Durham Freemasons Charity

Registered charity 279313 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register · also known as THE DURHAM MASONIC BENEVOLENT FUND

To assist distressed masons and their dependants and provide assistance to local charities.

Objects

FOR THE RELIEF OF SUCH POOR AND DISTRESSED BROTHER MASONS OR THEIR POOR AND DISTRESSED WIDOWS AND OTHER RELATIVES OR TO OR FOR THE BENEFIT OF SUCH MASONIC CHARITIES OR OTHER CHARITABLE INSTITUTION OR INSTITUTIONS, SOCIETY OR SOCIETIES AND CHARITABLE OBJECTS AS THE BENEVOLENT COMMITTEE OF THE PROVINCIAL GRAND LODGE OF THE PROVINCE OF DURHAM OF ANCIENT FREE AND ACCEPTED MASONS OF ENGLAND SHALL FROM TIME TO TIME DIRECT.

Area of benefit: NOT DEFINED

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 · The Prevention Or Relief Of Poverty · Accommodation/housing · Grant history (this charity is a funder) · website · Get email alerts

Registered contact address: Sunderland, North East, England (from the postcode on the register)

Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts

The accounts state that the charity generated a surplus of £46,215 for the year ended 31 December 2025, driven by significant net gains on investments of £122,123 which offset a deficit on charitable activities. Per the trustees' report, unrestricted free reserves stood at £575,542, which the trustees consider adequate to cover core costs for the next year, despite a noted decline in voluntary donations from Brethren and Lodges.

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

What the accounts disclose

Accounts audited by Allen Sykes Audit Limited. 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 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
• Risk management
• Safeguarding policy and procedures
• Serious incident reporting policy and procedures
• Trustee conflicts of interest policy and procedures

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.

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

Reported reserves equal ~220.5 months of spending — in the top quarter for charities its size (median 5.2 months; benchmarks).

Per its annual return, largest income source: Investments (86% 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: 41.2% of total income — above the 90th percentile for charities its size (median 4.9%) (benchmarks).

Trustees · trustee networks

• DURHAM BENEVOLENCE LTD

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

Operates in: Darlington · Durham · Gateshead · Hartlepool · South Tyneside · Stockton-on-tees · Sunderland

Income and spending

Common questions

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 Durham Samaritans.

• Durham Samaritans income £28k
• CHESHIRE FREEMASONS' CHARITY income £232k
• CHATHAM DISTRICT MASONIC TRUST income £43k
• DURHAM DEAFENED SUPPORT income £158k
• THE DURHAM DIOCESAN BOARD OF FINANCE income £12.5m
• DURHAM DONKEY RESCUE income £138k

Side by side with its peers

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