United Kingdom · Economic development and livelihoods
VSO
Voluntary Service Overseas
Charity registered in England and Wales. Based in: United Kingdom. Founded 1958. Main sector: economic development and livelihoods.
VSO IS THE WORLD'S LEADING INDEPENDENT INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCY WORKING FOR CHANGE THROUGH VOLUNTEERS. VSO BRINGS PEOPLE TOGETHER TO SHARE SKILLS, CREATIVITY AND LEARNING TO BUILD A FAIRER WORLD. VSO HAS PROGRAMMES IN OVER TWENTY DEVELOPING COUNTRIES FOCUSING ON DELIVERING SUSTAINABLE CHANGE IN THREE THEMATIC AREAS: EDUCATION, HEALTH AND SECURE LIVELIHOODS.
- Founded
- 1958
- Income 2025
- £24.7M
- Public funds 2025
- 36%
Accounts
Income Expenditure
Source: Charity Commission (England & Wales) — official register
Where the money comes from (2025)
Public funds 36% (£9M) · Other income 64%
Public funds: grants and contracts from government bodies as declared to the Charity Commission. Other income includes donations, legacies, trading and investments. Many organisations record funds from UN agencies and the European Union as income from charitable activities: in that case the public share is underestimated.
Data table
| Year | Income | Expenditure | Public funds | Staff | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-03-31 | £24.7M | £30.6M | 36% | 407 | Charity Commission (England & Wales) |
| 2024-03-31 | £32.1M | £34.5M | 28% | 473 | Charity Commission (England & Wales) |
| 2023-03-31 | £40.4M | £39.2M | 32% | 500 | Charity Commission (England & Wales) |
| 2022-03-31 | £33.3M | £38.8M | 47% | 518 | Charity Commission (England & Wales) |
| 2021-03-31 | £49.4M | £47M | 50% | 660 | Charity Commission (England & Wales) |
European Union funding
Data table
| Year | Development cooperation (INTPA) | Other EU programmes | Total committed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | €2.1M | – | €2.1M |
| 2019 | €1.6M | – | €1.6M |
| 2018 | €565,637 | €375,316 | €940,953 |
| 2017 | – | €558,700 | €558,700 |
| 2015 | €722,708 | – | €722,708 |
| 2014 | €99,488 | – | €99,488 |
Amounts committed each year by the European Commission to the organisation (contracts and grants), from the EU Financial Transparency System. A commitment often covers several project years and, in consortia, may include shares of other partners. They are not income for the year and should not be compared directly with the accounts.
Public funds from donor governments
Payments by donor in the last 5 years
| Donor | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FCDO (United Kingdom) | €10.3M | €10.9M | €11.1M | €6.7M | €4.3M |
| Global Affairs Canada (Canada) | €1.7M | €2M | €1.4M | €705,406 | – |
Payments to the organisation reported by the aid agencies of 17 countries (USAID, FCDO, BMZ, Sida and others) in their own IATI data, converted to euros at the year's average rate. They include funds passed on to local partners. Not all donors name the recipient of their payments, so figures may be incomplete; EU funds are in their own section.
Spending on declared projects (IATI)
Only the projects the organisation publishes on IATI: usually a fraction of its total spending (median 14% in our checks).
Countries with projects published on IATI
United Kingdom ↗ 7 · Nepal ↗ 7 · Kenya ↗ 6 · Cambodia ↗ 6 · Rwanda ↗ 6 · Bangladesh ↗ 5 · Nigeria ↗ 5 · Pakistan ↗ 5 · Tanzania ↗ 5 · Zimbabwe ↗ 5 · Ethiopia ↗ 4 · Myanmar (Burma) ↗ 4 · Malawi ↗ 4 · Sierra Leone ↗ 4 · Uganda ↗ 4 · Zambia ↗ 4 · Ghana ↗ 3 · Mozambique ↗ 3 · Philippines ↗ 3 · Eswatini ↗ 3 · Thailand ↗ 3 · South Africa ↗ 3 · India ↗ 2 · Lesotho ↗ 2 · Burkina Faso ↗ 1 · Liberia ↗ 1 · Nicaragua ↗ 1 · Papua New Guinea ↗ 1 · Senegal ↗ 1 · South Sudan ↗ 1 · Togo ↗ 1
Number of activities published on IATI that mention the country, added up over all years. Platforms that raise funds for other organisations publish every small project as a separate activity. Each country opens on d-portal the list of this organisation’s projects in that country.
Projects published on IATI (most recent and largest)
| Project | Country | Period | Spending |
|---|---|---|---|
| Active Citizenship Through Inclusive Volunteering & Empowerment (ACTIVE) | Bangladesh, Cambodia, Eswatini, Ethiopia, United Kingdom, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Myanmar (Burma), Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe | 2022–… ongoing | $10.7M |
| Delivering Equitable and Sustainable Increases in Family Planning (DESIP) | Kenya | 2019–… ongoing | $300,069 |
| Intergrated Programme for Strengthening Security and Justice | Nepal | 2018–2020 ongoing | $1.9M |
| EDUCATION FOR LIFE – LEAVE NO GIRL BEHIND | Kenya | 2018–2023 ongoing | $2.5M |
| Empowering a New Generation of Adolescent Girls with Education in Nepal (ENGAGE) | Nepal | 2018–2022 ongoing | $4.6M |
| A sustainable, traceable climate smart and inclusive rice supply chain. | Cambodia | 2018–2020 ongoing | $15,195 |
| Bank Asia Limited-SP022 (Growing Together ) | Bangladesh, United Kingdom | 2018–2020 ongoing | $254,247 |
| Enhancing Employability through Vocational Training (EEVT) in Mtwara and Lindi | Tanzania | 2018–2020 ongoing | $539,778 |
| Save The Children For SP018 | Myanmar (Burma) | 2018–2019 ongoing | $23,251 |
| MannionDaniels - SP061 | Pakistan | 2018–2020 ongoing | $169,703 |
| Building Learning Foundations | United Kingdom, Rwanda | 2017–2023 ongoing | $5.3M |
| Volunteering for Development | Bangladesh, Ethiopia, United Kingdom, Ghana, Kenya, Cambodia, Lesotho, Myanmar (Burma), Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Nepal, Philippines, Pakistan, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Eswatini, Thailand, Tanzania, Uganda, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe | 2017–2020 ongoing | $89M |
| Girls Education Challenge | Nepal | 2017–2021 ongoing | $3.7M |
| Manniondaniels - P962 | Pakistan | 2016–2018 closed | -$37 |
| International Citizen Service (ICS) | Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Kenya, Cambodia, Liberia, Malawi, Nigeria, Nicaragua, Nepal, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Togo, Tanzania, Uganda, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe | 2015–2021 ongoing | $80.2M |
| International Citizen Service - Main Project (inc.costs in country disclosures) | United Kingdom | …–2018 ongoing | $6M |
| UK & International Programmes | United Kingdom | …–2018 ongoing | $3.8M |
Titles are shown as published by the organisation, in their original language. Spending = disbursements and expenditure reported on IATI, in US$.
Countries declared
Bangladesh · Ethiopia · Ghana · Ireland · India · Kenya · Cambodia · Myanmar (Burma) · Malawi · Mozambique · Nigeria · Netherlands · Nepal · Philippines · Pakistan · Rwanda · Sierra Leone · Thailand · Tanzania · Uganda · South Africa · Zambia · Zimbabwe
Official checks
- Public register
- Charity Commission — active registration
- Latest accounts filed
- 2025 (Charity Commission (England & Wales))
Facts from public registers and certification bodies, not a judgement on the organisation; the absence of a label is not a negative sign. Methodology
Timeline
- Founded
- Registered as a charity
- First publication on IATI
Identifiers
EU-TR 338162110726-87 · Charity Commission · Companies House · IATI (d-portal) · Wikidata