Charity income soars to $121b as Aussies give more donations

Donations and bequests to Australian charities have grown to a $121 billion income on the back of community generosity.

According to research released by the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission (ACNC), donations grew by almost 15 per cent between 2014 and 2016.

ACNC Commissioner, the Hon Dr Gary Johns, welcomed the research and its insight into the sector, adding: “The key takeaway from this report is the incredible generosity of the Australian community.”

The report, ‘Growth and change in Australia’s charities: 2014 to 2016’, was produced by the ACNC in partnership with Centre for Social Impact and the Social Policy Research Centre at the UNSW and  assessed more than 45,000 Charities, analysing trends in income, workforce, location and activities

“Between 2014 and 2016, which covers three reporting periods for registered charities, the value of donations and bequests increased by $1 billion,” Dr Johns said.

“Overall, charity income increased from $110 billion in 2014 to $121 billion in 2016, providing an additional $11 billion for charitable activities here in Australia and abroad.

“The amount of money charities spent to deliver their services also grew – up 12 per cent over the three years.”

The research found that with the increased income, Charities are hiring more staff and the sector is one of the largest employers in Australia, second only to the retail industry.

“While paid employees are entirely necessary for charitable work, it is also pleasing that 2.9 million people volunteer their time for charities across the country,” said Dr Johns.

The report also found that across the three years, the ACNC revoked the Charity status of 2,600 more organisations than it registered. Although 9,044 Charities were registered, 11,700 Charities had their status revoked.

In 2016, approximately 30 per cent of Charities missions was advancing religion which is consistent with 2014 data, followed by education and research.

“What these figures show is that the Charity sector is fairly stable in terms of the services that are being delivered in the community,” Dr Johns said.