Skip to content

WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST

Charity rating & review

55/100 Clarity Score · 1 stars · Charity Commission filings · How we score

Verified · Charity Commission data
55 /100

Clarity score

Poor

Donate

Is WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST a good charity?

WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST scores 55/100 (Poor) on our Clarity Score, with 70% of spending going to charitable activities and accounts late. This reflects financial transparency and stewardship from Charity Commission filings — not the real-world impact of its programmes. See the full breakdown.

London · UK-wide · EC4R 1AG Reg 325003 Registered charity Official website Charity Commission register

Mission

WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST is a registered charity (no. 325003) working in children & youth across the United Kingdom. Its latest Charity Commission filing directs 70% of spending to charitable activities, holding roughly 4 months of reserves, though its recent accounts were filed late. Reported income has been declining over recent years. CharityCompare's Clarity Score rates the organisation only from public Charity Commission accounts — accountability, financial health, efficiency and community support — not the quality or impact of its programmes.

In short: WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST scores 55 out of 100 (1 star). 70% average program spend (3-year average). Review the pillar breakdown below.

Overview

WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST has a Clarity Score of 55 out of 100 on CharityCompare (1 stars, Poor). Charity Commission registration number 325003. Status: Registered. Primary cause area: Children & youth. Latest accounts year 2021: total income £811k, with 70% of expenditure on charitable activities. Accounts filing: late. Reserves: approximately 4 months of operating costs. 2 filing concern(s) noted on this profile. Scores are independent and based on official filings — not a donation recommendation.

Data from Charity Commission register, last updated .

Overall score

55/100

1★ · Poor

Cause spend

70%

3-yr avg · charitable activities

Accountability

75/100

Finance beacon

Income

£811k

Latest year 2021

Reserves

4 mo

Months of running costs

Accounts filing

Late

Check register

£3.6 raised per £1 fundraising (3-yr avg) · 31% overhead · Website on register · Confidence: medium

How WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST compares

Clarity Score benchmarked against similar UK charities — higher is better.

Income band (£500k–£1m)55 vs 78 avg

Ranks higher than 9% of 2,157 charities in its income band.

Children & youth charities55 vs 78 avg

Ranks higher than 8% of 3,988 charities in this cause.

Data & confidence

Source
Charity Commission (E&W)
Accounts year
2021
Filing date
2026-06-24 00:00:00.0000000
Profile reviewed
2026-06-25

Medium confidence — some data missing or late

Scores reflect the latest annual accounts on the register. Impact, leadership, and culture beacons require information beyond public filings.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: Charity Commission for England and Wales . Open Government Licence v3.0 .

Beacon report

Detailed accountability and finance metrics from Charity Commission filings — structured for transparency in our four-beacon report.

Accountability & Transparency

Baseline trust from filing discipline, board oversight, and declared governance policies.

75/100

Accountability & Transparency metrics for WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST
Metric Score Value
Filing history (5 years)

100% on-time over five years = 15 pts · one late filing = 5 pts · two or more = 0 pts.

33% 5/15 pts
Trustee oversight

Three or more trustees on the register = 15 pts · one or two = 0 pts (governance red flag).

100% 9 trustees · 15/15 pts
Declared policies

Safeguarding (4) · conflict of interest (3) · volunteer management (3) — from Charity Commission annual return.

100% 10/10 pts

Financial Health

Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts.

50/100

Financial Health metrics for WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST
Metric Score Value
Reserves (months of cash)

3–24 months = 15 pts · 1–3 months = 7 pts · under 1 month or over 3 years (hoarding) = 0 pts.

100% 4 months · 15/15 pts
Income stability / growth

Positive or stable three-year revenue trend = 10 pts · sustained decline = 0 pts.

0% 0/10 pts · 3-year average
Liabilities to assets

Low debt (< 30% liabilities to assets) = 5 pts · high debt = 0 pts.

0% 34% · 0/5 pts

Financial Efficiency

How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios.

50/100

Financial Efficiency metrics for WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST
Metric Score Value
Program expense ratio

≥ 75% on charitable activities = 10 pts · 60–75% = 5 pts · below 60% = 0 pts.

50% 70% · 5/10 pts (3-year average)
Fundraising efficiency

Spends ≤ £0.20 to raise £1 = 10 pts · £0.21–£0.35 = 5 pts · above £0.35 = 0 pts (fundraising cost ÷ income).

50% 28p per £1 income · 5/10 pts (3-year average)

Community Support

Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff.

0/100

Community Support metrics for WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST
Metric Score Value
Volunteer-to-staff ratio

More volunteers than paid staff = 10 pts · equal mix = 5 pts · no volunteers = 0 pts.

0% 5 volunteers / 11 staff · 0/10 pts

How we calculate beacon scores →

Clarity Score

55/100 total · Poor · 1 of 4 stars

Four pillars (40 + 30 + 20 + 10 points) from Charity Commission filings — see methodology for full weightings.

75/100
Accountability & Transparency
50/100
Financial Health
50/100
Financial Efficiency
0/100
Community Support

Accountability & Transparency

Baseline trust from filing discipline, board oversight, and declared governance policies.

75/100

Filing history (5 years)5/15 pts
Trustee oversight9 trustees · 15/15 pts
Declared policies10/10 pts

Financial Health

Stability and solvency — reserves, revenue trend, and debt from Charity Commission accounts.

50/100

Reserves (months of cash)4 months · 15/15 pts
Income stability / growth0/10 pts · 3-year average
Liabilities to assets34% · 0/5 pts

Financial Efficiency

How efficiently funds reach the cause — program spend and fundraising cost ratios.

50/100

Program expense ratio70% · 5/10 pts (3-year average)
Fundraising efficiency28p per £1 income · 5/10 pts (3-year average)

Community Support

Grassroots backing from Charity Commission workforce data — volunteers vs paid staff.

0/100

Volunteer-to-staff ratio5 volunteers / 11 staff · 0/10 pts

Revenue & expenses

Latest filed year 2021 · Source: Charity Commission annual accounts

WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST revenue and expenses for 2021
Category Amount % of spend
Total income £811k
Total expenditure £665k
Charitable activities £403k 61%
Fundraising £262k 39%
Governance & admin £15k 2%
61%On charitable activities

Where the money goes

Latest accounts (2021) · £665k spent

  • Charitable activities61%
  • Fundraising39%
  • Governance2%

Trust indicators

Pulled from the Charity Commission register — filing behaviour, board size, and workforce where reported.

  • Accounts filed on time

    Filing status: late

  • Trustee board size (3–12)

    9 trustees on the Charity Commission register

  • Workforce on register

    11 employees · 5 volunteers (0:1 volunteer-to-staff)

Fundraising Regulator

Status not yet checked

Separate from our financial scores — shows whether the charity follows the Code of Fundraising Practice.

Check Fundraising Regulator →

Official register

Reg 325003

Full trustee list, accounts, and regulatory history on the Charity Commission.

View on Charity Commission →

Trustees & officers

  • WSET (Trustee) Ltd since 2016
  • Kate Maltby since 2016
  • Trevor Phillips Chair · since 2018
  • Andrew Franklin since 2021
  • Nick Timothy since 2023
  • Helen Mountfield since 2023
  • Ian Rosenblatt since 2024
  • Charlotte McCallum since 2025
  • Katy Steward since 2026
How we score charities +

The Clarity Score is a 100-point rating from UK Charity Commission data. Four pillars — Accountability & Transparency (40), Financial Health (30), Financial Efficiency (20), and Community Support (10). A statutory inquiry sets the score to 0 automatically.

Full methodology →

Accountability & Transparency

Scored from filings

40 points — filing history (15), trustee oversight (15), declared policies (10).

Financial Health

Scored from filings

30 points — reserves (15), income stability (10), liabilities to assets (5).

Financial Efficiency

Scored from filings

20 points — program expense ratio (10), fundraising efficiency (10). Kept at 20% to avoid punishing legitimate infrastructure costs.

Community Support

Scored from filings

10 points — volunteer-to-staff ratio from Charity Commission workforce data.

Overall score

Sum of all pillar points. Translated to stars: 90–100 Exceptional (4★), 75–89 Good (3★), 60–74 Needs improvement (2★), below 60 Poor (1★).

Five-year trends

£0k £400k £800k £1200k £1600k 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Income 2021: £811k Spending 2021: £665k Cause spend 2021: £403k Income 2022: £1,137k Spending 2022: £1,002k Cause spend 2022: £728k Income 2023: £1,591k Spending 2023: £1,267k Cause spend 2023: £941k Income 2024: £1,399k Spending 2024: £1,320k Cause spend 2024: £962k Income 2025: £1,250k Spending 2025: £1,374k Cause spend 2025: £884k
  • Income
  • Spending
  • Cause spend

Values in £ thousands · Source: Charity Commission accounts

Key facts

Overall score
55/100 (1★)
Income
£811k
Cause spend
70% of expenditure
Reg number
325003
Scope
UK-wide
Reserves
4 months
Trustees
9
Accounts year
2021
Filing
late

Similar children & youth charities

Top-rated peers by CharityCompare score

Share & export

Share: XLinkedInFacebookBluesky

Opens a printer-friendly view of this profile for WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST.

For this charity

Add your rating to your site

Free to use — a lightweight HTML badge or an embeddable score widget, each linking back to this independent profile and our methodology.

Red flags

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST's rating, finances, and Charity Commission status.

What is WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST's charity rating? +

WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST scores 55 out of 100 on CharityCompare (1 stars — Poor). The Clarity Score V1 sums four pillars from Charity Commission filings: Accountability & Transparency (40 pts), Financial Health (30), Financial Efficiency (20), and Community Support (10).

Is WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST a good charity to donate to? +

WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST scores 55 out of 100 (1 stars — Poor) on CharityCompare's Clarity Score, our independent read of its Charity Commission filings. Around 70% of its spending goes to charitable activities and its accounts are late. That reflects how transparent and financially healthy it looks on paper — it does not measure the real-world impact of its work, so treat it as one factor alongside the cause you care about. CharityCompare never tells you where to donate.

Is WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST a legitimate UK charity? +

Yes — WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST is registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales under registration number 325003. You can verify the entry on the official register.

What is WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST's Charity Commission registration number? +

WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST's registration number is 325003. Official register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/charity-search/-/charity-details/325003

How much income does WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST receive? +

WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST reported £811k total income in its 2021 accounts, based on Charity Commission filings. Five-year trend: declining.

What percentage of WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST's spending goes to charitable activities? +

Approximately 70% of total expenditure went to charitable activities in the latest filed year. Fundraising was 30% and combined overhead (fundraising plus governance) was 31%.

Are WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST's accounts up to date? +

Filing status: late (last filing 2026-06-24 00:00:00.0000000). CharityCompare flags late or missing accounts separately from the financial score.

Where is WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST based? +

WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST is listed at London · UK-wide · EC4R 1AG and operates UK-wide, focused on children & youth.

How does CharityCompare score WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST? +

We analyse Charity Commission annual accounts using three-year averages for program expense, fundraising efficiency, and overhead; working capital from reserves vs average expenditure; liabilities-to-assets from the latest balance sheet when available. Impact, leadership, and culture beacons are not yet assessed from public data alone. See our methodology for weights and thresholds.

Does CharityCompare recommend donating to WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST? +

No. CharityCompare provides independent scores and facts from official filings. We do not tell you where to donate or earn commission from charities.

How can I compare WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST with other charities? +

Use our free compare tool to put WRITERS AND SCHOLARS EDUCATIONAL TRUST side-by-side with other UK charities on scores, finances, and filing status.