Beth Breeze

The logic of charity: Great expectations in hard times

Charity is a consistent and important feature of life in the UK, yet there is no clear understanding of what charity is, how it operates, who it benefits, and what it can and cannot be expected to do. The logic guiding charitable activity is not well understood by politicians, who nonetheless seek to encourage charity, and harness it in support of their political programmes. This book presents extensive new data from over a dozen studies, including public attitudes to giving, large datasets on the geography and funding patterns of third sector organisations, and interviews with a wide range of donors, charity leaders, fundraisers and philanthropy advisers. These studies enable us to explore the logic of charity in terms of the distribution of resources across causes and communities in the UK, and the processes behind philanthropic decision-making. Our data reveals a picture of charitable activity at odds with widespread assumptions.

Giving in Evidence: Fundraising from Philanthropy in European Universities

This report is a continuation of the themes and ideas explored in two previous European Commission reports, ‘Giving More for Research’ (2006) and ‘Engaging Philanthropy for University Research’ (2008). It is the first report to provide data gathered from universities across the European Union regarding the efforts made, and successes achieved, in fundraising from philanthropy for research. An additional output of the research is a new database of contacts responsible for fundraising in almost 500 European universities. We find that philanthropic fundraising is not, on the whole, taken seriously in European universities. Only a very small number of institutions are raising significant sums of money from this source, and even fewer are accessing philanthropic funding to pay for research and research-related activities. Whilst this may be disappointing for those hoping that private donors can represent an important source of funding for university-based research, it may also be interpreted in a more positive light as indicative of potentially significant untapped potential. There are many different types of university, which affects their likelihood of realising philanthropic income as a result of investment in fundraising activities. Our data demonstrates that success in fundraising is related to institutional privilege (what kind of a university it is, in terms of wealth, reputation and pre-existing relationships with different types of donors), as well as to the efforts made by universities (what the university does, in terms of fundraising activities), and environmental factors (where the university is located, in terms of the geo-political context). For this reason, we suggest that the concept of ‘accumulative advantage’ should be understood as an important factor, alongside ‘efforts’ and ‘context’ which have so far featured more prominently as key levers in the policymaking literature.

Growing philanthropy through collaboration: The landscape of giving circles in the United Kingdom and Ireland

Recent efforts to grow philanthropy in the United Kingdom (UK) and Ireland have focused on increasing the number of donors and size of donations, rather than on developing new methods of giving, despite this latter approach sharing the same objective. This article explores the rise of one such new vehicle - giving circles - defined as groups of individuals who donate money and/or time and have a say in the distribution of these resources. Scholarship on giving circles has largely focused on the United States (US), yet they are found increasingly in other parts of the world. This article focuses on how giving circles in the UK and Ireland are structured and administered; how and why they are formed; their key activities; typical characteristics of members; and why people join. It concludes by noting distinctive characteristics of giving circles in the UK and Ireland and setting out a future programme to further understanding in this area.

The New Fundraisers

Charitable fundraising has become ever more urgent in a time of extensive public spending cuts. However, while the identity and motivation of those who donate comes under increasingly close scrutiny, little is known about the motivation and characteristics of the ‘askers’, despite almost every donation being solicited or prompted in some way. This is the first empirically-grounded and theorised account of the identity, characteristics and motivation of fundraisers in the UK. Based on original data collected during a 3-year study of over 1,200 fundraisers, the book argues that it is not possible to understand charitable giving without accounting for the role of fundraising.

Growing Philanthropy through Giving Circles: collective giving and the logic of charity

Whilst philanthropy has long helped fund private initiatives for public good, governments are becoming more interested in expanding this income source as pressures on public spending increase. One outcome of multiple efforts to enhance philanthropy is the growth of giving circles, which involve individual donors collaborating to support causes of mutual interest. This research examines the degree to which giving circles are a good mechanism for enhancing philanthropy. Our overarching interest is to understand if giving circles in the UK and Ireland might serve to grow philanthropy as well as shift the logic of charity to meet the expectations of policy-makers.

The Supply of Philanthropy in Relation to Beneficiary Demand

This chapter presents a body of qualitative data to explore the complex processes of philanthropic decisionmaking. Donor autonomy, and the historically typical dominance of ‘taste-based’ giving, generates a heterogeneous charity population that is not, on the whole, concerned with matching resources with needs: charity therefore falls short of political expectations. The institutional logic of philanthropy is characterized as supply-led and influenced by three factors: identification with the cause; confidence in the charitable organization being funded; and desire for personal enrichment alongside doing good. This contrasts sharply with the rule-governed allocation of resources by state agencies according to democratically-agreed preferences. Therefore the distribution of philanthropic resources will not easily change in response to new political priorities, and will not necessarily match the pattern of social need.

How Intermediaries Affect the Distribution of Charitable Benefit

This chapter explores the role of charitable intermediaries, such as fundraisers and philanthropy advisers, in determining which causes attract — or fail to attract — philanthropic support. It begins by describing the emergence of intermediaries as a key feature of the changing philanthropy landscape over recent decades. A body of qualitative data then demonstrates that the distribution of charitable resources is skewed in favour of organizations that succeed in building meaningful relationships with donors, that give donors control over how their contributions are used and that create dual benefits by ensuring both public goods and private benefits are achieved as a result of donations. The fundamental differences between donating and paying tax are exacerbated by the intervention of charitable intermediaries, whose numbers are growing and professionalizing.

Conclusion: Where the Logic of Charity Might Lead Us

This book has illustrated how the logic of charity plays out, in terms of the distribution of resources across causes and communities, and the processes behind philanthropic decision-making. Whilst ‘nudge’ policies and place-based initiatives might eventually irrigate some so-called charity deserts, shifting the philanthropic dials will not be straightforward, either in terms of raising overall levels of giving, or creating significant shifts in the distribution of donations between causes or geographical areas. We note grounds for optimism regarding the continued vitality of charity despite adverse economic circumstances, but conclude that charities still have to work to command the confidence of the public, and to contend with the lack of political understanding of, and appreciation for, the diverse roles they play in building a pluralistic civil society.

Spatial Logics: The Geographical Distribution of Charities and Charitable Resources

It has long been recognized that charitable activity and charitable organizations are distributed very unevenly. Recently some relatively simplistic formulations have postulated the existence of ‘charity deserts’, areas with few registered charitable organizations in which there is a dearth of social action. We question these analyses and attempt to refine them in various ways, which point to the broad conclusion that, appropriately specified, there are significant variations between places in the distribution of charitable resources, which appear closely related to economic conditions. The logic of charity however implies that such gaps will not close easily if at all. Ample historical evidence points to significant and persistent variations. The chapter also reviews recent policy proposals regarding what might be done about so-called charity deserts.

Introduction: Is There a ‘Logic of Charity’?

Despite charity being a consistent feature of life in the UK, we lack a clear understanding of what charity is, how it operates, who it benefits and what it can and cannot be expected to do. We begin by summarizing the different organizing principles found in government and charity, and note that the logic guiding charitable activity is not well understood by politicians who seek to encourage charity and harness it in support of their political programmes. The historic role and contemporary nature of charity are reviewed, then a discussion of data on public attitudes regarding the role that charity does and should play in relation to government funding highlights how those attitudes have endured and changed over the past 25 years.