UK’s top 500 charities show only slight decrease in voluntary income
Many in the sector have been worried about the impact of the financial crisis on charity income, but only recently has the data become available to provide any evidence of this. The Charity Market Monitor 2010 shows the impact of the economic downturn provoking a slight reduction in charity income in 2008-2009, the height of the financial crisis. Voluntary income of 500 of the UK’s largest charities dropped by 1.1% during this period. Many income streams suffered, including legacy income which fell by 3.9%, though this is likely due in large part to decreases in property and equity values.
Of note is the dip in support from Trust and Foundations, which fell by 7%. This is remarkable as their investment income was hit by 13.6%, almost double this amount. It seems that despite their losses, charitable trusts are attempting to minimise the effects their fluctuating income levels have on the charities they support, and endeavouring to sustain higher levels of grant-making.
The decreases shown in the study are small and not in excess of other year-on-year fluctuations in giving. This suggests that, at least for larger organisations, the financial crisis did not affect charitable giving as much as many feared it might. As we know from other studies however, such as NCVO’s Voluntary Sector Cuts project, thousands of smaller charities in particular have faced enormous cuts in funding which has left many struggling for survival.
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