More men now taking part in sponsored runs – and raising more money – than women
Howard Lake | 22 April 2014 | News
More people are raising more money through sponsored runs than ever before, new research from the Charities Aid Foundation reveals. But there has been a noticeable increase in the number of men taking part.
Almost seven million (6.8 million) people raised money through running the past year – more than two million (36 per cent) that in the 2012/13. And the average amount raised by each participant has gone up by £78 to £358 – an increase of 28 per cent.
There has also been a “surge” in the number of men taking part in last year. This year, 52 per cent of runners were men, but in 2012/13, the proportion of mail runners was just 44 per cent.
CAF says this increase in male event participants could account for the overall rise in numbers. There were 2.2 million men running in 2012/13 but 3.5 million in 2013/14.
This year, men raised on average £396 compared to women raising an average of £319.
John Low, chief executive of the Charities Aid Foundation, said: “Charities are clearly getting better at making running events attractive to men, a space which has previously been dominated by ‘pink’ events like Race for Life.
“With issues of male health more in the public eye and higher endurance events such as Tough Mudder gaining popularity, it’s unsurprising that more men are stepping up to the mark and getting involved”.
The survey also found:
- 4.9m people have raised money for charity through running in the year ending April 2013, growing to 6.8 million in the year to April 2014
- The number of people claiming to have raised money through running for charity in their lifetime jumped up by five percentage points – from 14 per cent to 19 per cent
- The average age of a runner is 42
- Medical research is the most popular cause overall (48 per cent), followed by Hospitals and hospices (20 per cent) and then Children and Young people (16 per cent)
- 27 per cent of people say that would like to run for charity in the future, but 54 per cent of people have not interest at all in running for charity.
CAF’s research as infographic
CAF have summarised their research into sponsored runs in this infographic.
Infographic: Charities Aid Foundation
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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.