Welsh and Scottish charities benefit from legacy income boost

Welsh and Scottish charities are outperforming charities in England and those with a UK-wide remit in terms of growth in legacy income, according to Remember a Charity’s UK Legacy Fundraising Market 2019 report.

Although the Welsh and Scottish legacy markets constitute a small proportion of the UK’s legacy income (amounting to a collective total of 4%), the report reveals that charities saw real terms legacy income growth from 2007-2017 of 35% in Wales and 23% in Scotland, against a UK average growth rate of 10%.

The report also found a 24% rise in the number of top 5,000 fundraising charities reporting legacy income over the last decade and changing public preferences in terms of the types of organisations people are naming in their wills.

Health charities retain the largest income share from legacies (42% in 2017), but overseas aid, environmental and services charities are increasing their space in the market. At the same time, religious charities and social care are losing ground.

Rob Cope, director of Remember A Charity, said: “The donor market is clearly growing, with a long term shift in the proportion of estates that include a charitable gift. But with rapid expansion in the legacy fundraising marketplace and more charities at the table, the question is whether charities will start to feel the squeeze.

“Our research shows that legacy income is being stretched across a broader marketplace and that some markets are more likely to feel the pinch than others. With the future impact of Brexit as yet unknown and economic instability predicted for some time yet, this reinforces the need for the sector to work collaboratively to grow the donor market, providing a more stable basis for this vital income stream for the years ahead.”