Charity in a Box

Prepared for Berkshire Community Foundation by Adrian Taylor, 2026-10-05. If you work there and would rather this page came down, say so and it comes down.

Berkshire Community Foundation: what the records show, and what we could do together

Adrian Taylor

Adrian Taylor runs Charity in a Box, after twenty years working in charities and public services. About Adrian.

1. What you say, and where we read it

We read your website (Berkshire Community Foundation - Berkshire's Charitable Hub) and your public channels.

  • “We are Berkshire Community Foundation (BCF), a charity that works across Berkshire to raise, then distribute, money directly to vital local causes.” (berkshirecf.org)
  • “We work with businesses to achieve their aims for community engagement, what is known as Corporate Social Responsibility, which has significant business benefits.” (berkshirecf.org/about)

Your channels: youtube (read); x (closed to readers, not read); linkedin (closed to readers, not read); facebook (closed to readers, not read); instagram (closed to readers, not read).

2. Reading’s charities, from outside

Reading's charities at a glance. 254 charities are based here: 14.6 for every 10,000 residents. 18% show under three months' reserves or three years of deficits on their latest return. 48% of the area's charity income is held by its five largest charities. The records show no presence of the national network in Reading in 8 of 23 fields of charity work.

254 charities are based in Reading, 14.6 for every 10,000 residents, where 21% of residents are on low incomes. 18% show under three months’ reserves or three years of deficits on their latest return; 9% take half or more of their income from government. The five largest hold 48% of the area’s charity income.

The 23 fields, against England

For each field of charity work we have mapped, where Reading stands among England’s 152 areas for the presence of the national network per person in need. Gold bars are the fields where no presence is recorded here: 8 of 23.

Disability services: 0 per 10,000 Disability services: disabled people as a share of residents here, against 0.5 in England's median area; higher than 0% of England's areas; none recorded here, as in 41 of England's 152 areasDyslexia: 0 per 10,000 Dyslexia: pupils with a specific learning difficulty as a share of residents here, against 0 in England's median area; higher than 0% of England's areas; none recorded here, as in 104 of England's 152 areasFamilies with young children: 0 per 10,000 Families with young children: children under five as a share of residents here, against 0.6 in England's median area; higher than 0% of England's areas; none recorded here, as in 68 of England's 152 areasLegal help: 0 per 10,000 Legal help: people on low incomes as a share of residents here, against 0.1 in England's median area; higher than 0% of England's areas; none recorded here, as in 69 of England's 152 areasRiding for the disabled: 0 per 10,000 Riding for the disabled: disabled people as a share of residents here, against 0.3 in England's median area; higher than 0% of England's areas; none recorded here, as in 46 of England's 152 areasYoung people with SEND: 0 per 10,000 Young people with SEND: young people aged 16 to 25 with EHC plans as a share of residents here, against 12.9 in England's median area; higher than 0% of England's areas; none recorded here, as in 41 of England's 151 areasYouth centres: 0 per 10,000 Youth centres: young people aged 8 to 18 as a share of residents here, against 0 in England's median area; higher than 0% of England's areas; none recorded here, as in 134 of England's 152 areasUnpaid carers: 0 per 10,000 Unpaid carers: unpaid carers (Census 2021) as a share of residents here, against 0.6 in England's median area; higher than 0% of England's areas; none recorded here, as in 32 of England's 152 areasAlmshouses: 7.8 per 10,000 Almshouses: people aged 60 and over in income deprivation as a share of residents here, against 5.4 in England's median area; higher than 60% of England's areasDrug and alcohol services: 5.6 per 10,000 Drug and alcohol services: people estimated to use opiates and/or crack cocaine as a share of residents here, against 4.3 in England's median area; higher than 67% of England's areasLocal infrastructure: 39.9 per 10,000 Local infrastructure: local charities as a share of residents here, against 31.8 in England's median area; higher than 67% of England's areasCommunity transport: 1.6 per 10,000 Community transport: households with no car or van as a share of residents here, against 0.7 in England's median area; higher than 68% of England's areasCadets: 1.7 per 10,000 Cadets: young people aged 10 to 18 as a share of residents here, against 1.0 in England's median area; higher than 77% of England's areasFood aid: 2.4 per 10,000 Food aid: people on Universal Credit as a share of residents here, against 1.1 in England's median area; higher than 80% of England's areasLearning disability: 7.2 per 10,000 Learning disability: people on GP learning disability registers as a share of residents here, against 3.9 in England's median area; higher than 83% of England's areasMental health: 8.3 per 10,000 Mental health: people on GP mental health registers as a share of residents here, against 2.7 in England's median area; higher than 87% of England's areasKidney patients: 1.3 per 10,000 Kidney patients: adults with chronic kidney disease as a share of residents here, against 0.2 in England's median area; higher than 89% of England's areasVeterans: 5.5 per 10,000 Veterans: veterans (Census 2021 TS071) as a share of residents here, against 1.8 in England's median area; higher than 89% of England's areasCommunity foundations: 26.6 per 10,000 Community foundations: local charities as a share of residents here, against 9.4 in England's median area; higher than 90% of England's areasYoung people: 1.3 per 10,000 Young people: young people (Census 2021) as a share of residents here, against 0.4 in England's median area; higher than 92% of England's areasHospice care: 2.0 per 10,000 Hospice care: residents aged 75 and over (Census 2021 TS007) as a share of residents here, against 1.0 in England's median area; higher than 93% of England's areasBefriending: 0.5 per 10,000 Befriending: people living alone as a share of residents here, against 0 in England's median area; higher than 93% of England's areasOlder people living alone: 3.2 per 10,000 Older people living alone: people aged 66 and over living alone as a share of residents here, against 0 in England's median area; higher than 97% of England's areas
Disability services
Dyslexia
Families with young children
Legal help
Riding for the disabled
Young people with SEND
Youth centres
Unpaid carers
Almshouses
Drug and alcohol services
Local infrastructure
Community transport
Cadets
Food aid
Learning disability
Mental health
Kidney patients
Veterans
Community foundations
Young people
Hospice care
Befriending
Older people living alone

Reading: the bar is where the area stands among England's 152 areasnone recorded here, or in the thinnest fifthEngland's median area

Point at a bar for its figures.

Who does the work here, by register purpose

Education/training: 146 charitiesReligious activities: 94 charitiesGeneral charitable purposes: 76 charitiesPoverty relief: 70 charitiesDisability: 50 charitiesHealth: 47 charitiesArts, culture, heritage, science: 35 charitiesEconomic/community development, employment: 33 charitiesOther purposes: 31 charitiesAmateur sport: 24 charitiesOverseas aid: 19 charitiesHuman rights, equality: 18 charities
Reading254 charities
Education/training146
Religious activities94
General charitable purposes76
Poverty relief70
Disability50
Health47
Arts, culture, heritage, sci…35
Economic/community developme…33
Other purposes31
Amateur sport24
Overseas aid19
Human rights, equality18

A charity records up to three purposes, so the circles overlap. Point at one for its count.

Researchers who studied how charities support people with dementia across the United Kingdom concluded:

“National and local data sources could help charities and commissioners begin to identify inequalities of provision.”

Mayrhofer, Goodman, Lafortune, Smeeton, Littlechild, Shora and Bunn, Voluntary Sector Review, first published 2021. Read the paper.

This page is that view for Reading.

3. Sample campaign

Three posts in your voice from the figures above, each with its picture, ready to use. Every figure is from public information and no charity is named.

254 charities are based in Reading

Bluesky / X: 254 charities are based in Reading: 14.6 for every 10,000 residents. We've read what they say they do. https://www.charityinabox.uk/offers/berkshire-community-foundation.html

LinkedIn: 254 charities are based in Reading: 14.6 for every 10,000 residents. We've read what they say they do. https://www.charityinabox.uk/offers/berkshire-community-foundation.html

Built from public information; no charity is named.

Download the picture (1200 by 630)

18% of Reading's charities are running thin

Bluesky / X: 18% of Reading's charities show under three months' reserves or three years of deficits on their latest return. Which fields, and who else is at work: https://www.charityinabox.uk/offers/berkshire-community-foundation.html

LinkedIn: 18% of Reading's charities show under three months' reserves or three years of deficits on their latest return. Which fields, and who else is at work: https://www.charityinabox.uk/offers/berkshire-community-foundation.html

Built from public information; no charity is named.

Download the picture (1200 by 630)

Reading is thin in 8 of 23 fields

Bluesky / X: Across 23 fields of charity work, the national network has little or no presence in Reading in 8 of them: disability services, dyslexia, families with young children. https://www.charityinabox.uk/offers/berkshire-community-foundation.html

LinkedIn: Across 23 fields of charity work, the national network has little or no presence in Reading in 8 of them: disability services, dyslexia, families with young children. https://www.charityinabox.uk/offers/berkshire-community-foundation.html

Built from public information; no charity is named.

Download the picture (1200 by 630)

4. What working together looks like

What you getWhat it costs
The area report for your countyWhere need is, where help is thin, who already does the work, what the money looks like, by field, for the places you fund. Refreshed each quarter.£600 once, or £1,200 a year with four refreshes
The funder's view for a programmeThe same for one programme's scope: which fields and places the programme would reach, and what is already there.£3,000 to £8,000 a programme
What your data and ours could showYour grants beside the field: where your money lands against where the thin places are. Your data stays with you; we work on totals.by agreement

The first month: a twenty-minute call, your page in full within a week, and the first campaign posts the week after. Prices are set by income band from the public register and are the same for everyone in the band.

5. How to say yes

Reply to the email with a day that suits, call or text Adrian on the number in the email (it is on the Contact page too), or write to adrian@charityinabox.uk.

What this can and cannot say. These are counts over groups of charities and places from their own returns and reports and from national statistics. They do not rank any charity, name any, or say why. A thin field is one where the known network is thin for the people counted here, not one where nobody is helped.

Built from public information: the Charity Commission for England and Wales register and the annual reports charities file with it (OGL v3.0); Census 2021 (ONS); the English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); the Claimant Count (ONS). Privacy.