts disclose

Accounts independently examined (not a full audit). Discloses 5 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
• Trustee conflicts of interest 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.

Funders the charity credits

Named as funders/supporters on the charity’s own website (the charity’s claim, distinct from accounts-verified grants).

• The Crucible Foundation — “This short film, created in conjunction with Media Trust and funded by The Crucible Foundation, showcases the work of Prison Reading Groups …” (source page)
• The Charlotte Aitken Trust — “The Charlotte Aitken Trust is dedicated to the support of literature, writing and reading. It is funded by the estate of the celebrated lite…” (source page)
• RSL — “The RSL has generously supplied foreign language books that are needed in many of the prisons we work with. RSL authors also support us by p…” (source page)
• Wob foundation — “We are honoured and so grateful to be generously supported by the Wob foundation. This means that we can get more books into the hands of th…” (source page)
• M.L. Astor Charitable Trust — “And also thanks to M.L. Astor Charitable Trust, Bernard Lewis Family Charitable Trust , Bisset Trust, Blavatnik Family Foundation , Bloomsbu…” (source page)
• Bernard Lewis Family Charitable Trust — “And also thanks to M.L. Astor Charitable Trust, Bernard Lewis Family Charitable Trust , Bisset Trust, Blavatnik Family Foundation , Bloomsbu…” (source page)
• Bisset Trust — “And also thanks to M.L. Astor Charitable Trust, Bernard Lewis Family Charitable Trust , Bisset Trust, Blavatnik Family Foundation , Bloomsbu…” (source page)
• Blavatnik Family Foundation — “And also thanks to M.L. Astor Charitable Trust, Bernard Lewis Family Charitable Trust , Bisset Trust, Blavatnik Family Foundation , Bloomsbu…” (source page)
• Bloomsbury Publishing — “And also thanks to M.L. Astor Charitable Trust, Bernard Lewis Family Charitable Trust , Bisset Trust, Blavatnik Family Foundation , Bloomsbu…” (source page)
• Clarendon Trust — “And also thanks to M.L. Astor Charitable Trust, Bernard Lewis Family Charitable Trust , Bisset Trust, Blavatnik Family Foundation , Bloomsbu…” (source page)
• Clothworkers’ Foundation — “And also thanks to M.L. Astor Charitable Trust, Bernard Lewis Family Charitable Trust , Bisset Trust, Blavatnik Family Foundation , Bloomsbu…” (source page)
• Craignish Trust — “And also thanks to M.L. Astor Charitable Trust, Bernard Lewis Family Charitable Trust , Bisset Trust, Blavatnik Family Foundation , Bloomsbu…” (source page)
• Drapers’ Charitable Fund — “And also thanks to M.L. Astor Charitable Trust, Bernard Lewis Family Charitable Trust , Bisset Trust, Blavatnik Family Foundation , Bloomsbu…” (source page)
• Ennismore Foundation — “And also thanks to M.L. Astor Charitable Trust, Bernard Lewis Family Charitable Trust , Bisset Trust, Blavatnik Family Foundation , Bloomsbu…” (source page)
• Eranda Rothschild Foundation — “And also thanks to M.L. Astor Charitable Trust, Bernard Lewis Family Charitable Trust , Bisset Trust, Blavatnik Family Foundation , Bloomsbu…” (source page)

Public profiles (found on the charity’s own website): facebook · instagram · linkedin

Trustees · trustee networks

• Adeela Khan
• ELENI MELEAGROU
• JOANNE BARNETT
• LADY CAROLINE WALDEGRAVE OBE
• SARAH MOOREHEAD
• SARAH TURVEY
• Selina Margaret Walker

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

Operates in: Northern Ireland · Scotland · Throughout England And Wales

Income and spending

Common questions

Known funders

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

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).

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 BOOK AID INTERNATIONAL.

• BOOK AID INTERNATIONAL income £11.6m
• READ FOR GOOD income £1.5m
• GIVE A GIFT income £671k
• BOOKTRUST income £12.4m
• READ - THE READING AGENCY income £2.8m
• BOOKMARK READING CHARITY income £4.1m

Side by side with its peers

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