Christmas forecast for charity giving

Howard Lake | 12 December 2006 | Newswire

Despite a recent rise in the Bank of England base rate, an above average 62 per cent of us are planning to give to charity this Christmas according to new research launched this week by international development charity World Emergency Relief (WER).
The findings of the research revealed a level of generosity not expected by many charities this year, with 90 per cent of givers planning to donate more or the same as they did last year.
A healthy social conscience was also revealed by the research, with 35 per cent of would-be donors planning to support charities because Christmas is too materialistic and they want to help those less fortunate. Another 26 per cent will be making donations simply because Christmas is a time for giving.
These findings are a great Christmas present for us,” says Alex Haxton, director of operations at World Emergency Relief. With recent interest rate hikes we didn’t have high hopes for Christmas donations. The number of people planning on giving is above average and is a good indication that people are still willing to dig deep despite economic pressures, which is really good news for charities across the board.”
The research was commissioned by WER and undertaken by ICM Omnibus, which surveyed a random sample of 1007 adults during November 2006.
Of those planning to give to charity this Christmas, one in five will be giving more than they did this time last year. Of these 38 per cent are upping their donations simply because they feel they should be doing more to help those less fortunate, while nearly a third (29 per cent) will be giving more because they have more disposable income.
Other key research findings include:
· Health charities are the most popular choice for those planning to donate (75 per cent)
· International development charities can expect to benefit from 52 per cent of givers, while domestic charities are set to attract 56 per cent of donations.
· Only 16 per cent are planning to give at Christmas time because it is a Christian festival, reflecting our increasingly secular society
· Women are more likely to give than men, with 65 per cent of those surveyed planning to support a charity this Christmas compared to 59 per cent of men.
· The most generous region is Wales and the South West with 68 per cent planning to give compared to just 54 per cent in Northern England.
· The most popular method of giving is likely to be buying charity Christmas Cards, favoured by 70 per cent of those planning to give
· More than half (51 per cent) of givers are planning to donate through a street or doorstep collection, while 18-24 year olds are most likely to donate via a work place collection (50 per cent)
· 42 per cent of Scots are planning to donate because they feel Christmas has become too materialistic compared with the national average of 35 per cent and only 29 per cent in the South East.
· Just 43 per cent of 18-24 year olds surveyed planned on supporting a charity this Christmas, although two in five of this group plan to give more than last Christmas compared to a national average of just one in five.
· 80 per cent of 18-24 year old donors plan to support an international development charity compared with a national average of 52 per cent.
· 46 per cent of Scottish donors give monthly through the year compared to a national average of 38 per cent, while 45 per cent of donors in the South East prefer to give spontaneously compared to a national average of 41 per cent
For various reasons this hasn’t been an easy year for charities, particularly smaller organisations,” continues Alex Haxton. This research confirms that there’s a healthy amount of good will out there, and I would urge the 38 per cent who said they weren’t planning to give this Christmas to please reconsider. I’d also like to encourage people possibly to look beyond the big charity brands and support a smaller organisation, as it’s these that struggle the most when there are economic pressures such as interest rate rises.”
For more information about World Emergency Relief visit www.wer-uk.org, email in**@we*.org or ring 0870 429 2129.
-Ends-
For more press information contact Veronica Newport on 01363 866927 ve******@n-**.uk or Carole Pendle on 07768 462601 ca****@pe******.com
Notes to the editor
1. 57.2 per cent of UK adults give to charity in an average month (CAF – UK Giving 2004/05).
2. Donor case studies available on request.
3. International development organisation World Emergency Relief (WER) is a UK registered charity, set up in 1995 and based in London. WER supports and funds 63 projects in 25 countries around the globe. A non-denominational Christian charity, its mission is to give young people in developing countries a living chance by addressing the root causes of poverty through its projects and programme work. In 2005/06 the charity was able to source and distribute donated goods for humanitarian relief and development purposes to the value of over £28 million
4. The survey was carried out by ICM Research on behalf of WER. ICM interviewed a random sample of 1007 adults aged 18 plus by telephone across the UK during November 2006. ICM is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules. Further information at www.icmresearch.co.uk.

About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale. He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.