UK: Cash donations fall as regular giving rises

UK Giving 2008, the most comprehensive research into UK charitable giving habits, published today by the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) and the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO), shows that cash donations to charity fell by £367 million, from £1.7 billion in 2006/07 to £1.3 billion in 2007/08.

The survey of 3,322 UK adults, carried out in June and October 2007 and February 2008, shows that despite the large fall in the amount of ‘loose change’ donated to charity, cash donations are still by far the most popular way to give with 47% of donors giving in this way. 

UK Giving 2008 shows that before the banking crisis giving levels rose 8% – to an estimated £10.6 billion total.  Regular methods of giving, such as direct debit, payroll giving or membership fees, continued to rise slowly.  The amount given by direct debit went up from £2.4 billion to £2.5 billion while the amount given by payroll giving moved from £88 million to £96 million.

The mean average monthly amount given by donors increased from £29 in 2006/07 to £33 in 2007/08. In a typical month 56% (almost 28 million) of the UK public donated. 

John Low, Chief Executive of CAF, said: “The increasing generosity of the British public shown in UK Giving over this period is especially encouraging given the challenging times ahead.

“While the rise in committed giving is more welcome than ever, should the serious decline in cash donations continue at this rate or even accelerate due to deteriorating economic conditions, charities will need to react quickly and decisively if they are to secure their income.”

Stuart Etherington, CEO of NCVO said:  “A significant majority of the population will continue to support charities through periods of economic boom and bust.

“At the end of the day, people’s donations are supporting causes: and it remains the case that giving to charities is the most direct, effective way to address the social problems that people encounter both within their local communities and beyond.”

More women still tend to give than men, but the number of women giving fell slightly (from 59% to 58%) while giving by men rose from 48% to 51%. In contrast, women gave a mean annual average of £354 compared with £442 from men, a rise on last year.

One in 12 donors gave over £100 a month.  However, this small number of regular donors account for 51% of all donations.  Just over half (52%) of high level donors are men and 45% of these high level donors are aged 45-64 years.

Medical research remained the most popular cause in terms of the proportion of donors that support the cause, but religious charities have now overtaken medical research as the most popular in terms of the amount of money given.  £1.9bn (18% of the total amount given to charities) was given to religious causes.

Source: www.ncvo-vol.org.uk

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