THE GUIDE DOGS FOR THE BLIND ASSOCIATION

Registered charity 209617 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · also known as GDBA, GUIDE DOGS · also registered in Scotland as SC038979 (OSCR)

The Association provides guide dogs, mobility and other rehabilitation services to people who are blind and partially sighted. In accordance with its constitution, it provides "additional services and facilities for the relief of blind persons as the Association shall from time to time deem fit".

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Financial health, per its FY2024 accounts

The accounts state that the charity achieved a surplus of £2.2 million for the year ended 31 December 2024, driven by an £8.3 million increase in legacy income. Per the trustees' report, unrestricted funds stood at £195.4 million, with the charity holding £72.3 million in unrestricted investments and cash after designations, which represents 5.7 months of total guide dog expenditure.

Automated summary of the FY2024 accounts; the evidenced findings below carry the verbatim passages.

What the accounts disclose

Accounts audited by BDO LLP. Discloses 5 of 6 completeness components.

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.

Property (HM Land Registry)

24 registered titles in England and Wales held by the charity’s company or corporate body (11 freehold); recorded price paid £1.3m. All charity-held property. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright, OGL v3.0.

Trustpilot: The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association scores 1.8/5 from 15 reviews (source) — reviews usually concern the charity’s shops or services, not its charitable performance.

Public profiles (found on the charity’s own website): facebook (313,403 likes) · instagram (136K followers)

Structured financials (annual return, FY ending 31/12/2025)

Reported reserves equal ~6.6 months of spending — above the median for charities its size (median 2.7 months; benchmarks).

Per its annual return, cost of raising funds: 23.9% of total income — in the top quarter for charities its size (median 2.9%) (benchmarks).

Register events

• Received assets from another charity (02/03/2026) — per the register’s event history; asset transfers typically record mergers or reorganisations.
• Received assets from another charity (28/08/2025) — per the register’s event history; asset transfers typically record mergers or reorganisations.
• Received assets from another charity (19/05/2025) — per the register’s event history; asset transfers typically record mergers or reorganisations.
• Received assets from another charity (13/02/2025) — per the register’s event history; asset transfers typically record mergers or reorganisations.
• Received assets from another charity (14/11/2024) — per the register’s event history; asset transfers typically record mergers or reorganisations.
• Received assets from another charity (06/06/2024) — per the register’s event history; asset transfers typically record mergers or reorganisations.

Trustees · trustee networks

• Isabel Hudsonchair
• Christiane Antje Birgit Elsenbach
• Emma Jane West
• Helen Farrow
• Jennelle Lisa Tilling
• Kate Crofts
• Kerry Small
• Lynne Victoria Hill
• Mark Alexander Talbot Johnstone
• Patrick Anthony Moran
• Paul Stevenson
• RANJIT SONDHI · trustee of 5 other charities

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.

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 ASSOCIATION OF BLIND ASIANS (LEEDS).

• ASSOCIATION OF BLIND ASIANS (LEEDS) income £208k
• BLIND CHILDREN UK income £328k
• THE GUIDE ASSOCIATION income £31.6m
• DERBYSHIRE ASSOCIATION OF THE BLIND LTD income £732k
• THE SEEING DOGS ALLIANCE income £291k
• THE MIDDLESEX ASSOCIATION FOR THE BLIND income £862k

Side by side with its peers

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