Trust in

charities
bounces back
after low last
Autumn

July 2016

www.nfpsynergy.net

Trust in charities summer 2016 update

www.nfpsynergy.net

Key findings

Trust in charities rose from 48% in Autumn 2015 to 55% in Spring 2016

In the list of trusted public institutions, charities have risen from 12th
place just 6 months ago to 8th place this spring.

Charities are now ahead of supermarkets, the BBC and TV & Radio
stations, and just behind the Royal Family in levels of trust

Trust by the 55-64 year-olds has risen from just 41% last Autumn to
56% this spring. Trust in charities by the under 24s remains high but
unchanged over the last 6 months.

The latest wave of nfpSynergy research in trust in charities and other public institutions shows that charities
have recovered from the media coverage in the second half of 2015 (see chart 1 and chart 2).
The number of people from a nationally representative sample of the UK public of 1000 who said they trusted
charities a great deal or quite a lot has increased from 48% last Autumn to 55% this spring (see chart 3).

Chart 1: Trust in institutions

Very little

Not much

Not sure

Quite a lot

A great deal

Haven't heard of

The Armed Forces

-9%-16%

44%

25%

The NHS

-9%-20%

44%

24%

Schools

-8% -27%

47%

Scouts and Guides

-8% -22%

43%

14%

45%

12%

The Royal Mail

-9% -28%

Small businesses

-8% -25%

The Royal Family

-17% -20%

Charities

-12% -25%

The Police

-13% -27%

The BBC

-17% -27%

TV and radio stations

-12%

-41%

Supermarkets

-14%

-40%

11%

48%
37%
45%
40%
38%
36%
33%

8%
18%
10%
14%
12%
5%
6%

Below is a list of public bodies and institutions. Please indicate, by ticking in the appropriate column, how much trust you
have in each of the bodies
Base: 1,000 adults 16+, Britain
Source: Charity Awareness Monitor, May 2016, nfpSynergy

Trust in charities summer 2016 update

www.nfpsynergy.net

Chart 2: Less trusted public institutions

Very little

Not much

Not sure

Quite a lot

A great deal

Legal system

-20%

The Church

-29%

Civil Service

-19%

Trade Unions

-25%

Local Authorities

-23%

Banks

-31%

The Fundraising Standards Board (FRSB)

Insurance companies
Newspapers

-35%

31%

-27%
-38%
-34%
-40%
-33%

7%

27% 9%
27%

6%

24% 6%
25% 5%
25% 5%

-31% -12% -24%

20% 6%

-31%

-37%

21% 3%

-38%

18% 3%

-35%

Government

Haven't heard of

-42%

Multinational companies

-31%

Political parties

-50%

-32%

-39%
-30%

16% 4%

14% 3%
9% 3%

Below is a list of public bodies and institutions. Please indicate, by ticking in the appropriate column, how much trust you
have in each of the bodies
Base: 1,000 adults 16+, Britain
Source: Charity Awareness Monitor, May 2016, nfpSynergy

Chart 3: Charities trust has recovered now

charities are out of the news
100%

FRSB/ The Fundraising Standards Board (FRSB)

80%

70%
65%
60%

65%

64%

Charities

66%

59%

58%

56%

53%

51%

55%

53%

48%

22%

25%

42%

40%

28%
20%

22%

20%

20%

16%

19%

21%
15%

15%

19%

26%

0%
Sep-06 Jul-07

Jul-08 Nov-08 Jul-09 Jan-10 Jan-11

Jul-11 May-12 May-13 Apr-14 Apr-15 Oct-15 May-16

Below is a list of public bodies and institutions. Please indicate, by ticking in the appropriate column,
how much trust you have in each of the bodies A great deal or quite a lot
Base: 1,000 adults 16+, Britain
Source: Charity Awareness Monitor, May 2016, nfpSynergy

Trust in charities summer 2016 update

www.nfpsynergy.net

The changes over time are shown in chart 4, providing a graphic illustration of the volatility of trust in certain
public institutions.
So between 2009 and 2016, trust in the NHS started the period at 67% and finished it at 67% with a high
and low within a few percentage points. Newspapers followed the same pattern, while banks, political parties
and government all show a considerable rise.
Banks are a case in point. In 2009 they had trust totalling just 12%, more than 50 percentage points lower
than charities. But by 2016, trust in banks was rising and in charities falling, the difference in trust between
the two was as low as 15 percent last Autumn. (See chart 4)
Joe Saxton said

This increase in trust in charities is encouraging news. Trust in charities has bounced back after the onslaught
of last year. This suggests that many parts of the UK public do want to trust charities, and when the negative
messages stop their trust returns. However there is no room for complacency. Trust in charities is not built
on a bed rock of understanding, but on the shifting sands of misunderstandings and rose-tinted ignorance.
When the public see how 21st century charities operate many dont like it. We have to improve public
understanding, make it easier for the public to find out what matters to them about charities, and explain,
explain, explain why many of the features of modern charities are not mis-guided, but critical to their success.
Equally we need to amend charity behaviour to improve standards of fundraising, governance, leadership and
communications.

Chart 4: Trust in various public institutions

since 2009
Charities

Banks

Political Parties

Government

Newspapers

The Church

The BBC

The NHS

68%

67%
65%

55%
50%
44%
36%

33%

30%
21%

22%

12%

12%
7%
3%
Jul-09

Jan-10

Jan-11

Jul-11

May-12

May-13

Apr-14

Apr-15

Oct-15

Apr-16

Below is a list of public bodies and institutions. Please indicate, by ticking in the appropriate column,
how much trust you have in each of the bodies A great deal or quite a lot
Base: 1,000 adults 16+, Britain
Source: Charity Awareness Monitor, Apr 2016, nfpSynergy

Last time we reported that in terms of age, trust in charities has broadly risen and fallen among all the age
groups simultaneously. Not this time. While younger people tend to trust charities, 16-24 year olds being the

Trust in charities summer 2016 update

www.nfpsynergy.net

most trusting age group with 61%, this has not changed at all since last Autumn. It is the older age groups
where we have seen the biggest bounce-back (see chart 5).
Trust amongst the 44-54s year-olds has increased by 8 percentage points, amongst the over 65s has
increased by 11 percentage points (42% to 53%) and amongst 55-64 year olds has increased by a whopping
15 percentage points (41% to 56%). Last time we observed that the group who trust the least are the core
group for charity income- 55-64 year olds. Therefore it is very good news that this time they have bounced
back so strongly.

Chart 5: Demographics of trust in charities May 2016 vs October 2015

Total

48%

Female
Male

47%
48%

AB
C1
C2
DE
16-24
25-34
35-44
45-54
55-64
65+
Charity
Non-charity

44%

45%
46%
42%

33%37%

56%
55%

56%
55%
54%
50%
54%

43%

41%

55%

May-16

57%
61%
61%
57%
53%
54%

Oct-15

53%
56%
53%
55%

65%

Below is a list of public bodies and institutions. Please indicate, by ticking in the appropriate column,
how much trust you have in each of the bodies A great deal or quite a lot
Base: 1,000 adults 16+, Britain
Source: Charity Awareness Monitor, May 2016, nfpSynergy

About nfpSynergy
nfpSynergy (www.nfpsynergy.net) is a research consultancy dedicated to the not-for-profit sector. They aim
to provide the ideas, the insights and the information to help non-profits thrive. They provide a unique insight
into the social and charity-related views of everyone from public and parliament to media and business, not to
mention not-for-profit organisations themselves. For further comment from nfpSynergys Joe Saxton, please
contact him directly on 07976 329 212 or joe.saxton@nfpsynergy.net

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