How to search the Register of Charities

Search by charity number

Do you know the charity's number, from its publicity material, for example? Then go straight to it. It is important that you use the correct number since each registered charity is given a unique number to identify it. A registered number will either be a six figure number beginning with 2,3,5,6,7,8 or 9; or a seven figure beginning with 1.

Search by charity name

Do you know the charity's name or part of it? Then enter the name of the charity you are looking for. If you do not know the full name, you can enter the first part of it.

Search by Keyword

Keywords can be used when you do not know the precise name of a charity or if you want a list of charities whose name and/or objects include particular words. To find specific types of charity you get better results by using a combination of name and object keywords. For example, cancer related charities do not always have the word 'cancer' in their title but it may appear in the object description. Using name and object keywords to find cancer related charities, you can refine your search to charities that have the word 'cancer' in their name, their objects or in both.

If possible avoid using common words, such as "aid", "church", "school" or "children", unless they are used in conjunction with a less common word, so that your search is more specific. Certain words, known as "noisewords" such as "charity", "trust", "centre" or "branch", occur thousands of times on the Register and so are ignored in any search. If your search produces the message "No Charities Found" it may be because the keyword or words you have used are "noisewords". If this happens try repeating your search using less common words.