The Salvation Army

What The Salvation Army does

The Salvation Army UK and Ireland is a Christian church and registered charity operating across more than 600 communities in England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, delivering faith-based welfare services without discrimination. Its service portfolio spans homelessness support (Lifehouses and emergency accommodation), addiction recovery, Employment Plus job-seeker coaching, modern slavery victim support, family tracing, budget and debt advice, youth and children programmes, older-people services, and music and creative arts. The organization is funded by voluntary donations (one-off gifts, regular giving, legacies and corporate philanthropy processed via Stripe, PayPal and Fundraise Up), income from a national charity-shop network, contracts with local authorities and central government on homelessness, employment and modern-slavery services, and ticket sales from the Strawberry Field visitor attraction in Liverpool.

Strawberry Field, the Victorian house immortalised in The Beatles' "Strawberry Fields Forever" and donated to the charity in 1934, was reopened in September 2019 as a wholly-owned subsidiary operating an interactive exhibition (including John Lennon's Imagine piano on loan from the George Michael estate), multilingual audio guides, gardens, an on-site café and gift shop, room hire and a walking tour. All visitor profits are directed into the Steps at Strawberry Field employment programmes (Steps to Work, Steps to Work Lite, Steps to Volunteer, Recycles, Steps for Students, and a Learning Hub) supporting young adults with learning difficulties or other employment barriers into sustained paid work.

The underlying technology footprint is modest and operationally focused: the main website handles donations through PCI-compliant Stripe and PayPal integrations, supporter communications are managed via Dotdigital, visitor ticketing runs on FareHarbor, and analytics and consent are delivered through Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, Hotjar and One Trust. The organization operates multiple legal entities under The Salvation Army Trustee Company (private company limited by guarantee) — The Salvation Army Central Trust (England & Wales 214779; Scotland SC009359), The Salvation Army Social Work Trust (215174), and the Republic of Ireland charity CHY6399. There is no evidence of equity investors, external funding rounds or material M&A activity; funding is exclusively donation-, retail- and grant-based.

Name

The Salvation Army

Legal name

The Salvation Army Trustee Company

Website

https://salvationarmy.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1865

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

The Salvation Army UK and Ireland is a Christian church and registered charity operating across 600+ UK and Ireland communities, delivering faith-based welfare services including homelessness support, Employment Plus, and addiction recovery, alongside the Strawberry Field Beatles-themed visitor attraction.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Charitable Social Services

NAICS

Emergency and Other Relief Services (624230), Community Housing Services (62422), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Religious Organizations (813110)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Faith-Based Social Services & Community Outreach (Food Pantries, Shelters, Counseling) (BPAGAJAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Housing Assistance & Homeless Services (BPAGAEAB), Disability Services & Independent Living Support (BPAGACAG), Refugee, IDP & Migration Humanitarian Assistance (BPAGAAAH), Faith-Based Humanitarian Aid & Relief Ministries (BPAGAJAF)

Keywords

• Religious charitable services
• Homelessness support services
• Community welfare programs
• Charitable fundraising operations
• Employment assistance programmes

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Charitable Donations: Voluntary donations from individuals, including one-time gifts, regular giving, legacies in wills, and corporate philanthropy partnerships. Processing through secure online donation platforms (Stripe & PayPal) with PCI compliance.
2. Charity Retail Shops: Network of charity shops selling donated goods, generating revenue while supporting environmental sustainability through recycling.
3. Strawberry Field Visitor Attraction: Ticket sales for visitor exhibition and garden tours at Strawberry Field in Liverpool. Additional revenue from café, gift shop merchandise, and room hire. All profits fund Steps at Strawberry Field employment programs.
4. Government and Public Sector Contracts: Partnerships with local authorities and government bodies to provide specific services including homelessness support, employment services (Employment Plus), and modern slavery victim support.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Salvation Army is a worldwide Christian church and registered charity operating across 600+ communities in the UK and Ireland. It delivers free practical services including homelessness accommodation, employment support, addiction recovery, family tracing, modern slavery victim support, and debt advice, funded primarily through charitable donations, charity shop retail, government contracts, and the Strawberry Field visitor attraction in Liverpool.

Product overview

The Salvation Army UK and Ireland is a Christian church and registered charity operating across 600+ communities, offering diverse practical services including homelessness support, employment assistance, addiction services, family tracing, and youth programmes. The organization also operates Strawberry Field in Liverpool—a Beatles-themed visitor attraction with an interactive exhibition, audio guides in 5 languages, gardens, café, and gift shop. Strawberry Field functions as a responsible tourism destination with a social mission, funding Steps at Strawberry Field employment programmes (Steps to Work, Steps to Work Lite, Steps to Volunteer, Steps for Students, Recycles, Learning Hub) that support young adults with learning difficulties or barriers to employment into sustainable paid work. The organization runs Fresh Expression community programmes including Strawberry Field Community Church, The Gathering, and Ukulele Group. Core digital services include the main website (donations, volunteering, church finder), online ticketing via FareHarbor, and an online fundraising platform connected to JustGiving.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Employment Plus: Employment support service helping people access support to get back into work.
• Steps at Strawberry Field
• Imagine More Café
• Lifehouses

Products and services

• Homelessness Services

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration16 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Harman Audio (JBL, AKG)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGenerous sponsorship of sound equipment for the Strawberry Field Bandstand. Provides professional audio equipment for live music events.
• Liverpool John Moores UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with university students to develop Strawberry Field's Sustainability Policy as part of ongoing commitment to environmental responsibility.
• Green TourismminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCertifying body that awarded Strawberry Field Gold accreditation for sustainable tourism practices.
• Hoskins ArchitectsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerArchitectural firm that designed the Strawberry Field visitor centre, which received multiple awards for sustainable and accessible design.
• Recycles MerseysideminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal partner providing bike maintenance services at Strawberry Field events and offering refurbished bikes for sale.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• British Red Cross: UK arm of the international humanitarian network delivering emergency relief, homelessness support, refugee services, and community programmes. Comparable in scale, multi-revenue model (donations, retail, government contracts), and UK-wide service delivery footprint.
• YMCA England & Wales: Faith-based youth and community organization offering housing, employment, health, and family services across the UK. Directly comparable as another Christian-rooted multi-service charity operating a nationwide local branch network with similar target populations (homelessness, young people, families in crisis).
• StepChange Debt Charity: UK debt advice charity providing budgeting, debt management plans, and financial education. Closely comparable through overlapping budget and debt advice services and similar beneficiary demographic.
• Caritas Social Action Network: UK Catholic social action network addressing poverty, homelessness, refugee support, and family services. Closely comparable as a faith-based multi-service charity operating across overlapping programme areas and beneficiary groups.
• Oxfam GB: Major UK poverty-relief charity operating extensive charity retail, emergency response, and development programmes. Directly comparable through shared reliance on charity shop income, donations, government contracts, and a multi-service community model.
• Shelter UK: UK national housing and homelessness charity providing advice, support, and campaigning. Comparable through overlapping services (homelessness, housing, debt advice) and similar donation-plus-government funding model.
• Centrepoint: UK charity focused on youth homelessness, providing housing, employment training, and wellbeing services for 16-25 year olds. Comparable through overlapping youth homelessness and employability service lines.
• Crisis UK: National homelessness charity delivering housing, employment, and support services across the UK. Closely comparable as a homelessness-focused peer with parallel service lines (housing, employment, training) and similar reliance on donations and government contracts.

Broad incumbents

• Citizens Advice: National advice network providing debt, housing, and welfare benefits guidance. Comparable through shared budget and debt advice services and referral pathways into local authority support.
• Mind UK: UK mental health charity providing advice, support, and campaigning. Comparable as a UK-wide mental health and wellbeing charity with similar reliance on donations and local service delivery, though its focus is narrower than The Salvation Army's portfolio.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/salvationarmyuk
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-salvation-army-uki

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Salvation Army