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Charity Facts
Why do so many charities exist?
If you're told that there are around 170,000 charities in England and Wales - 4,000 charities just in Devon, or 600 cancer charities - you struggle to imagine what each can possibly be doing that is different from the rest
Most registered charities are not the big household name organisations like Oxfam, with ambitious worldwide aims and remits – over 85% of charities have a budget of £100,000 or less and 56% have a budget of £10,000 or less - such as recreation ground and playing field charities, PTAs and village halls. All these charities are doing the same things as the others of the same type, but are serving different communities.
There are advantages to be had from a healthy range of charities.
The past few years have seen a number of moves towards joint working, information-sharing, and in some cases merger, such as that between the Cancer Research Campaign and Imperial Cancer Research Fund, in late 2001, to create Cancer Research UK - the largest independent cancer charity in the world.
There are advantages to be had from a healthy range of charities.
- The service-user or beneficiary can benefit from the breadth of choice on offer.
- Charities can develop the capacity to specialise and to provide a personal service.
- The precise interests of people who want to donate to, volunteer for, join, or support charities are more likely to be satisfied when there is diversity.
- Competition is a benefit in terms of encouraging efficiency and attentiveness to users' needs.
The past few years have seen a number of moves towards joint working, information-sharing, and in some cases merger, such as that between the Cancer Research Campaign and Imperial Cancer Research Fund, in late 2001, to create Cancer Research UK - the largest independent cancer charity in the world.
