Coutts report on over 1 Million Pound Philanthropy: «Significant» increase in number of donors, but lower volume

Maya Prabhu, Executive Director, Philanthropy Services at Coutts.

London – The annual Coutts Million Pound Donor Report, released today and produced in association with the University of Kent, has found a record total of 232 separate ‘million pound or more’ philanthropic donations made by individuals, trusts and corporations in the UK during 20010/11. This is the largest total identified by the report in any one year since the study began in 2008, up by 58 donations compared to last year.

There has also been a big increase in the number of million pound donors, with 130 different donors identified; up from 73 the previous year (this includes individuals, charitable trusts, foundations and corporations, some of whom made more than one donation worth £1 million or more). The total value of these donations was £1.241 billion. This is lower than the total value recorded in previous years, down from £1.312 billion in last year’s report, which covered donations made in 2009/10. More than half of the million pound donations made in 2010/11 were donated by 93 individual donors, with a total value of £763 million. Living individuals therefore continue to be the most significant source of the largest donations.

Higher Education, Arts and Culture and International Development
The Coutts report also finds that despite the fall in the overall value of ‘million pound donations’, the amount that went directly to charities rather than being ‘banked’ in foundations, increased from £631m to £747m indicating a shift towards getting funds out onto the ‘front line’ to charities, many of which are struggling to raise funds from other sources. Higher Education, Arts and Culture and International Development remain the most popular destinations for the largest gifts amongst both individual and institutional donors. But support for environmental causes increased in 2010/11, and all types of charities attract some support from million pound donors. This annual report, which is now in its fifth year of publication, tracks size, scale and recipients of donations worth £1m or more from individuals, trusts and corporations in the UK and is illustrated with a number of case studies of donors and recipients, who discuss their experience.

Large scale philanthropy is on the increase
191 organisations received million pound donations in 2010/11. This is far higher than the 154 recipients identified in 2009/10. The vast majority (166) received only one gift of this size. Organisations that received multiple million pound donations tended to be the oldest universities (notably Oxford and Cambridge) or national arts and cultural institutions. As in every year that the report has been published, the most frequent size of donation is worth exactly £1m, indicating that ‘giving a million’ has both economic and psychological significance for donors, and is the size of gift that establishes a donor amongst the ‘top rank’ of UK philanthropists. Maya Prabhu, Executive Director, Philanthropy Services at Coutts said: ”It’s extremely encouraging for the development of UK philanthropy to note that this is the highest number of donors and donations since we began compiling this report in 2008. Large scale philanthropy is on the increase and the more donors there are and the more they communicate about the benefits their philanthropy brings to society and what it means to them personally, the more it will grow and strengthen a new generation of philanthropists.

Majority of the philanthropists we meet are self-made individuals
“Despite the scepticism suggesting that many large scale donors are simply looking to make the most of ‘tax breaks’ on offer, our experience, as backed up by this report, is that the reality is very different. Today, the majority of the philanthropists we meet are self-made individuals, many of whom have witnessed first hand the highs and lows of building a business, and on occasion, the possibility of losing everything. It’s a strong desire to make a contribution to the world that has afforded them so many opportunities, whilst also enriching their own lives, their families and the lives of others that we see as the main driver for their philanthropy.” Dr Beth Breeze from the Centre for Philanthropy at the University of Kent co-author of the report, commented: «At a time when ordinary donors are finding it tough to maintain their support for charities, it is heartening to see those with a greater capacity to give are stepping up to the challenge in increased numbers. A 7-figure donation is obviously a major commitment, and it is not surprising that people start by making a gift of £1 million, rather than – say – £10 million. But experience shows that, if donors feel their money is well spent, and that their contribution is appreciated and makes a tangible difference to the causes they care about, then they will continue to give at this level, and quite possibly increase their contributions. You very rarely meet an ex-philanthropist!

“Before we started this annual study of million pound donations, there was no clear understanding of the scale, role and significance of the largest philanthropic acts in the UK. That was an important gap in our knowledge that needed filling, because we need a proper understanding of current levels of support in order to make robust plans for developing this much-needed source of income in the future. The data and analysis provided by the Centre for Philanthropy at the University of Kent is helping charities, fundraisers and policymakers to build a decent knowledge base about major giving and gain a better understanding of the main trends in contemporary UK philanthropy, which should help the UK to develop a stronger culture of philanthropy.”

Key findings of the report include:
In the five years that the data has been tracked, the number and value of donations has gone up and down.

Year No. of donations worth £1m+ Total value of donations worth £1m+

– Year: 2006/07 No. of donations worth £1m+: 193 Total value of donations worth £1m+: £1.618 billion
– Year: 2007/08 No. of donations worth £1m+: 189 Total value of donations worth £1m+: £1.405 billion
– Year: 2008/09 No. of donations worth £1m+: 201 Total value of donations worth £1m+: £1.618 billion
– Year: 2009/10 No. of donations worth £1m+: 174 Total value of donations worth £1m+: £1.312 billion
– Year: 2010/11 No. of donations worth £1m+: 232 Total value of donations worth £1m+: £1.241 billion

The full report is available online at Coutts.com/philanthropy and www.kent.ac.uk/sspssr/cphsj/research/couttsmilliondonor.html

About Coutts
Coutts is the wealth division of Royal Bank of Scotland Group. Coutts serves clients from over 40 offices across the world offering tailored wealth management, banking, trust and tax services. Coutts is headquartered at 440 Strand, London with offices in other key international financial centres in Zurich, Geneva, Hong Kong, Singapore and Dubai.