New YouGov Research Reveals the Reasons Why People Help Charities

Fresh research from YouGov has highlighted some fascinating information into the reasons why people give to charity and what types of charities they are most likely to contribute to. It also provides insight into study why people choose not to donate, and what the younger members of the community are likely to do in terms of helping out charities.

Donating to charities is something that the British public has always held a torch to, with nearly nine out of 10 British adults having some kind of connection with a charity in some form, such as volunteering, giving sponsorship money to someone or giving wares or money.

So, what have these new studies found out? Here are some of the standout results.

Volunteering is more popular for young people than giving money

For those who are between 16 and 24 years of age, they are far more likely to opt for a volunteering role, whether that be locally or overseas. Charity work volunteering in a foreign country has seen an increase in recent times due to the travel-esque nature that it encompasses too.   

Giving money or clothing is reported to be something that the average adult is much more likely to do. This fits the trend that the younger members possess less wealth than adults, while also having fewer responsibilities or ties that would prevent them from volunteering.  

Still, a notable 46% of 16 to 24-year olds donated money in the past year, against the 57% of all UK adults. Furthermore, 9% have been to a demonstration or protest, versus 6% of UK adults, which is regarded as requiring more obligation and understanding of the issues involved. 

Animals are a focal point for charity supporters

The main support goes to health and medicine-based charities, with figures showing that 32% have given to one of these organisations from those who have donated in the past three months.  

However, the study discovered that just 5% less of people (27%) have donated to an animal-related charity. In fact, animal-based organisations benefitted more than those who are dedicated to children and young people (25%). While the results here are closely matched, only 13% of people were stated to donate to disability-based charities and poverty/international development (12%). 

Almost 30% of people have never donated money

The good news is that the majority of people choose to connect with charities and/or support them somehow, there is still 29% of the UK population that have never given money a charitable organisation.  

The most-noted reason for this was stated to be the idea that charities spend too much money on administration instead of the causes they support (32%). This opinion is narrowly followed by those who are unable to afford giving money (29%) and then people who said that they give by other means (28%). 

Pleasingly, just a very small section of those in the study cited that they don’t give because they don’t believe in doing so, or because they think charities should have state-supported funding (both 7%). 20% of those who have yet to donate did say they are probably going to do so in the future; interestingly, they said their decision would be swayed on the marketing of a charity.