Charity donations by UK millionaires in the second quarter of this year were less than one-third of their value during the previous quarter, according to research from The Beacontree Collaborative.
A quarterly survey of 300 to 500 high net worth individuals carried out by the market research firm Savanta found that the median level of giving by people with a net worth of more than £1m was £1,000 in the three months to June 2022, compared with £3,500 in the first three months of the year.
But levels of giving were still significantly higher than at the £575 median donation at the end of 2022, and double the £500 level recorded between April and June 2022.
The Beacontree Collaborative, which aims to inspire more wealthy people to use their assets for the public good, found the mean average gift in Q2 2023 was £8,171 compared with the mean of £20,000 in Q1.
It is less than half the £19,410 recorded this time last year.
Researchers said in a blog post that the large spike in giving at the beginning of 2023 was fuelled by millionaires responding to the cost-of-living crisis and the fact that many charities were facing high winter energy and supply costs.
“Levels of giving usually increase in response to a current crisis but, although the higher level of giving seen at the start of the year has now eased, it is – encouragingly – still higher than last year,” they said.
The research also shows that gifts by women are generally larger than those by men and women are often among the first to give when needs are identified – echoing a trend seen among the wider population.
Despite the Sunday Times Giving List including only nine individual women among the list of 100 major givers, the median donation for women over the past three years has averaged £1,103, compared with £490 for men.
The researchers said fundraising organisations should not underestimate the role women play in giving and influencing major gift decisions.
They said charities should plan fundraising events specifically aimed at them or where women were brought together at events or in donor circles to acknowledge the important role they play in making major gifts.
“More widely, the UK’s philanthropy sector could do more to celebrate the role of female philanthropy and to understand more about how women make decisions about giving, and how distinct this is from men,” they said.
“Certainly, women are distinctly less visible in the giving landscape than their male counterparts. Our research suggests it is time this changed.”