New research from Investec Bank reveals that in the North West, the value of people’s donations to charities in 2011 was £166.88 per person, compared to £186.15 per person for the UK as a whole. In total, 73% of people in the North West donated money to charities.
Other findings include:
- 24% of people claim to have donated less to charities in 2011 than they did in 2010
- Only 11% clam to have donated more, with 53% estimating the size of their donations stayed the same
- Overall, 6% of people who gave to charities in 2010 donated nothing in 2011
- A similar number of people reduced the amount they donated by between 51% and 99%
- Only 330,000 people increased their donations by 100% or more
- On a regional basis, London had the highest percentage of people who gave to charities in 2011, compared to the North West which had the lowest (73%)
- London had the highest average donation per person to charities at £420.20 in 2011, compared to £82.03 per person in the East Midlands, which was the lowest
In addition to falling donations, Investec warns that charities also have to contend with the fact that many cash deposit accounts targeted at them are paying derisory returns. Its research reveals that 48 of the 174 accounts are paying a rate of 0.1% Gross AER or less on balances of £50,000 and that only 9% are paying 2% Gross AER or more.