UK giving trends change as public favours 'data-free' donating

UK charitable giving remains high but the ways in which donors are choosing to give is adapting, according to new research by Pennies, the digital charity box.

A poll of over 2,000 Brits reveals that as much as 85% of the public are put off giving, by 'follow up' contact from non-profits.

However, generosity towards charities has not decreased, with potential donors taking a heightened interest in how their money is spent (54.1%), and showing a preference for giving in smaller, more frequent ways, when they want to (71%).

Pennies CEO, Alison Hutchinson said: 'Independent research commissioned by Pennies tells us that the public's generosity for charity giving isn't changing, but the way in which they prefer to give is.

'A key challenge for the UK charity sector is the growing reticence in consumers for providing their contact data. This is to be expected given some high profile media coverage over the last year.

'Charities are increasingly looking for new and different ways to tap into the public's enthusiasm for giving. One of the long standing ways to do this was charity collection boxes – but these are fast disappearing from our stores.'

And this is where Pennies can help, suggests Hutchinson. Pennies provides a digital version of the traditional charity box, offering consumers the chance to anonymously donate anything from 1p to 99p when they pay by card at retailers they love, and across multi channels.

Hutchinson: 'It's exciting to see consumers getting behind Pennies, with 26 million micro-donations being made in the last five years, raising over £6 million for communities and causes across the UK. Importantly these givers can rest assured Pennies collects no data, and follows the donation and not the donor.'

Retailers such as Domino's Pizza, Topps Tiles, Screwfix, Shop'N Drive, The Entertainer and many more, use Pennies to raise money for charities that are meaningful to their customers – giving their small change a big purpose.

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For more information and enquiries please contact: Rob Dyson, rob.dyson@pennies.org.uk

07813 091 970.

Notes to Editors

The research

2042 UK adults were surveyed by independent consultancy Markettiers 4DC in November 2015.

About Pennies

Pennies (registered charity no. 1122489) is the digital upgrade of the traditional charity box, enabling customers to donate a few pence to charity at the point of sale when paying by card; whether in-store, online or in-app.

In 2016, Pennies announced a key milestone of £6m raised for over 115 UK charities.

Over 26 million customer micro-donations have been made across 50 retailers with Pennies to date.

Pennies estimates that if the UK's card holders donated 30p once a month over £150m would be raised for charity every year.

Pennies is enabled in a number of well-known brands including Domino's Pizza, Zizzi restaurants, Topps Tiles, The Entertainer, The Fragrance Shop and Screwfix; as well as a growing number of smaller merchants.

For more information on Pennies please visit: www.pennies.org.uk, @pennies_orguk, https://www.facebook.com/Penniesorguk.

How Pennies works

Pennies is the digital equivalent of the traditional charity collection box. We enable consumers to round-up their bill on items they are already buying, at retailers they love - to give just a few pennies to charity.

These micro-donations are anonymous, quick, and always the customers' choice.

The retailer chooses the charity that its customers can support. No data is collected, and there is no follow up; it really is about dropping a few pence in a charity box – but via your debit or credit card.

Simply press 'YES' on the payment machine in store, or click the 'Donate' button online, to make your pennies count – and give your small change a big purpose.