Our impact
Transforming lives with arthritis
Our impact reflects the impact Arthritis UK has had and the collective effort of our incredible community who are helping us work towards achieving our mission:
We won’t rest until everyone with arthritis has access to the treatments and support they need to live the life they choose with real hope of a cure in the future.
To deliver our mission we invest in world-class research, deliver high-quality services and campaign on the issues that matter most to people with arthritis.
Guided by our five-year strategy, we're focused on better prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and awareness — and our Impact Report helps us understand where we are, and where we need to go next. We’ll continue to learn from and develop our work to make sure that everyone living with arthritis can access the support and information they need.
2025/26: Our year in numbers
Our Impact Report reflects on the progress we’ve made together in 2025-2026. We have delivered 76,043 acts of support for people with arthritis including:
- 17,588 Helpline enquiries answered
- 109,883 healthcare and workplace professionals accessing our self-learning resources
- 78% of young people living with arthritis feeling more positive about the future after attending one of our events
- more than 1.2m Arthritis UK information booklets delivered or downloaded
- 44 researchers helped with patient and public involvement and 22 researchers/organisations connected with research partners
- 150 applicants funded across 27 research awards.
Self-Management services
In 2025/26, our staff and volunteers delivered 2,434 self-management sessions, which were attended by 15,617 people with the aim of supporting people living with arthritis to manage their condition. Eight out of ten people said that attending a self-management course improved their understanding of arthritis
These support people to build confidence, develop practical skills and manage their condition, while improving their wellbeing. Our online offer brings all our services together in one accessible place, helping people access the support they need and connect with others living with similar conditions.
Support services
- In 2025/26, our trained helpline advisors answered 17,588 telephone calls and emails from people looking for help and information on arthritis.
- Our online community, Arthritis Connect, has over 6,000 members and provides a safe, welcoming space where people can connect with others who understand what it’s like to live with arthritis.
- We offer health information resources such as booklets, guides and digital materials and over 1.2 million of these free resources were either downloaded or distributed last year.
I feel that you really care and understand the difficulties of living with arthritis. Thank you so much for all the useful information
Young People and Families Service
Over the last year, we provided support 3,395 times across 120 YPFS events and youth voice activities. We also offered support and information sessions for young people and parents/carers in hospitals and communities across the UK, as well as digitally, through our one-to-one work.
Training for healthcare professionals
By training current and future healthcare and workplace professionals, we aim to improve the treatment and care that people living with arthritis receive. We deliver both Core Skills workshops and Patient Voice sessions, as well as providing access to online resources.
In the last year, our online resources were accessed 110,000 times and we delivered 116 Patient Voice education and service improvement sessions to over 1,700 participants across the UK.
It’s eye-opening to have someone with arthritis talk about their condition. It helps me better understand the disease and how it affects patients’ quality of life so that I can help them tailor a treatment plan as a future pharmacist. The speaker did so well in presenting Arthritis UK and informing us about learning packages available for healthcare professionals.
Policy and influencing
47,114 supporter actions were taken as a result of campaigns we launched in 2025.
Our Cut to the Bone campaign called on the UK Government to rethink planned cuts to disability benefits. Almost 40,000 people from our community emailed their MP, helping to build pressure that contributed to the Government scrapping plans to cut Personal Independence Payment (PIP).
Research
93% of Research Partners believe that they make a meaningful difference to the work of Arthritis UK (a 13% increase on 2024/25).
Nearly 20 years after our £2m investment into the arcoGEN study at Newcastle University, the programme continues to deliver world-leading discoveries. Their findings revealed more than 700 new genetic links to osteoarthritis, with around one-in-ten involving genes that create proteins that can already be targeted with medicines approved for other conditions.
Download the full impact report
At Arthritis UK, we're committed to creating lasting change for people living with arthritis — and this impact report is a major milestone. It's our first ever visual snapshot of the progress we’re making together, shaped by the voices of our community.
Guided by our five-year strategy, we're focused on better prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and awareness — and this report helps us understand where we are, and where we need to go next.
Our Strategy 2023-28: Towards a future free from arthritis
As we work towards our ultimate vision – a future free from arthritis – our five-year strategy aims to help people with arthritis to live well now, and to offer hope through our ongoing commitment to finding better treatments now and cures in the future.
Download our organisational strategy to learn more about our vision and mission, our strategic goals, and the need for our work.
Your support makes breakthroughs possible
Your dedication enables us to fund remarkable advances in arthritis research – from innovative treatments to prevention strategies, giving hope to people with arthritis.