Charity in a Box

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

Essex Shared Lives: 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 (Essex Shared Lives scheme | Essex County Council) and your public channels.

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

2. Essex’s charities, from outside

Essex's charities at a glance. 1,509 charities are based here: 10.0 for every 10,000 residents. 17% show under three months' reserves or three years of deficits on their latest return. 25% of the area's charity income is held by its five largest charities. The records show no presence of the national network in Essex in 1 of 24 fields of charity work.

1,509 charities are based in Essex, 10.0 for every 10,000 residents, where 19% of residents are on low incomes. 17% 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 25% of the area’s charity income.

Learning disability in Essex

In Essex, the national network for your field (learning disability) sits below the middle of England's areas for the number of people counted there (gold in the chart below where a field has none recorded here or is in the thinnest fifth). Across England, 4,337 charities outside the field say in their own reports that they serve the same people, against 223 in it.

The 24 fields, against England

For each field of charity work we have mapped, where Essex 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: 1 of 24.

Youth 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 areasHospice care: 0.6 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 26% of England's areasYoung people with SEND: 5.4 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 28% of England's areasLearning disability: 1.1 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 29% of England's areasDrug and alcohol services: 1.9 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 34% of England's areasRural communities: 0.1 per 10,000 Rural communities: people in rural neighbourhoods as a share of residents here, against 0.1 in England's median area; higher than 36% of England's areasDisability services: 0.3 per 10,000 Disability services: disabled people as a share of residents here, against 0.5 in England's median area; higher than 36% of England's areasFood aid: 0.8 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 37% of England's areasCommunity foundations: 5.2 per 10,000 Community foundations: local charities as a share of residents here, against 9.4 in England's median area; higher than 37% of England's areasMental health: 2.1 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 42% of England's areasVeterans: 1.6 per 10,000 Veterans: veterans (Census 2021 TS071) as a share of residents here, against 1.8 in England's median area; higher than 44% of England's areasLegal help: 0.0 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 46% of England's areasUnpaid carers: 0.6 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 51% of England's areasKidney patients: 0.3 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 52% of England's areasBefriending: 0.1 per 10,000 Befriending: people living alone as a share of residents here, against 0 in England's median area; higher than 57% of England's areasFamilies with young children: 0.7 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 58% of England's areasCadets: 1.2 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 61% of England's areasYoung people: 0.5 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 62% of England's areasDyslexia: 2.7 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 70% of England's areasRiding for the disabled: 0.7 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 72% of England's areasLocal infrastructure: 46.8 per 10,000 Local infrastructure: local charities as a share of residents here, against 31.8 in England's median area; higher than 75% of England's areasCommunity transport: 2.3 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 78% of England's areasAlmshouses: 19.4 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 80% of England's areasOlder people living alone: 1.6 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 83% of England's areas
Youth centres
Hospice care
Young people with SEND
Learning disability
Drug and alcohol services
Rural communities
Disability services
Food aid
Community foundations
Mental health
Veterans
Legal help
Unpaid carers
Kidney patients
Befriending
Families with young children
Cadets
Young people
Dyslexia
Riding for the disabled
Local infrastructure
Community transport
Almshouses
Older people living alone

Essex: 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: 710 charitiesGeneral charitable purposes: 432 charitiesReligious activities: 423 charitiesPoverty relief: 258 charitiesAmateur sport: 244 charitiesArts, culture, heritage, science: 236 charitiesHealth: 235 charitiesDisability: 234 charitiesRecreation: 193 charitiesEconomic/community development, employment: 172 charitiesEnvironment: 131 charitiesOther purposes: 126 charities
Essex1,509 charities
Education/training710
General charitable purposes432
Religious activities423
Poverty relief258
Amateur sport244
Arts, culture, heritage, sci…236
Health235
Disability234
Recreation193
Economic/community developme…172
Environment131
Other purposes126

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 Essex.

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.

Learning disability in Essex

Bluesky / X: Learning disability in Essex: the national network's presence, for the people counted here, sits below the middle of England's areas. Who else does the work: https://www.charityinabox.uk/offers/essex-shared-lives.html

LinkedIn: Learning disability in Essex: the national network's presence, for the people counted here, sits below the middle of England's areas. Who else does the work: https://www.charityinabox.uk/offers/essex-shared-lives.html

Built from public information; no charity is named.

Download the picture (1200 by 630)

1,509 charities are based in Essex

Bluesky / X: 1,509 charities are based in Essex: 10.0 for every 10,000 residents. We've read what they say they do. https://www.charityinabox.uk/offers/essex-shared-lives.html

LinkedIn: 1,509 charities are based in Essex: 10.0 for every 10,000 residents. We've read what they say they do. https://www.charityinabox.uk/offers/essex-shared-lives.html

Built from public information; no charity is named.

Download the picture (1200 by 630)

17% of Essex's charities are running thin

Bluesky / X: 17% of Essex'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/essex-shared-lives.html

LinkedIn: 17% of Essex'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/essex-shared-lives.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 reportYour area's charities from outside, with your own field first: how thin the known network is here for the people you work with, who else does the work, how exposed the area's charities are, what the money looks like. A page like this one, in full, refreshed each quarter.£600 once, or £1,200 a year with four refreshes
A campaign from the findingsThree to five posts a month in your voice, each with its picture, from your area's own figures.£250 a month

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.