General Optical Council
About
We are the regulator for the optical professions in the UK. Our statutory role is to protect and promote the health and safety of members of the public by promoting high standards of professional education, conduct and performance among our registrants. We currently register around 26,000 optometrists, dispensing opticians, student opticians and optical businesses.
Focus & reach
Verification & registration
Every mark links to the official registry entry and opens in a new tab.
Integrity assessment
A score from 0 to 100 for how openly a charity shares public information across five areas: registration, financial disclosure, governance, contact details, and data recency. It does not measure programme impact. See exactly what we do and do not have →
Financials
Charity Commission (UK)Leadership at a glance
Official filingsSimilar charities
GiveRadar Intelligence
GiveRadar Analysis
From what GiveRadar has verified so far, General Optical Council has a substantially complete profile, cross-referenced across 3 independent sources including the Charity Commission.
- By reported annual revenue, it is larger than 98% of the 78,357 education charities in the United Kingdom with financial records on GiveRadar. See the filings
- GiveRadar holds 5 years of financial filings for this organization, the most recent for fiscal year 2025. See the filings
- Its integrity score of 86 places it in the top 1% of the 87,708 education charities in the United Kingdom GiveRadar tracks, because GiveRadar has verified its financial disclosures and its registration. View this cohort
- government registration
- financial records (5 filed years)
- disclosed leadership
- a website
- a contact email
Analysis based on GiveRadar's benchmark dataset of 2026-07-03. It describes what GiveRadar has verified, not a judgment of the organization itself.
Filing history
5 years on file from Charity Commission (UK): revenue, expenses, program spending, assets, and liabilities by fiscal year.
See 5 years of revenue, expense breakdowns, and balance sheet.
Sign up to viewTax deductibility
Whether a gift to General Optical Council lowers your own taxes depends on where you pay them. Choose your country to see the rule that applies.
UK donations qualify for Gift Aid. GENERAL OPTICAL COUNCIL is registered with the Charity Commission. Eligible UK taxpayers can boost their gift by 25% at no extra cost.
GENERAL OPTICAL COUNCIL is in United Kingdom, a TGE (Transnational Giving Europe) member country. Dutch donors can route gifts via Stichting Transnational Giving Europe to receive Dutch ANBI-equivalent deductibility, subject to TGE's 5% pass-through fee.
GENERAL OPTICAL COUNCIL is registered in United Kingdom. US donors generally cannot deduct gifts to non-US charities directly. To claim a deduction, route the gift through a US 'Friends of' fiscal sponsor or a donor-advised fund that performs equivalency determination (IRS Rev. Proc. 92-94).
This is general guidance, not tax advice. Confirm treatment with the charity or your tax advisor before donating.
Leadership & board
Official filingsBoard members and senior officers on record, with disclosed pay where available.
12 officers and trustees on file, free with a GiveRadar account.
No red flags detected
Timeline
From official filingsKey dates from this charity's official filings, newest first.
In the news
No recent news coverage found
News coverage will appear here when articles mention this organization.
Trustpilot
If you imagine for one moment that these people will seriously aid you in a case against an optical practitioner you are sadly mistaken. They will get you filling out your complaint in great detail and make it seem that they take the matter very seriously, but the tribunal at the end is a joke. I had been wrongly prescribed for two years, my lens for that time was +0.25 when i changed my optician for a second opinion it was found to be +0.75. These people came out on the side of the optician! Take your problem straight to a court of law, thats my advice...
Trustpilot
Absolutely disgusting, had a gas safety check after they had done the work an I had been left with a unsafe boiler which has now been condemned due to the work they done. I have 3 children an one of them is 1 years old and have been left for 3 days now with no water and heating and everytime I call getting fobbed off
Trustpilot
Why does the Council allow Essilor to dismiss proof of Authenticity as unnescessary and the public exposed to FRAUD recorded by several Senior Citizen groups.It allows Opticians to substitute expensive Varlux lenses costing £ Hundreds with cheap unbranded and lower quality lenses.The elderly are the target and it's the elderly under scrutiny driving causing accidents, injuries and deaths.How many of these accidents attributable to fake lenses ?
How it stacks up against peers
Compared with 6 similar education charities in United Kingdom.
Cause areas in United Kingdom
Charities working in each area, this charity's highlighted.
Sources and verification
- Officers and trustees
- Charity Commission for England and Wales - Register of Charities · 12 disclosed in the public registry.
What we know and don't know
Every data point we track for this charity, and whether we have found it. Disclosure only, never a judgment of the charity's work.
Data freshness
How current this profile is, and when we last checked it against the official source.
Methodology
GiveRadar builds each profile primarily from official government charity registries, supplemented where available by third-party nonprofit databases and news archives, and combines it into a single 0-100 integrity assessment. The exact sources for this charity are listed above. We don't take a cut of any donation, ever.
Read full methodologyIf you represent this organization and want to correct or update its data, you can claim this listing to edit details yourself, or email info@giveradar.com with the correct information. We review every request and respond within 30 days.
Frequently asked questions about General Optical Council
General Optical Council is a registered education nonprofit based in London, England, United Kingdom. It is registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales. It was founded in 2012 and has been operating for 14 years. GiveRadar's Integrity Assessment for the organization is 86/100, which reflects how much public information is available, not whether the charity is legitimate. The organization reports £12M in annual revenue. 12 officers and directors are publicly disclosed. No red flags have been detected. The charity has 3 community reviews with an average rating of 1.0/5. On Trustpilot, it has a rating of 2.8/5 based on 3 reviews.
Based on official filings, General Optical Council has £12M in annual revenue. It allocates 100% of expenses to programs and services. This is above the average of 85% for education charities in United Kingdom. Its revenue is significantly above the peer average of £910K. Create a free GiveRadar account to view the complete financial breakdown with year-over-year trends.
We are the regulator for the optical professions in the UK. Our statutory role is to protect and promote the health and safety of members of the public by promoting high standards of professional education, conduct and performance among our registrants. We currently register around 26,000 optometrists, dispensing opticians, student opticians and optical businesses. General Optical Council is classified as an education organization registered in United Kingdom. The organization was founded in 2012.
General Optical Council is an unincorporated association, a group of people who agree to come together for a common charitable purpose. This is the simplest legal structure: it has no separate legal identity, so contracts and property must be held by individual trustees on behalf of the charity.
General Optical Council's registered charity number is 1150137. You can use it to look up the organization on the Charity Commission register.
General Optical Council is located in London, England, United Kingdom. The organization was established in 2012 and has been active for 14 years.
General Optical Council is based in London in England. The Charity Commission for England and Wales (CCEW) is the primary regulator. Scotland has its own regulator (OSCR), and Northern Ireland has the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland (CCNI). A charity registered with the CCEW may operate across the whole of the UK or internationally.
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Quick facts about General Optical Council
- What is General Optical Council?
- General Optical Council is a education unincorporated association based in London, United Kingdom. We are the regulator for the optical professions in the UK. Our statutory role is to protect and promote the health and safety of members of the public by promoting high standards of professional education, conduct and performance among our registrants. We currently register around 26,000 optometrists, dispensing opticians, student opticians and optical businesses.
- When was General Optical Council founded?
- General Optical Council was founded in 2012.
- Where is General Optical Council located?
- Headquartered in London, England, United Kingdom.
- What is General Optical Council's annual budget?
- Annual revenue for fiscal year 2025 is £12.2 million. 100% of expenses go to program services.
- Is General Optical Council trustworthy?
- General Optical Council has a GiveRadar Integrity Assessment of 86 out of 100 (Strong transparency). The score reflects public-data transparency: registration, financial disclosure, governance, contact details, and how recently data was refreshed. It does not measure program impact.
- What is General Optical Council's website?
- https://www.optical.org
- Are donations to General Optical Council tax-deductible?
- Donations may be tax-deductible for residents of United Kingdom under local rules. US donors should check whether the charity has an equivalency-determination letter or a US-based fiscal sponsor before claiming a deduction.