How many charities are registered in Reading?

According to the Charity Commission Full Register daily extract dated June 2026, 866 active registered charities operate in Reading, giving a density of 49.5 charities per 10,000 residents.

What is Reading's Gera Civic Vitality Index score?

Reading scores 89.3/100 on the Gera Civic Vitality Index — a Very High rating. This reflects its charities-per-10k score (92.9/100), income-density score (85/100), and cause-diversity score (88.86/100). The composite is weighted 45/35/20.

What types of charities are most common in Reading?

The five most common cause categories for charities in Reading are: Education/training, General Charitable Purposes, Religious Activities, Arts/culture/heritage/science, The Prevention Or Relief Of Poverty. Categories are from the Charity Commission's "What" classification system covering 17 cause groups.

How much charitable income is raised in Reading?

Active charities in Reading reported a combined latest income of £566.5m (£32.4m per 10,000 residents). Income figures come from each charity's most recent annual return to the Charity Commission.

What does the Gera Civic Vitality Index measure?

The GCVI combines active charities per 10,000 population, charitable income density per 10,000 population, and cause-mix diversity (Shannon entropy across 17 Charity Commission cause categories). A score of 100 represents the highest-observed value in England and Wales; 0 is the lowest. The full formula and weights are on the methodology page.

GeraNexus · Civic Data · Reading

Reading — Charity Density & Civic Vitality

866 active registered charities · 49.5 per 10,000 residents · GCVI 89.3/100 (Very High)

How many charities are in Reading and what is its civic vitality score?

As of the June 2026 Charity Commission daily extract, Reading has 866 active registered charities (49.5 per 10,000 residents) with a combined income of £566.5m. Its Gera Civic Vitality Index score is 89.3/100 — a Very High rating.

Source:Charity Commission — Full Register Daily Extract·as of June 2026updated monthly (last: 20 June 2026)

Gera Civic Vitality Index89.3 / 100Very High — vs national average 51/100How this index is calculated

Active Charities86649.5 per 10k residents

Total Charitable Income£566.5m£32.4m per 10k residents

GCVI component breakdown

Gera Civic Vitality Index — component scores for Reading (June 2026)
Component	Raw value	Score (0–100)	Weight
Charities per 10,000 population	49.5	92.9/100	45%
Charitable income per 10,000 population	£32.4m	85/100	35%
Cause-mix diversity (Shannon index)	0.889	88.86/100	20%
GCVI (composite)	—	89.3/100	—

Compare to other local authorities

Filter and rank all 172 LA areas. Click any row to see its full profile.

Min GCVI:0+

Showing 20 of 172 local authorities

#	Local Authority	GCVI	Charities	Per 10k	Income
1	Rutland	97.9	391	95.0	£202.5m
2	City Of London	97.9	775	714.5	£769.1m
3	Windsor And Maidenhead	97.6	817	52.8	£691.2m
4	Gwynedd	97.5	631	53.7	£435.3m
5	Bath And North East Somerset	97.1	1,013	51.8	£727.4m
6	West Berkshire	93.8	986	60.8	£546.5m
7	Ceredigion	92.6	345	48.2	£474.1m
8	Dorset	91.7	2,387	62.3	£1.2bn
9	Bedford	91.5	1,173	62.6	£582.5m
10	Denbighshire	91.2	450	46.6	£397.1m
11	Reading	89.3	866	49.5	£566.5m
12	Isle Of Anglesey	87.2	298	43.2	£258.0m
13	Herefordshire	81.2	1,095	58.0	£411.2m
14	Bracknell Forest	79.4	543	42.8	£390.4m
15	Gateshead	78.4	905	45.8	£518.8m
16	Wiltshire	77.8	2,427	47.0	£1.3bn
17	Hackney	77.8	1,125	43.0	£764.2m
18	Cheshire West & Chester	77.5	1,665	46.0	£913.2m
19	Oxfordshire	75.7	3,152	42.7	£2.0bn
20	Shropshire	75.3	1,514	46.3	£748.2m

Frequently asked questions

How many charities are registered in Reading?: According to the Charity Commission Full Register daily extract dated June 2026, 866 active registered charities operate in Reading, giving a density of 49.5 charities per 10,000 residents.
What is Reading's Gera Civic Vitality Index score?: Reading scores 89.3/100 on the Gera Civic Vitality Index — a Very High rating. This reflects its charities-per-10k score (92.9/100), income-density score (85/100), and cause-diversity score (88.86/100). The composite is weighted 45/35/20.
What types of charities are most common in Reading?: The five most common cause categories for charities in Reading are: Education/training, General Charitable Purposes, Religious Activities, Arts/culture/heritage/science, The Prevention Or Relief Of Poverty. Categories are from the Charity Commission's "What" classification system covering 17 cause groups.
How much charitable income is raised in Reading?: Active charities in Reading reported a combined latest income of £566.5m (£32.4m per 10,000 residents). Income figures come from each charity's most recent annual return to the Charity Commission.
What does the Gera Civic Vitality Index measure?: The GCVI combines active charities per 10,000 population, charitable income density per 10,000 population, and cause-mix diversity (Shannon entropy across 17 Charity Commission cause categories). A score of 100 represents the highest-observed value in England and Wales; 0 is the lowest. The full formula and weights are on the methodology page.

Contains public sector information published by Charity Commission for England and Wales and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: Charity Commission — Full Register Daily Extract (June 2026, published 2026-06-20).

High-GCVI areas to compare

Rutland — GCVI 97.9 City Of London — GCVI 97.9 Windsor And Maidenhead — GCVI 97.6 Gwynedd — GCVI 97.5

Get notified of charity changes in your area

GeraNexus monitors the Charity Commission register daily and can alert you when new charities register, existing ones close, or income patterns shift significantly in your chosen local authority.

Join the waitlist How the GCVI is calculated