Businesses are giving less to charity: Is a corporate philanthropy rethink required?

Corporate giving in the UK appears to be moving in the opposite direction to corporate profits.

According to Charities Aid Foundation’s (CAF) 2026 Corporate Giving Report, just 27% of UK businesses now offer charities any form of support.

At the same time, the report adds that the total recorded FTSE 100 donations fell to £1.69 billion (0.8% of pre-tax profits) in 2025 – the lowest reported level since the survey began.

These figures are particularly stark when compared against the period following the global financial crisis. During this time, FTSE companies donated £1.84 billion, which equates to 1.7% of pre-tax profits.

It would be easy to attribute this decline to weaker profits, but the data tells a different story: the fall in corporate giving comes as the combined profits of FTSE 100 companies have surged to record levels.

This leaves the obvious question – if the biggest UK businesses have more than ever to dedicate to charitable endeavours, why are they giving less and, crucially, are they overlooking the wider value that philanthropy can bring?

Why are UK businesses not supporting charities?

Fortunately, CAF’s Corporate Giving Report also sheds some light on some of the various reasons businesses have decided to either reduce or stop their support for charities, too. These reasons include:

Lack of budget

The report found that 18% of the businesses surveyed blamed a lack of budget for not being able to give to charity.

Lack of consideration

The majority (57%) of CAF report survey respondents said they had not considered charitable giving at all or simply didn’t see the benefit of doing so.

Impact of inflation

UK businesses would have needed to have increase donations by 76% since 2009 to keep pace with the rate of inflation, making charitable giving more costly.

Where’s the value in corporate philanthropy?

With more than half of survey respondents saying they either hadn’t considered charitable giving at all or didn’t see the benefit, it begs the question: is there a strong business case for corporate philanthropy?

Various studies have pointed to corporate philanthropy being beneficial for:

Consumer perception

The CAF report highlighted that a substantial 75% of people feel more favourable towards companies they can see doing good in their local area, helping to build a more positive brand perception.

Customer loyalty

A YouGov survey also found that more than two in five (45%) consumers across markets were more likely to buy from brands that donated a cut of their proceeds to charity.

Public reputation

Strategic charitable giving is often associated with helping businesses to build more positive public relations and strengthen their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) credentials.

Employee satisfaction

CAF’s report revealed that 68% of private sector employees would like their employer to give to charity, highlighting how shared philanthropic values can support employee recruitment and retention.

Changing the perception of corporate philanthropy

Evidently, there is some value in corporate philanthropy, but it’s seemingly being overlooked by many big business leaders and entrepreneurs in the UK.

One potential response is to rethink what corporate philanthropy actually means. For some, the boundaries between philanthropy and business are becoming increasingly – and welcomingly – blurred.

At least, that’s the view of the British investor, philanthropist, and co-founder of The Marandi Foundation, Javad Marandi.

Rather than seeing charitable giving as an obligation for successful business, Marandi believes business success and philanthropy are deeply intertwined.

This is encompassed in the overarching concept of focusing on delivering value, not just profit.

By looking beyond profit alone and focusing on the wider value a business can create – for its customers, employees, communities and other stakeholders – businesses can pursue commercial success while also creating wider social value.

In this way, UK businesses can start to change the way they perceive corporate philanthropy.

Rather than viewing it as an obligation to occasionally give money away, it can be part of a broader approach to doing business that delivers both commercial and social value.

It’s this distinct shift in perspective that could be the first step to giving corporate philanthropy in the UK a much-needed boost.

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