UK charitable giving falls by 11% to £9.9bn

Donations made to the UK’s 170,000 charities dropped by £1.3 bn in real terms (11%) to total £9.9bn in 2008/09, according to UK Giving 2009, the most comprehensive research into UK charitable giving habits, published by the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) and the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO).

It also revealed the proportion of people giving and the median donation have both declined to 2006/07 levels; a significant reduction in real-terms when compared with 2007/08.

Though the majority of UK adults still give to charity each month (54%), the figure represents a fall of two percentage points on last year, and equates to 774,000 fewer people giving each month.

Other key findings show:

• There appear to be fewer large donations, one of the major reasons for the overall decline in giving 
• A noticeable fall in average donations by higher-income earners and those in professional occupations 
• The recession has not affected the types of causes that people support, with medical research remaining the most popular in terms of the number of supporters. Religious charities take the largest share of the total amount given. 
• Regular giving is increasing, which may provide more stable and predictable levels of support to charities able to capitalise on this.
• Most people give cash donations, with larger amounts tending to be given via direct debit. 
• The uptake of Gift Aid for small donations remains poor, while overall usage of Gift Aid is relatively static. UK Giving estimated that around £750m of Gift Aid goes unclaimed on donations.  It said only four in ten donors Gift Aid-ed their donations.
• The median amount donated per month was £10 per person in 2008/09, a decrease of £1 on the previous year.

The findings are based on a survey of 3,316 UK adults, carried out in June and October 2008 and February 2009.

Stuart Etherington, chief executive of NCVO, said that while it is inevitable that the recession is having an impact on charities, “It would be wrong to predict the collapse of the sector because of the current climate. It is reassuring to know that the public are continuing to support the vital work that voluntary and community organisations do in local communities across the country. We would like to thank people for their on-going generosity.” 

CAF chief executive John Low said, “Even though there are welcome signs that the recession is technically ending, the economic downturn is still severely impacting charities”.

He added, “If all taxpayers tick the Gift Aid box, or give through Give As You Earn it would go a long way to make up the shortfall in funding without costing them a penny more.”

The report is available to download on the CAF and the NCVO websites.