Charities in the UK can now ask their supporters to give directly via Facebook, after the social media giant rolled out a "Donate Now" button previously available only in the US.

The button can be installed on both adverts and pages, it was announced by Facebook yesterday.

The move follows a trial using a select number of charities in the US, including the American charity the ALS Association which made use of the button during the social media trend the #icebucketchallenge last year.

In a statement, Facebook said: “Every day, people use Facebook to raise awareness and support for causes they care about and to motivate others to do the same. We're inspired by how much good comes from these connections, so we've added 'Donate Now' calls-to-action on pages and link ads to make those connections easier than ever."

The function is the latest of several “call-to-action” buttons which can appear on organisation's pages alongside the “Like” button, and which can be used to direct people to various pre-determined functions. These include “Contact Us” and “Book Now”.

The button goes out to an external page, which the charity can set themselves.

Facebook says the function will be available for all non-profit organisations, and has begun rolling out the button.

Once a donor clicks the button they are directed to a disclaimer, advising users that the donations aren’t affiliated with Facebook.

More information on adding the function can be found here.

• The latest trends in digital fundraising will be discussed at the Charity Technology Conference in November. For the full programme and how to book click here.