An authoritative survey is today suggesting the UK is in the midst of a “worrying and permanent” decline in people’s engagement with charities, with the fall-off “locked in since lockdown”.
Charities Aid Foundation’s long-running UK Giving Report, published today, has found a significant drop compared to before the Covid-19 pandemic – in donation levels, volunteering and sponsorship.
The report publishes survey data about the trends of the giving landscape for the whole of 2022.
This covers the scale of the UK public’s generosity in response to the invasion of Ukraine followed by the implications of the cost-of-living crisis at home.
It found participation in charitable and civic activities in 2022 was similar to 2021 (83 per cent in 2021 to 84 per cent in 2022), but still well below the 88 per cent in 2019.
Throughout 2022, only 7 per cent of people reported volunteering for a charity in the past four weeks, down from 9 per cent in 2019.
The report also found the proportion volunteering in the last year was down from 17 per cent in 2019 to 13 per cent in 2022 – the equivalent of 1.6 million fewer people over the past five years.
A CAF press release said the figures suggested “a worrying and permanent change in charitable activity”.
Neil Heslop OBE, chief executive of CAF, said: “It is worrying that we continue to see a declining number of people donating to charity alongside the drop in participation in fundraising events and volunteering due to Covid lockdowns, which now appear to be locked in.
“While the government’s lifelines for charities this year may have been make-or-break for many, these findings show the next task is to come up with the policy solutions and incentives required to foster a more widespread culture of giving and participation in the UK.”
The survey found the cost-of-living crisis had also had a marked impact on charitable giving.
Across 2022, 69 per cent of people said they would need to make cuts to their spending to help manage bills, including 17 per cent who said they would be likely to cut their charitable donations.
A quarter (24 per cent) of people reported changing their charitable behaviours, including reducing or cancelling a regular charity donation (5 per cent), and choosing not to make a one-off donation (10 per cent).
Compared to the same months in 2021, March and April were the only months of 2022 when giving spiked, seemingly in reaction to the invasion of Ukraine.
This contributed to an estimated £12.7bn donated to charities in 2022, an increase of £2bn compared to 2021.
The report said the increase in the overall amount given in 2022 was a result of people donating higher amounts, rather than an increase in the number of people giving.
Jansev Jemal, research and policy director at Pro Bono Economics, said: “Charities have experienced a protracted period of difficulty since the outset of the pandemic.
“While managing a truly challenging triple threat of rising costs, income worries and spiralling demand, they continue to play their critical role supporting communities, providing services and campaigning for change.
“It’s important that policymakers consider how they can support charities to raise more funds and to invest in the improvements they need.”