Charitable giving receives a boost

Charity donations remain strong in recession-hit Britain, with private bank customers and other donors using the web to give money.

The UK Cards Association said yesterday that overall donations from plastic cards hit £1.19 billion last year, 18 per cent up from 2007.

This is despite the economy falling into what looks likely to be its worst recession for decades, rising unemployment and tightening loan criteria from banks.

Sandra Quinn, director of communications at the group, said: ’Despite the economic downturn it seems there was no let up last year in people’s commitments to charities.’

The UK Cards Association also said that the convenience of online transactions had been a crucial factor behind the growth in donations.

Meanwhile, the government said this week that it would be maximising the amount of money reaching charities from text message donations, after striking a deal with the nation’s network providers.

From next week, the mobile phone firms will no longer be charging VAT on these donations.

Hannah Terrey, head of policy and public affairs for the Charities Aid Foundation, commented: ’It’s great news that the mobile phone companies have been able to agree a way forward to end this illegal practice which is unfair on donors and charities.

’The most important thing for donors is to know that as much as possible of their donation goes to help the cause they want to support.’ ADNFCR-2318-ID-19284828-ADNFCR