There has been an increase in the number of large charities choosing to report on their impact on the climate and equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI), according to new research.

The research, published in the October edition of Charity Finance, is the latest review of annual reports and accounts carried out for the magazine by Helena Wilkinson, partner and head of charities and not-for-profit at accountancy firm Price Bailey.

This year, the research covers the charities ranked 101 to 200 in the Charity Finance 250 Index, the UK’s largest charities as measured by three-year average income, with average incomes ranging from £47.9m to £81.0m.

Wilkinson writes that 63 charities included in the research publish their EDI policy or a statement on how EDI is being addressed as part of their annual report and accounts.

This compares with 51 charities in 2022, when this tier was last covered in the research.

However, it lags behind the UK’s very largest charities. Last year, when this research covered the Charity Finance 100 Index, 72 included EDI information.

“Four charities report their ethnicity pay gap which compares with nearly 20 in the 100 Index last year, and two address the ethnicity of the board,” Wilkinson said.

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Churches save the NHS an estimated £8.4 billion a year, says National Churches Trust 

CHURCHES in the UK save the NHS an estimated £8.4 billion a year, through the provision of foodbanks, drug- and alcohol-addiction support, mental-health counselling, and youth groups, a new study suggests.

The National Churches Trust’s report, The House of Good: Health, was launched recently at the House of Commons. It describes the country’s churches as “local wellbeing workhorses” that are “multiplying health and happiness across the UK, enriching lives and preventing illness and suffering before it has a chance to take root”.

The 38,500 churches relieve “immense pressure” on the NHS in three ways, it argues: promoting positive mental and physical health that helps people thrive; preventing conditions that would otherwise send more patients to the NHS; and providing a location for health treatment. They are, it suggests, “the UK’s most underappreciated preventative care providers”, providing services for “the most disadvantaged and most vulnerable in society”.

 To analyse the relationship between attending church activities, volunteering, and life satisfaction, the researchers drew on the Understanding Society survey, the UK’s main household longitudinal survey, administered by the Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex.  

They also drew on the National Churches Trust survey of 2020, which found that 29 per cent of church buildings were either providing or hosting mental-health counselling; 10.4 per cent of them, drug or alcohol support services; 42.4 per cent of them, youth groups or activities; and 58 per cent of them, foodbanks. 

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 The 2024 budget sets out the new government’s tax, welfare, and spending priorities up to March 2026, with a framework for spending beyond April 2026. 

 Several budget measures will likely help the voluntary sector and the communities it supports.  Additional budget measures that may impact voluntary organisations and their communities include:

• Increased Charity Commission budget from April 2025, alongside a 3.5% real-terms reduction in the DCMS budget.
• £240 million for local "trailblazer" programmes. They will streamline work, health, and skills support for inactive individuals.
• Changes to VAT and business rates relief for private schools. VAT relief is removed. Business rates relief is for those providing full-time education to pupils with education, health, and care plans.
• New legislation to prevent charity tax rule abuses set to take effect in April 2026.
• £26 million for mental health crisis centres.
• £300 million for further education and £40 million for the Growth and Skills Levy (formerly the Apprenticeship Levy) for training.
• Research and development tax reliefs maintained and over £2 billion in health research and development investment.
• Inheritance tax reliefs maintained for those who choose to leave a gift to charity in their will. Read Remember a Charity's full response to the budget for more information.
• A 1.8% annual real-terms rise for all central government departments through 2029/30. This aims to support public services, including the NHS and schools.

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