COMMONWEALTH HERITAGE FORUM

Registered charity 1183762 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register

The Commonwealth Heritage Forum is a membership organsiation open to all interested in the shared built heritage of the Commonwealth. By sharing expertise, best practice and technical solutions to common conservation problems, we can help disdvantaged communities find creative solutions for heritage at risk, urban regeneration, skills development, education and youth training.

Causes: Education/training · website · Get email alerts

Latest income

£1.0m

Latest spending

£1.1m

Registered

2019

Accounts read

FY2025

Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts

The accounts state that the charity reported a net expenditure of £66,039 for the year, resulting in unrestricted reserves of £8,788. The trustees note that these unrestricted reserves are below their stated policy target of two months of core operating expenditure. The auditor confirmed that the use of the going concern basis of accounting is appropriate with no material uncertainties identified.

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

What the accounts disclose

Reserves policy: two months of core operating expenditure (held: £9k)

“The Trustees’ current policy is to hold unrestricted reserves broadly equivalent to two months of core operating expenditure to provide continuity of operations and an appropriate buffer for risk and cash flow.” — page 10

Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

Related-party transaction: Francis Maude was also a director of Donald Insall Associates, from which the charity receives professional services. Services provided for the year totalled £85,839 (2024: £nil). Of this £nil (2024: £nil) was outstanding at the year end.

“Francis Maude was also a director of Donald Insall Associates, from which the charity receives professional services. Services provided for the year totalled £85,839 (2024: £nil). Of this £nil (2024: £nil) was outstanding at the year end. Robbie Kerr is also a director of Adam Architecture, from which the charity receives professional services. Services provided for the year totalled £1,885 (2024: £nil). Of this £nil (2024: £nil) was outstanding at the year end. Chief Consultant Philip Davies received through related party Philip Davies (Heritage and Planning) Ltd £55,832 (2024: £52,564) in fees and expense reimbursements for work conducted as part of his duties as Chief Consultant for the charity. Of this £4,648 (2024: £nil) is included in accruals.” — page 27

“Robbie Kerr is also a director of Adam Architecture, from which the charity receives professional services. Services provided for the year totalled £1,885 (2024: £nil). Of this £nil (2024: £nil) was outstanding at the year end.” — page 27

Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

Related-party transaction: Robbie Kerr is also a director of Adam Architecture, from which the charity receives professional services. Services provided for the year totalled £1,885 (2024: £nil). Of this £nil (2024: £nil) was outstanding at the year end.

“Francis Maude was also a director of Donald Insall Associates, from which the charity receives professional services. Services provided for the year totalled £85,839 (2024: £nil). Of this £nil (2024: £nil) was outstanding at the year end. Robbie Kerr is also a director of Adam Architecture, from which the charity receives professional services. Services provided for the year totalled £1,885 (2024: £nil). Of this £nil (2024: £nil) was outstanding at the year end. Chief Consultant Philip Davies received through related party Philip Davies (Heritage and Planning) Ltd £55,832 (2024: £52,564) in fees and expense reimbursements for work conducted as part of his duties as Chief Consultant for the charity. Of this £4,648 (2024: £nil) is included in accruals.” — page 27

“Robbie Kerr is also a director of Adam Architecture, from which the charity receives professional services. Services provided for the year totalled £1,885 (2024: £nil). Of this £nil (2024: £nil) was outstanding at the year end.” — page 27

Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

Related-party transaction: Chief Consultant Philip Davies received through related party Philip Davies (Heritage and Planning) Ltd £55,832 (2024: £52,564) in fees and expense reimbursements for work conducted as part of his duties as Chief Consultant for the charity. Of this £4,648 (2024: £nil) is included in accruals.

“Francis Maude was also a director of Donald Insall Associates, from which the charity receives professional services. Services provided for the year totalled £85,839 (2024: £nil). Of this £nil (2024: £nil) was outstanding at the year end. Robbie Kerr is also a director of Adam Architecture, from which the charity receives professional services. Services provided for the year totalled £1,885 (2024: £nil). Of this £nil (2024: £nil) was outstanding at the year end. Chief Consultant Philip Davies received through related party Philip Davies (Heritage and Planning) Ltd £55,832 (2024: £52,564) in fees and expense reimbursements for work conducted as part of his duties as Chief Consultant for the charity. Of this £4,648 (2024: £nil) is included in accruals.” — page 27

“Robbie Kerr is also a director of Adam Architecture, from which the charity receives professional services. Services provided for the year totalled £1,885 (2024: £nil). Of this £nil (2024: £nil) was outstanding at the year end.” — page 27

Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

Accounts audited by WBG (Audit) Limited. Discloses 5 of 6 completeness components.

Leadership, per the charity’s website

Francis Maude — Chair (source)
Philip Davies — Consultant Chief Executive (source)

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.

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

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

Total income

£1.0m

Total spending

£1.1m

Reserves (reported)

£9k

Employees

Reported reserves equal ~0.1 months of spending — in the bottom quarter for charities its size (median 4.8 months; benchmarks).

Per its annual return, largest income source: Charitable activities (100% 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: 0.0% of total income — below the median for charities its size (5.2%) (benchmarks).

Trustees · trustee networks

Dr Tara Inniss
Francis Hugh Cornwallis Maude · trustee of 1 other charity
Karin Taylor
Kelvin Ang
Lucy Fiona Denton
Nicolette Annabelle Clare Duckham
Prince Henry Ajene
Rachel Tranter-Needham · trustee of 2 other charities
Robert John Edward kerr
Rowenna Wood
Thomas Peregrine Bryant

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

Operates in: Akrotiri · Anguilla · Antarctica · Antigua And Barbuda · Australia · Bangladesh · Barbados · Belize · Bermuda · Botswana · British Indian Ocean Territory · British Virgin Islands

Income and spending

Financial year end	Income	Spending
31/03/2025	£1.0m	£1.1m
31/03/2024	£217k	£542k
31/03/2023	£735k	£372k
31/03/2022	£82k	£33k
31/03/2021	£10k	£3k

Common questions

Is COMMONWEALTH HERITAGE FORUM financially healthy?

Per its FY2025 accounts: The accounts state that the charity reported a net expenditure of £66,039 for the year, resulting in unrestricted reserves of £8,788. The trustees note that these unrestricted reserves are below their stated policy target of two months of core operating expenditure. The auditor confirmed that the use of the going concern basis of accounting is appropriate with no material uncertainties identified. Its FY2025 accounts were audited by WBG (Audit) Limited.

Who funds COMMONWEALTH HERITAGE FORUM?

Funders whose own accounts filings name COMMONWEALTH HERITAGE FORUM as a grant recipient include THE VINEHILL TRUST.

Known funders

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

Funder	Year	Amount	Purpose (as stated by the funder)
THE VINEHILL TRUST	FY2024	£11.2m	Queen Elizabeth II Commonwealth Heritage Skills Training Programme
THE VINEHILL TRUST	FY2023	£1.0m	Heritage
THE VINEHILL TRUST	FY2022	£582k	Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Commonwealth Heritage Skills Training Programme (Phase 1)

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.

Funder	Similar charities funded	Amount to them
THE WESTMINSTER FOUNDATION	1	£162k
THE SYNCONA FOUNDATION	1	£77k
THE ADRIAN SWIRE CHARITABLE TRUST	1	£38k
The A and J Charitable Trust	1	£10k
The Caledonia Investments Charitable Foundation	1	£10k
WATES FAMILY ENTERPRISE TRUST	1	£7k
THE SOCIETY FOR THE PROTECTION OF ANCIENT BUILDINGS	1	£4k
SIR ROBERT GEFFERY'S ALMSHOUSE TRUST	1	£250

Charities like this

Semantically similar by activities and financial character, from our analysed corpus. Compare with ASSOCIATION OF COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITIES.

ASSOCIATION OF COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITIES income £8.1m
Re-Form Heritage income £784k
THE HERITAGE OF LONDON TRUST LIMITED income £808k
COMMONWEALTH PARLIAMENTARY ASSOCIATION (UNITED KINGDOM BRANCH) income £3.3m
THE BRISTOL COMMONWEALTH SOCIETY income £112k
Commonwealth Jewish Council income £181k

Side by side with its peers

Charity	Income	Top pay band	Staff >£60k	Reserves vs policy	Fundraising cost	Going concern
COMMONWEALTH HERITAGE FORUM	£1.0m	—	0	unclear	—	no doubt
ASSOCIATION OF COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITIES FY2025	£8.1m	—	—	above	—	no doubt
Re-Form Heritage FY2025	£784k	—	0	below	—	material uncertainty
THE HERITAGE OF LONDON TRUST LIMITED FY2025	£808k	£90,000 +	1	unclear	—	no doubt
COMMONWEALTH PARLIAMENTARY ASSOCIATION (UNITED KINGDOM BRANCH) FY2025	£3.3m	—	—	unclear	—	no doubt
THE BRISTOL COMMONWEALTH SOCIETY FY2024	£112k	—	0	above	—	no doubt

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