Face-to-face fundraisers signed up 15 per cent fewer donors in the last financial year, according to figures released by the Public Fundraising Regulatory Association today.

While final figures are still being worked out, the PFRA reports today that 625,000 donors were recruited via face-to-face fundraising in the 2009/2010 financial year, compared with 741,000 in the previous year.

The fundraising regulator estimates that when the last few weeks’ recruitment numbers are tallied, the final sum will still hover significantly below the heights of the last financial year, at around 650,000. Around 447,000 donors were recruited via door fundraisers while 178,000 were signed up on the street. Final figures are due to be announced at this afternoon’s annual general meeting of the organisation.

Mick Aldridge, chief executive of the PFRA, said that the dip was foreseeable, given that 2008/2009 was an “exceptionally high” year in terms of recruitment and in light of the collapse of Dialogue Direct in October last year.

“Although other agencies have moved in, Dialogue’s sudden absence was bound to have an impact,” he said.

But while the numbers are down, Aldridge said that the volume of donors recruited by face-to-face fundraisers indicated that the demand for the technique was still strong, even among those charities which have been using the medium for ten years.

Michael Naidu, acting chair of the PFRA, said that the organisation is preparing for challenges around door-to-door fundraising, as doorstep callers are “the biggest concern for local authorities”.