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home >> charity search >> sense about science
Finance Score: 9
Governance Score: 5
Support Score: 1
  • Liabilities <10%: +3
  • Good reserves management: +3
  • Fundraising costs low: +3
  • Good trustee age range: +3
  • Dynamic board: +3
  • Mainly male board: -1
  • Overall weighted support: +1
Overall GiG Score: 15 ?

SENSE ABOUT SCIENCE

Provide advice on scientific matters to the media, policymakers, the general public and others.Produce educational materials on scientific issues for the public as well as medical professionals and others.Respond to misleading or false information by providing the public with relevant scientific evidence.Promote the importance of independent scientific advice for public policy.
Analysis by Giving is Great

Positives:

  • The charity has received modest backing from a grant maker
  • This charity has a robust balance sheet
  • Reserves management has been consistently within official guidelines
  • Fundraising costs are unusually low relative to funds raised
  • The Board appears to be well diversified in terms of age and dynamic in terms of composition

Regulatory & Governance issues to consider:

  • The Board is predominantly male

Financial Data ?

Income & Spending ?
Sources of Income ?
Y/E Income
£k		 Spending
£k		 Surplus/
Deficit £k		 Fundraising
Cost £k		 Total
Funds £k		 Unrestricted
Funds £k		 Mths
Rsrvs		 Staff Volun-
teers
05/04/23£754£746£8£16£465£3886.21125
05/04/22£888£715£172£10£457£3736.31030
05/04/21£626£545£82£10£285£2044.5930
05/04/20£557£686£-129£16£203£17131030
05/04/19£665£675£-10£19£332£22641140
05/04/18£520£641£-121£16£342£3175.9110
05/04/17£621£640£-19£59£463£4638.7100
05/04/16£576£555£21£56£400£4008.790
05/04/15£563£572£-8£145£380£3377.1110
05/04/14£457£439£19n/an/an/an/an/an/a
05/04/13£613£384£229£40£229£2297.180
Show more rows -->

Download accounts
Financial Ratios
Fundraising Costs/Relevant Income: 2.1%
Fundraising Costs/Total Spending: 2.1%
Senior Staff Costs/Total Spending: 41%
Highest pay band: £120,000-£130,000
Liabilities/Assets: 8%
Liabilities/Income: 5%
Unrestricted Funds/Total Funds: 84%
Reserves/Spending: 6.2 months
Net Current Assets/Spending: 7 months
Quick Ratio: 9.3
Asset Split ?
Balance Sheet History
Established: 13 years
(15 years as a company)

http://www.senseaboutscience.org/

hello@senseaboutscience.org

02074909590

Charity Commission for England and WalesCompanies HouseFacebookInstagramX
UN SDGs
?
Listed activities
  • Education/Training
GiG Classification
  • Medical research
How it operates
  • Acts as an umbrella or resource body
  • Provides advocacy/advice/information
  • Sponsors or undertakes research
Where it operates
  • Ireland, Scotland, Throughout England And Wales,
Who it helps
  • Other Charities Or Voluntary Bodies
  • The General Public/Mankind

Who supports them? ?

Donations from Grant Makers ?

We have details on the following donations. Multi-year donations are allocated to the years for which they are earmarked.

Specific Donations
Amount When
Months		 To be used for
Nuffield Foundation - Strategic Fund Seedcorn Grant
£5,000 18/12/2019
Equipping society to negotiate the basis for confidence in applications of data
Nesta - AR00228
£4,650 03/09/2017
6
UK Alliance for Useful Evidence programme grant to Sense about Science Grant Ref AR00228
Nuffield Foundation - Cross-cutting grant
£28,956 25/07/2017
Evidence Matters: reviewing transparency in government’s use of evidence
JRSST-CT - Improving the reporting of government-commissioned research
£6,350 02/02/2017
3
to ensure the recommendation for a single, publicly searchable database of all government-commissioned research is pursued by government and to keep up the public and political pressure
Nuffield Foundation - Cross-cutting grant
£9,120 25/07/2016
Benchmarking transparency in government’s use of evidence: seeking cross-cutting system and culture change to support initiatives on evidence in policy
Nuffield Foundation - Cross-cutting grant
£33,854 18/04/2016
Benchmarking transparency in government’s use of evidence: seeking cross-cutting system and culture change to support initiatives on evidence in policy

Data sourced from Donors via 360 Giving

How is it governed?

Trustees (11)
Current Trustees appointed
Gender Split
Based on 9/11 persons

Age Range of Trustees: 48-71
  • DR MICHAEL FITZPATRICK BA MB BS Appointed: 2012
  • DR MARIA ULRIKA FONJALLAZ BJORKSTEN Appointed: 2023
  • JAMES WREN Appointed: 2018, Occupation: Fundraising Director, Zsl
  • JONATHAN BRUUN (Chair) Appointed: 2017, Occupation: Chief Executive, British Pharmacological Society
  • MICHAEL ALAN CONRADI Appointed: 2023, Occupation: Lawyer
  • PAUL JAMES HARDAKER Appointed: 2012, Occupation: Charity Chief Executive
  • PROF ROBIN HOWARD LOVELL-BADGE Appointed: 2014, Occupation: Scientist
  • PROFESSOR LESLEY YELLOWLEES Appointed: 2023, Occupation: Professor Emerita
  • PROFESSOR PAUL GARNER Appointed: 2023, Occupation: Emiritus Professor
  • PROFESSOR WILLEM VAN SAARLOOS Appointed: 2021
  • SHAONI BHATTACHARYA Appointed: 2024, Occupation: Journalist
Legal constitution
  • Charitable company registered in England & Wales on 29/02/2012, number: 1146170
  • Registered at Companies House on 11/12/2008, number: 06771027
Gift Aid
  • Registered with HMRC for Gift Aid
Policies in force
  • Bullying and harassment policy and procedures
  • Campaigns and political activity policy and procedures
  • Complaints handling
  • Complaints policy and procedures
  • Conflicting interests
  • Financial reserves policy and procedures
  • Internal charity financial controls policy and procedures
  • Internal risk management policy and procedures
  • Paying staff
  • Risk management
  • Serious incident reporting policy and procedures
  • Social media policy and procedures
  • Trustee conflicts of interest policy and procedures
  • Trustee expenses policy and procedures
  • Volunteer management
Filing Record
11 returns made; all on time
Main office

Sense about Science
41 Portland Place
LONDON
W1B 1QH

Objectives

1 TO ADVANCE THE EDUCATION OF THE PUBLIC IN ANY BRANCH OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH (INCLUDING SOCIAL SCIENCE) AND IN PARTICULAR BY THE DISSEMINATION OF SUCH RESEARCH AND USEFUL INFORMATION ABOUT SUCH RESEARCH.2 TO PROMOTE (FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE COMMUNITY) THE KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE PUBLIC OF, AND TO STIMULATE THE INTEREST OF THE PUBLIC IN, THE CREATION, PRESENTATION AND USE OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH.

Data Sources

Charity Commission for England and Wales
360 Giving

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