Smaller charities are feeling more optimistic about the future, new research suggests.
A survey of mostly smaller charities by the grant-maker the Garfield Weston Foundation and the support charity Pilotlight found that 41 per cent of respondents expected their income to rise over the next 12 months, up from 38 per cent in the same study last year and up from 36 per cent in 2017.
The online survey of 271 charity leaders in Britain, most of which led organisations with annual incomes of less £500,000, showed that only 15 per cent of respondents to the latest study said they expected their charity’s income to fall over the coming year, with the remainder saying they expected it to remain level.
The survey found that slightly more than three-quarters of respondents said they planned to help more people over the coming year, with just 3 per cent expecting to help fewer.
Rita Chadha, chief executive of the Small Charities Coalition, said the report showed that small charities are built on “can-do” attitudes.
“Small charities are optimistic about the future because they know that where there is a need there is hope, and where there is hope there is an opportunity to do good,” she said.
“In battling against austerity, small charities have come to understand the need for an improved understanding of the policy and legislative context. This is no longer the exclusive remit of larger charities.”
The survey has been published to mark the opening of the Weston Charity Awards, which give grants and support to charities with incomes of less than £5m a year.
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