Only 55% of charities confident they can meet current overheads
Melanie May | 26 June 2023 | News
Charities across the UK are continuing to struggle to meet costs and the need for their services, CAF research shows.
Four-fifths (81%) of charities say that service need has increased compared to a year ago, according to its research with 621 charity leaders. Fewer than two-fifths (38%) are confident that they can afford to meet it, compared to 54% back in January in a similar CAF survey.
With inflation still high, just 55% of charities are confident they can meet their current overheads, including energy, rent and supplies. This is up from 50% in January’s research. Nearly half (46%) have now used reserves to cover shortfalls in income. However, a third (36%) of charities say they have a plan in place to help them face the cost-of-living crisis, with two-fifths (43%) having asked funders for help.
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Staffing is also an issue for many charities. Around half (53%) say they can afford their current staffing levels, while three in five (60%) are struggling to recruit or retain suitably qualified candidates or volunteers, a significant increase from two-fifths (43%) in January’s survey. Seven in 10 (70%) charities now say that the rising cost of living is affecting their workforce, compared to 53% at the start of the year
Neil Heslop OBE, Chief Executive of the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF), said:
“Charities are still feeling stretched. They are worried about recruiting staff and struggling to meet demand for their help. Like the rest of us, they are having to adjust to inflation being higher – but they face the added challenge of people needing them more than ever, while donors’ incomes are squeezed.
“Britain can’t afford to have charities facing such uncertainty. We need a resilient, vibrant charities sector supported by a renewed culture of giving. That is why the UK needs for the Government to draw up a strategy for philanthropy and charitable giving to mobilise effort across society and business.”
About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.