Nine per cent of people account for two-thirds of all charitable activity in the UK, and almost all of this group are more likely to say “hello” to people in the street and vote, according to new research from the Charities Aid Foundation.
However one in four Brits do nothing to help charity at all.
The research, Britain’s Civic Core: Who are the People Powering Britain’s Charities?, is based on a survey of 2,027 adults.
It finds that just nine per cent of those surveyed account for 66 per cent of all the time and money donated to charities. Just over two-thirds account for the remaining 34 per cent of charitable activity and 24 per cent do little or no charitable activity.
The nine per cent, dubbed the 'civic core' in the research, were found to have a greater sense of community spirit and civic duty than the other two groups identified in the research – the middle ground (the 67 per cent who account for 34 per cent of charitable activity) and the ' zero givers'.
Members of the civic core are more likely to be female – 60 per cent compared with 40 per cent males - and living in their own home (71 per cent). One third is over 65 years old, suggesting that members of the civic core are more likely to be ‘time-rich’ than other groups.
Those in the civic core group were more likely to be interested in a greater variety of causes than the other two groups. 62 per cent of the civic core are interested in charities focusing on overseas aid and disaster relief, compared to 42 per cent of the middle ground and just 21 per cent of zero givers. And members of the civic core are almost twice as likely to be interested in charities working to support disabled people (81 per cent) than zero givers (44 per cent).
Along with being the group most likely to support charities, the civic core also are more likely to have friends and family involved in civil society. Some 51 per cent of the civic core say that most of their friends are involved in social causes, while only 7 per cent of zero givers say the same thing.
Conversely, among the zero givers, three out of five that people should look after themselves and not rely on charity, compared with 48 per cent from the other two groups. CAF found that zero givers tend to be the youngest of the three groups, with people who make up the group having an average age of 44.4 compared to 47.8 for the middle ground and 50.2 for the civic core.
John Low, chief executive of the Charities Aid Foundation, said the report "raises serious questions about the nature of society in 21st century Britain".
"Britain is one of the most charitable countries in the world, yet this research shows a stark divide in society between those who do the most for good causes and those who do little if anything at all.
"It is a worrying fact that nearly one in four people do very little if anything to support charities which are at the forefront of civil society. Charities, government and businesses can all encourage people to discover how rewarding it is to support the causes we all care about.
"At a time of ever-increasing demand for the support charities provide, all of us who stand behind these amazing organisations must rally round to ensure Britain remains an ever more generous society of which we can be truly proud.”
