The UK’s changing pattern of charitable giving

The results of the 2005/06 Charities Aid Foundation survey of individual charitable giving in the UK are now available.

In previous years, older age groups have given more to charity per person than younger ones. However, this year there has been a noticeable increase in the average gift size of younger donors, perhaps reflecting a higher level of civic awareness inspired by high-profile emergency appeals. Whether this is a genuine change in the underlying trend or a short-term variation is not yet clear.

Another explanation for this change in giving could be that younger people have been targeted more than the old and hence it is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Maybe older people are becoming more cynical about the effectiveness of charities and are giving less. Alternatively, older people might have less money to spend. Who knows? Dick Stroud