Arts is least popular charitable cause

Donors to arts charities are generous, but few and far between, a new report by UK Giving has revealed. Whilst a typical donation to the arts is £12 – the second largest only to religious charities (£20) in the league of causes identified – just 2% of the population who donated money to charity last year did so to the arts. This makes it the least popular cause, having received just 1% of the total amount given.

UK Giving celebrates the fact that despite the recent financial downturn “giving to charity is something to which the British public remains steadfastly committed” and charities haven’t suffered much of a drop in donations.

However, despite nearly half of those surveyed agreeing that the UK economy was “on the road to recovery”, only a fifth said they planned to increase the amount they give to charity, preferring to spend surplus income on holidays, clothes and leisure activities. A “conundrum” facing the charitable sector is “how to increase the total level of donations it receives – particularly when other revenue streams such as government funding are diminishing”.

This latest report marks a move to a new methodology for UK Giving. Consequently it paints a much broader picture of the habits of UK donors, although one that can’t be compared to previous years.

Men and women were found to be equally likely to donate money to arts charities, but those from a higher socio-economic group are more likely to give. Cash is still the most popular method of giving, particularly amongst younger donors. Those over 45 are more likely than other age groups to give by direct debit or join membership schemes, and 25-44 is the age group that most often gives online.

Concerns are raised over lower levels of interest in charitable giving amongst younger generations. Only a quarter of 16-24 year olds had donated money to charity over the past month; compared to 39% of 25-44 year olds and 44% of 45-64 year olds. Older age groups are also more likely to volunteer and sponsor someone for a charity. A major barrier to giving is a lack of understanding of the impact of a donation and young people are more likely than average to agree with this sentiment (79%).

Other significant barriers include the difficulty in choosing one amongst many competing charities to give to, and concerns about being repeatedly asked to donate after an initial gift.