THE COOK MUSEUM TRUST

Registered charity 517546 · accounts filings on the Charity Commission register

The Trust was formed by Deed of Trust dated 16 April 1986 with the object of establishing a museum in Whitby displaying items relating to the life and achievements of Captain James Cook.

Causes: Education/training · Arts/culture/heritage/science · Environment/conservation/heritage · website · Get email alerts

Latest income
£212k
Latest spending
£237k
Registered
1986
Accounts read
FY2025

Financial health, per its FY2025 accounts

The accounts state that the charity reported a net deficit of £9,475 for the year, with total income falling to £212,426 from £317,689 in the prior year. However, the trustees report that free reserves stood at £234,151, which they consider sufficient to cover approximately six months of unrestricted expenditure, and the overall fund balance remained healthy at £2,261,187.

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

What the accounts disclose

Reserves policy: six months unrestricted expenditure (held: £234k)
It is the policy of the trust to maintain free reserves at a level which equates to not less than approximately six months unrestricted expenditure — page 5
Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.
Related-party transaction: Donations/Grants from Normanby Charitable Trust
During the year £27,500 (2024: £79,934) was received from the Normanby Charitable Trust, of which the Marquis of Normanby and Lady Peronel Katherine Cruz are trustees. — page 29
Per its FY2025 accounts as filed with the Charity Commission.

Accounts independently examined (not a full audit). Discloses 5 of 6 completeness components.

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

Trustees · trustee networks

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

Operates in: North Yorkshire

Income and spending

Financial year endIncomeSpending
31/10/2025£212k£237k
31/10/2024£318k£306k
31/10/2023£223k£219k
31/10/2022£204k£190k
31/10/2021£218k£162k

Common questions

Is THE COOK MUSEUM TRUST financially healthy?

Per its FY2025 accounts: The accounts state that the charity reported a net deficit of £9,475 for the year, with total income falling to £212,426 from £317,689 in the prior year. However, the trustees report that free reserves stood at £234,151, which they consider sufficient to cover approximately six months of unrestricted expenditure, and the overall fund balance remained healthy at £2,261,187. Its FY2025 accounts were independently examined.

Government & lottery funding

Grants to this charity published as open data by government and lottery funders (360Giving).

FunderDateAmountPurpose
The National Lottery Heritage Fund16/08/2018£69k"Botanical Endeavours! The art and science of plants from Captain Cook's first voyage"
The National Lottery Heritage Fund20/03/2014£179k"Learning Spaces: Education and Accessible Collections"
The National Lottery Heritage Fund24/11/2010£49k"Fish and Ships"
The National Lottery Heritage Fund07/03/2007£189k"The Acquisition of the Webber Kamchatka Drawings"
The National Lottery Heritage Fund07/11/2003£18k"Whitby 1775: linking the local and the global"
The National Lottery Heritage Fund07/08/2000£348k"Walkers House Cottage and Yard, Whitby - Restoration"

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 WHITBY AREA DEVELOPMENT TRUST.

Side by side with its peers

CharityIncomeTop pay bandStaff >£60kReserves vs policyFundraising costGoing concern
THE COOK MUSEUM TRUST£212k0unclearno doubt
WHITBY AREA DEVELOPMENT TRUST FY2024£231k0unclearno doubt
THE CATHERINE COOKSON CHARITABLE TRUST FY2025£954k0unclearno doubt
GREAT YARMOUTH PRESERVATION TRUST FY2025£486k0unclearno doubt
THE SPODE MUSEUM TRUST FY2025£377k0unclearno doubt
THE SAMUEL COURTAULD TRUST FY2025£115k0aboveno doubt

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