The Disasters Emergency Committee’s income fell by more than £180m last year after it launched no new appeals. 

The charity’s latest accounts, for the year to the end of March, show it had an income of £32.9m, down from £215.7m in the previous 12 months. 

As a result of the large income decrease, the charity’s expenditure also fell, from £262.4m in 2022/23 to £53.7m last year.

The DEC brings together 15 international charities to deliver emergency humanitarian projects overseas, including Cafod, British Red Cross and Age UK International.

Despite launching no new appeals in 2023/24, the charity still attracted donations for ongoing appeals that were opened in previous years. 

Its Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal raised £8m, down from £135.1m in the previous 12 months, while the charity’s Turkey-Syria earthquake appeal raised £12.5m in 2023/24, compared with £139m in the previous year.

The DEC’s income from its Pakistan Floods appeal also fell significantly, from £48m in 2022/23 to £1.4m.

Sue Inglish, chair of the DEC, said the charity closely monitored a number of crises during the year, including the “catastrophic situation” in Gaza, where humanitarian access remained an “ongoing challenge”.

“This prevented the launch of a national DEC appeal, although many DEC member charities continued to provide lifesaving aid through their own appeals while working in very challenging circumstances,” Inglish said.

A report in The Guardian alleged some insiders at the DEC, the BBC and aid agencies had accused the broadcaster of “blocking” the appeal due to fear of a backlash.

The DEC is independent from the BBC and reportedly wishes to launch an appeal through the broadcaster, the newspaper said. 

The DEC’s annual report says trustees have also designated £10m for a new five-year strategic plan.

“This fund, over the five years, will provide the funding to invest in the DEC so it can deliver against its strategic objectives,” the charity said.

“The size of the fund has been calculated based on the underlying strategic projects that will be delivered over five years under the overall strategy.

“Initial assessment of budgetary requirements against each project has been made, and spend against this fund will be monitored by the board on a regular basis.”

The charity said it is launching a new strategic plan because the emergencies it responds to are “more complex, impacted by geopolitics and climate change”.

The strategy will ensure the DEC remains a “thriving, sustainable organisation” that is able to launch the “right appeals at the right time” and build trust with its audiences, the charity said.