It seems that we put aside our own financial woes this Christmas and dug deep into our pockets for charity. A poll of 35 charities carried out by the Institute of Fundraising and the Charities Aid Foundation which included the British Red Cross, Cancer Research UK, Christian Aid, and the Salvation Army has found that over half (58%) of charity Christmas appeals raised as much, or more than the previous year.
Nearly one third (29%) of charities said their Christmas appeals raised more than in 2007. Many charities are still counting donations but already five say they have received tens of thousands of pounds more than the previous year.
One third (34%) of charities surveyed said they received less funds though this compares with one in four* who reported a fall in donations in a separate survey carried out by the Charity Commission last September.
However, many charities desperately need the extra funding as 37% said they are either already facing, or expect an increase in demand for their services as a result of the economic downturn.
Lindsay Boswell, Chief Executive, Institute of Fundraising comments:
'This is great news as before Christmas many charities were worried that they would see a fall in donations. Those charities who had successful campaigns will be celebrating as this will help them to help more people.
'One third of charities said they had raised less money this Christmas as opposed to the same time last year, and we are still expecting 2009 to be very challenging for charities.
'If you didn’t make a donation at Christmas time, it is not too late to extend your generosity and give what you can as regularly as possible.'
John Low, CEO of the Charities Aid Foundation commented:
'This shows that the UK is still one of the most generous nations in the world and many people are continuing to think of others even though they may have less money themselves.
'People wanting to know how best to support their favourite charities through the recession should give regularly and ensure they tick the Gift Aid box.'
Housing and homelessness charity Shelter's director of fundraising, Alan Gosschalk, said:
'The credit crunch started in the housing market and this in turn has created a massive increase in demand for our services.
'We really depend on more than 100,000 supporters who donate via monthly direct debits and they have continued to be very generous. In addition, our Christmas appeal mailing has hit its target, which is great news.
'In the last six months a total of 463,000 people have looked to our housing experts for help and advice, and the figure continues to rise as the financial crisis deepens and unemployment and personal debt continue to spiral.'
This year SPEAR a small West London charity that coaches unemployed young people to help them get into work or back into education raised £120,000 at their Christmas event; about £5,000 more than last year.
Jo Rice CEO of SPEAR said:
'We were expecting to raise less money than last year but were overwhelmed by the response we got. People were very generous. We received smaller donations than in 2007 but from more people and because more people made straight donations rather than through our auction we can claim back the Gift Aid too which is worth 28pence for every pound donated.
'We did find though that people are feeling the effect of the economic downturn as we received considerably less money for the auction prizes than last year.'
The mean average monthly amount given by donors increased from £29 in 2006/07 to £33 in 2007/08. In a typical month 56% (28 million) of the UK public donated*.
Notes to editors:
The survey of charities was carried out online between 18th December and 6th January.
* Charity Commission survey of 500 charities released on 14th October
**UK Giving 2008 produced by the Charities Aid Foundation and NCVO
Media contacts:
Mandy Pursey
Head of PR Charities Aid Foundation
Tel: 0207 832 3012
Mobile: 07740 449 491
Diana Mackie
Institute of Fundraising
Tel: 0207 840 1027
