Driven by love, our vision is that every child and young person has a safe and happy childhood, and the foundations they need to thrive.

We are a charity that give vulnerable children and young people the protection and practical help they urgently need, and tireless campaign for lasting change.

Today, we run 372 services in local communities across the UK, in schools and online.

Our nurseries and children's centres play an essential role in giving children and families early support. We run fostering services and are experts in finding the best possible match between children and foster families.

We step in to protect children from neglect and abuse and help those who care for others, or are at risk of homelessness.

We're also here for parents and guardians by offering help and guidance, in person and through our online services.

We’ve been helping children for more than 150 years. In 2023/24 we helped 687,755 children, young people and families. This was only possible with your support.

• Since 1869 we’ve helped more than two million children and young people.
• 54,878: the number of people reached with mental health support in 2023/24.
• 468,786: the number of people reached by our online parenting advice service, Parent Talk, in 2023/24.

Your donations help us to support vulnerable children, young people and their families in the UK.

85p of every £1* we spend goes directly towards helping children, young people and their families.

Your donations help us to run essential services, which give vulnerable children and families a vital lifeline.

We make sure that every penny you donate goes where it will have the greatest impact on children’s lives.

Most of the donations we receive from our campaigns are unrestricted. This means they’re not spent on one project or one specific area of the UK, but where the need is greatest. We wouldn’t be able to operate as a charity without this type of income.

Unrestricted funds help us reach the children and young people who need us most. Funds raised from this appeal will be unrestricted and used by Action for Children for its general charitable purposes.

Please see the Our Work and Impact for examples of the work we do to help children and young people and their families.

* Figure based on audited 2023/24 charity accounts that exclude subsidiary companies like commercial nurseries

Action for Children is a not-for-profit organisation. Any profit we make goes straight back into services that help children and families. It doesn’t go to shareholders or investors.

As a charity, we have to keep some funds in reserve. This protects the families we support, as well as our staff and volunteers. It means there’s a pool of money we can call on in an emergency.