01 Identity
Scottish charity record
- OSCR charity number
- SC053766
- Status
- Active
- Regulatory type
- Standard
- Designated religious body
- No
- Geographical spread
- Wider, but within one local authority area
- Volunteers
- 51-100 volunteers
- Staff
- 0
- Postcode
- Not supplied
02 Purpose and work
What the charity exists to do
Edinburgh Blue Balls Charity was established to advance positive mental health and wellbeing, with a particular focus on creating opportunities for men to connect, share experiences and support one another. The charity's purposes are centred on promoting positive mental health, developing initiatives and programmes that encourage open dialogue and wellbeing, and producing materials and communications that raise awareness of mental health issues. Activities include cold-water swimming, community engagement, storytelling and the use of creative publications and social media to encourage conversations about mental health. The charity developed from Edinburgh Blue Balls, a community initiative founded in 2021 by photographer Marc Millar. What began as a small group of men meeting for cold-water swimming at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh has grown into a supportive and inclusive community, with approximately 40 men regularly participating in Sunday and midweek gatherings.
Charitable purposes
- the advancement of health
Beneficiaries
- Other defined groups
Activities
- It carries out activities or services itself
Constitutional objectives
The organisation’s purposes are: I. to advance the awareness of mental health, stigma and advocating for positive mental health and wellbeing. II. To promote positive mental health and wellbeing and create initiatives and programmes to support dialogue, encourage health and wellbeing through activities including but not limited to cold water bathing as a therapy and to create a community for collective sharing of experience. III. To provide opportunities to engage in open conversations and dialogue about men’s mental health via a range of promotional materials and via social media.
03 Annual returns
Income and expenditure history
| Year end | Total income | Donations | Charitable activities income | Trading income | Investment income | Other income | Total expenditure | Raising funds | Charitable activities spending | Other spending | Staff | Return received |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 March 2026 | £14,322 | £0 | £0 | £0 | £0 | £0 | £8,966 | £0 | £0 | £0 | 0 | 14 October 2026 |
Figures are those reported by the charity and supplied in the OSCR bulk download. Blank facts remain distinct from zero.
04 Contact record
Principal office or trustees address
- Address supplied to OSCR
- Not supplied
- Website supplied to OSCR
- edinburghblueballs.co.uk
- Parent charity
- Not supplied
No direct external links on this profile. The official OSCR record and source documentation are available through BritDB’s dedicated source page.
05 Provenance
Source for this profile
© Crown Copyright and database right 2026. Contains information from the Scottish Charity Register supplied by the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator and licensed under the Open Government Licence v.3.0. BritDB is an independent service and does not claim to be the Scottish Charity Register.