WaterAid recorded its highest-ever income last year despite falling funding from the government.
The international development charity raised £91.9m in the year to the end of March 2022, according to its latest accounts.
This is slightly higher than in 2019, when WaterAid brought in £91.4m.
The accounts, published last week with Companies House, show that total funding from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office fell from £4.8m to £1.7m.
The charity said that this was “due to completion of programmes” backed by government cash.
WaterAid spent £84.5m in 2021/22, about £1m less than in the previous year, and had an annual surplus of £7.4m.
Its income from legacy gifts last year rose from £9.2m to £11.5m, and the accounts say the charity has already identified legacies worth nearly £14m which are likely to be included in its income next year.
The value of fundraising events doubled from £1.4m to £2.7m.
The number of staff was almost unchanged at 869 and the charity’s free reserves increased from £18.5m to £23.8m, well above the target set in its reserves policy.
WaterAid dismissed three members of staff over safeguarding complaints in 2021/22 and issued another two employees with formal warnings, the accounts say.
A member of staff at a partner organisation, and a volunteer at one partner, were also dismissed.
WaterAid received 27 reports of safeguarding concerns in 2021/22 in total. The annual accounts say these “are fewer than we believe they should be given the challenging circumstances we work in”.
The charity pledged to continue strengthening procedures for reporting any concerns among staff, partners and the communities where the charity works.
A spokesperson for the charity said that it had referred itself to the Charity Commission twice in 2021/22, and that the regulator had decided no further action was required.
They added: “When it comes to safeguarding, WaterAid sees an increase in reporting as a positive indication that our systems are strengthening and that our staff, partners and community members feel safe to speak up.”
WaterAid also pointed out that it was part of a cross-sector, government-backed initiative to improve data collection and reporting on safeguarding.