Public trust in charities is at its highest level in 10 years, new research from the Charity Commission has found.

The regulator found charities scored an average of 6.5 out of 10 for trust among the UK public – the highest level since 2014, when the score was 6.7.

The figure is up from 6.3 last year and from a low of 5.5 in 2018 following a series of scandals within the sector, the regulator said.

But researchers also found that the proportion of respondents who had donated money or goods, or raised funds for charity, has been declining over recent years, down from 62 per cent in 2020 to 47 per cent this year. The figure has fallen five percentage points over the past 12 months. 

The research, which was carried out by BMG Research, included quantitative data from more than 4,500 members of the public consulted between 12 January and 2 February and data from small focus groups held between 17 April and 2 May.

It found that 58 per cent of people asked have high trust in charities, placing it among the most trusted groups in society – second to doctors. Just one in 10 people said they had very low trust in charities.

Focus groups found that causes of low trust in charities included negative media coverage, contact and disagreement with a charity’s actions and lack of financial information on charities, while some respondents mentioned door-knocking as a driver of low trust.

The focus groups also found that national charities tended to be less trusted.

The regulator found that the public believed charities spending most of their fundraised money on the causes they support was important to public trust, with 87 per cent believing this was either very or fairly important. Researchers found that 57 per cent of respondents thought this was already happening in charities.

Making a difference to the communities they serve and doing a good job in achieving their charitable purpose were also ranked as important factors by 87 per cent of people.

About half of the people asked said they had heard of the Charity Commission, with 19 per cent saying they knew it well. 

Those who had heard of the regulator were more likely to report high trust in charities, with 63 per cent of these people reporting high trust levels compared with 52 per cent who did not know about the regulator.

It found an increase in people saying they had received support from charities such as financial help, food or medical support. Of those asked, 9 per cent said they had received charitable services, up from 3 per cent in 2020.

David Holdsworth, chief executive of the Charity Commission, said: “These findings are encouraging, demonstrating that charities collectively are once again firmly trusted by the public, making a visible, essential difference locally, nationally and globally.”

But he said there was “no room for complacency”. 

Holdsworth said: “The new findings point to the challenging financial environment charities are operating in, with a decline in the number of people giving to charity, while the high cost of living appears to be driving more people to access charity services.

“In these financially challenging times, charities must continue to show people how they deliver on their purpose, including how every penny makes a positive difference.”