UK: Giving dropping in 2006/07

Latest figures released by leading charity body, the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO), and the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF), show that the proportion of the UK population that gave to charity in 2006/07 dropped to 54%, down 3% from 2005/06. The UK Giving 2007 report reveals that the total amount given has fallen to £9.5 billion, 3% lower than the previous year, when accounting for inflation. The report also uncovers differences in the way men and women give to charity, with married women being the most likely to give and single men least likely to give and the least generous.

Is this a trend?
Stuart Etherington, Chief Executive of NCVO, said: ?We don?t know yet if this is just a blip, rather than a trend of people becoming less generous to charity. Individual donations play a huge role in funding the work that charities carry out in our communities, so we hope that worries such as increasing debt and rising house prices won?t put people off giving to the causes that need them.?

However, it is not all bad news, the report shows some promising signs, for example, the total amount that is given through regular methods of giving, such as direct debits, has increased from 22% of all donations in 2004/05 to 29% in 2006/07. The average amount that each donor gives every month has also gone up, from £28 in 2005/06 to £29 in 2006/07.

Dr John Low, Chief Executive of CAF said: ?Charities are reliant on the increasing generosity of a diminishing number of donors. But with the overall amount that people tell us they give to charity thisyear going down slightly, it?s more vital than ever that we all try to give what we can. By making regular, tax efficient donations, however small, we can provide charities with a vital and sustainable source of income into the future.?

Men and women give differently
The report also sheds light on the way in which men and women differ in their giving to charity, and the way that marriage can affect people?s generosity:

• Men are more likely to give if they are married, or living with a partner. 52% married men give compared to 44% of single men
• There have been significant decreases in giving among men, with single men being the least likely to give, and the least generous
• Women are more likely to give to animal charities if they are living alone

Dr Sylke V. Schnepf of the School of Social Sciences at the University of Southampton said: ?What this research shows is that women are more likely to give, and are also more generous with their gifts. Even though men give on average more than women, that is only because a small number of men give very large amounts. Out of all the people who give, 90 % of single women donate more than single men. This pattern remains the same if we take into account differences between men and women in income, age, education, profession and family structure.

?As a result, it must be other characteristics or attitudes that explain the gender gap in giving, for example, women are on average more concerned about poverty in poor countries than men.?

Faith based giving on the rise

• The figures also point to an increase in giving to religious causes:
• Only religious causes have seen an increase in the number of people giving to them, with an 8% rise from 2005/06 to 2006/07. 16% of all money donated in 2006/07 was given to religious causes, second only to medical research, which received 17% of all money donated
• People who give high level donations (over £100) are more likely to give to religious causes
• High level donors give 70% of the total donated to religious causes

Mary Bishop, Chief Executive of Grooms-Shaftesbury, said: ?Grooms-Shaftesbury has seen a combined increase in donations of 20% over the previous financial year. Our organisation was started by Victorian Christians, and still retains its Christian motivation today. Whilst many of our donors support us for this reason, many others give to us because of our cutting edge care services and our commitment to empowering disabled people.?