Key Findings from the Latest NCVO Almanac
The 2019 edition of the NCVO’s UK Civil Society Almanac published this month has revealed:
- The reach and impact of the voluntary sector is wide ranging with 9 out of 10 UK households having accessed voluntary organisations services at some point with children and young people the most common beneficiaries.
- The sector contribution to UK economy in 2016/17 was £17.1bn – a GDP contribution equivalent to a small country like Honduras – and the value of volunteering in 2016 was estimated at £23.9bn
- The total number of voluntary organisations remains stable at c 167K but there is notable growth amongst bigger organisations with those at £100m increasing from 45 to 51 – accounting for 0.03% of organisations but accounting for 22% of the sectors total income
- The UK charity sector’s annual income has grown to more than £50bn for the first time, rising by 2% year-on-year to £50.6bn in 2016/17, due to increases in grants and investments.
- However, income from the public and government both fell slightly to £22.9bn and £15.8bn respectively.
- Spending on grants was up by 5% reaching a new record high of £7bn. The majority of this went back to other voluntary organisations with some going to individuals and other institutions like universities . International development organisations received by far the largest share (37%) of grant making form the sector.
- The sector’s net assets grew by 4% to £131.2bn in 2016/17 marking a new record high and total liabilities also reached their highest levels of £22.4bn.
- Employment in the sector at c 866K fell slightly on last year but has grown 10% since 2010. More than half the sector workforce is educated to degree level and the voluntary sector reported the lowest incidence of sills gaps compared to other sectors.
- Volunteering rates remain stable with > 1 in 5 people volunteering at least once a month for a group, club or organisation although diversity remains an issue with involvement varying for different backgrounds with formal volunteers more likely to be from older, well educated and high socio-economic backgrounds
The Almanac is compiled using a sample of around 8,000 charities’ reports and is used by the Office of National Statistics in calculating charities’ contribution to national accounts. View the report here