Eight in ten people in Connacht intend to donate to a charity this Christmas

The Charity Regulator's second annual survey on donating at Christmas has revealed that most Irish adults plan to donate to a charity this festive season. 

According to the survey, which was conducted by Amárach, 82% of Irish adults will definitely or probably make a charitable donation of money, time or goods this December. However, this is down slightly in 2022, with 18% saying they will not be donating, compared to 14% last year.

In Connacht / Ulster, over four in ten people (45%) will donate less this Christmas due to cost of living concerns; however, support for charities across the region is still strongly evident. 

Donors/potential donors are most likely to give money (79%), followed by purchasing charity Christmas cards/merchandise (44%), a gift bought specifically to donate to a charitable cause (26%) or donating food/beverages (22%).  

The number of people in the region intending to donate unwanted gifts has fallen sharply from 25% in 2022 to 15%, possibly indicating that people expect to receive fewer gifts this year or to keep those they get.

The survey also found that many donors in Connacht/Ulster are loyal and local, with three in ten (30%) donating to the same charity each year and almost similar numbers (29%) giving to a local charity at Christmas. Additionally, nearly a quarter (23%) of respondents said they give to more charities at Christmas. 

"The incredible generosity of the Irish public at Christmas is essential to Ireland's charity sector, and especially to smaller charities (those with an annual income of less than €100,000), which make up nearly half of the charities (excluding schools) on the Register of Charities. Our latest report shows that these smaller charities rely more on donations than larger organisations," said Helen Martin, Chief Executive of the Charities Regulator.

"The public's generosity is reinforced by their trust, and research continues to highlight the strong link between greater transparency and accountability by charities and public trust in them and the wider charity sector. 

"People want to know how their donations are used and see evidence of what has been achieved using their donations. They can check if a charity is registered and find basic information on its finances and activities at checkacharity.ie."

Charities supporting homeless people will be the most supported again this year, with almost half (48%) of all adults in the region donating to a homeless charity, followed by health and disability charities and those dealing with children or youth, or animal rescue or welfare. How people in Connaught / Ulster give is changing, with 24% of adults surveyed intending to donate only online and 15% planning to contribute only to on-street collections that offer a card tap option.

For the second year in a row, the survey found that, nationally, women are more likely to donate than men (57% versus 43%). Donors are also more likely to be older. Thirty-nine per cent of people aged over 55 are committed to donating, compared to 21% of people aged 35 to 44 years and 17% aged 45 to 54 years.

The 2023 survey was conducted online with a nationally representative sample of 1,000 adults in Ireland from November 15 – 17. Full details of the research are available on the Charities Regulator's website.