One in six people in the UK want more opportunities to engage with their local community, with even higher demand in some urban areas, according to new research by the
Charities Aid Foundation (CAF).
CAF’s Local Giving Report, which looks at levels of charitable giving, community engagement and local pride in every UK constituency, found that just 37% of people engaged in their community last year, while only half (52%) felt a sense of local pride.
The report highlights the virtuous circle that when people engage in their local communities, they are more likely to donate to charity and feel a sense of local pride. Engagement includes activities such as helping in their local area, taking part in a local campaign, supporting someone who is vulnerable or maintaining public spaces.
The areas with the greatest appetite for getting involved include urban, lower income areas such as Birmingham Ladywood, Manchester Rusholme, and Liverpool Riverside where the number of residents keen for more opportunities to connect rises to more than one in five. Those who want to engage tend to be younger, educated renters in cities, but cite their main barriers are a lack of time, uncertainty about where to begin, and not knowing others to participate with.
Giving from the UK public is declining, with people donating an average of 0.9% of their income compared to 1.1% the previous year. CAF’s UK Giving research published earlier this year, found that the amount donated to charity in 2025 dropped for the first time in five years.
However, this new research also reveals that when people see the positive impact of charities in their local community, they are much more likely to donate overall, twice as likely to give locally and three times as likely to volunteer.
CAF’s Local Giving Report also finds that:- Community engagement: the most engaged region was the South West where almost half of people (47%) engaged with their community, compared to the East of England and the North East, where less than a third did (30% and 31% respectively). The constituency with the highest levels of local engagement was Bristol Central where 59% of people engaged with activities in their local community.
- Local pride: most of the ten constituencies with the greatest levels of pride are higher income areas in the North of England, where around seven in 10 people claimed a strong sense of belonging to their local community and satisfaction with their local area. This contrasts with constituencies in the Midlands, which have some of the lowest levels of local pride, and experience significant deprivation. In Wolverhampton South East, just 28% of residents say they are satisfied with their local area and feel a sense of belonging to it.
- Giving to charity: people in the UK donated 0.9% of their incomes to charity, a decline from 1.1% in 2024. Sheffield Hallam is the most generous constituency in the country, with residents donating 1.6% of their incomes. Higher income areas are likely to have more donors and generate larger donation totals but rank much lower in terms of percentage of income given. For instance, people in Kensington & Bayswater donated the most between them, at an estimated £41.7 million, however that equates to just 0.29% of the average income in that area.
Mark Greer, Managing Director of CAF, commented: “Charities are at the core of our communities. Through their work up and down the country, they strengthen local areas and support those in need.
“When we are facing a sustained trend of declining donations, part of the solution to unlocking greater giving lies in understanding the power of place and community. It might seem obvious, but places matter to people. This report shows that when people are engaged in a local area, they tend to give more. It tells us that the people in areas with low levels of engagement and giving aren’t disinterested – they need and want more opportunities.
“We need targeted investment and collaboration from government, philanthropists and businesses to revitalise local cultures of giving and encourage community connections will help to strengthen charities and the places they support, for the future.”
Paul Robin, CEO of Hertfordshire Community Foundation, commented: "This research reflects what we see every day across Hertfordshire — people want to feel connected to their communities and to make a meaningful difference locally. When individuals can clearly see the impact of charities and community groups in the places they live, it inspires greater generosity, stronger local pride and deeper engagement.
"At Hertfordshire Community Foundation, we are proud to connect donors, businesses and residents with grassroots organisations that are transforming lives across the county. By strengthening local giving and creating more opportunities for people to get involved, we can help build more resilient, connected and compassionate communities throughout Hertfordshire."
CAF’s interactive map allows users to see how much is given in their local area, as well as the number of donors, levels of engagement, and local pride.ENDSNotes to Editors- Follow the link to access the UK Local Giving Report
- For more information, including spokespeople, graphics and case studies, please contact media@cafonline.org
- In this report, findings for the calendar year 2025 are based on the responses of 12,913 individuals, unless otherwise indicated. The sample is constructed in such a way that it is nationally representative of the UK in terms of respondents’ sex, age, region/nation and social grade. All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. The survey was carried out online and the figures have been weighted and are representative of all UK adults (aged 16+).
- A statistical technique known as Multilevel Regression and Poststratification (or MRP) was used to create the constituency- and ward-level data and maps. It is a method for adjusting public opinion poll results to account for any imbalance between the survey sample and the population in each constituency and is often used to predict election results by seat. MRP was carried out by Electoral Calculus on behalf of CAF.