Articles

How do you choose a particular charity to support

How do you choose a particular charity to support is the key question for any individual wishing to give money to worthy causes.

Firstly, especially if you want to contribute on a regular basis, then its best to support what interests you, or reflects your personal situation.

It might well be that you have a general notion that there are too many rainforests being cut down and that you want to help fund alternative ways of countries generating cash apart from wholesale logging. You don’t necessarily want to support a militant campaign to eradicate logging, but would like your contribution to responsibly examine the issues.

Or, maybe you, or someone in your family has been touched by an illness, that brings home to you the fragile nature of life and that you’d like to do your bit to fund research and ultimately help save lives.

That’s the fun of giving in today’s switched on world community. There are so many charities, so many worthy causes, that you can choose one, or more, that is right and comfortable for you.

For many people, it is no longer a question of just handing over a few pounds a week and hoping that will do some good, for someone, somewhere.

There can be many more things to consider. Do you want your money to help people locally, within the U.K., or overseas; or a mixture of all three? Do you want to help the huge, multi-country charities, or would you prefer the smaller organisations, which might give you a real sense of making things better?

Do you want your money to help activists, researchers, or PR teams, all trying to carve out their particular niche in support of their particular cause?

Would you feel more comfortable with a charity that has been around for a few decades, or one that has recently formed? You might feel that a younger charity, one that has a clear agenda and one that has clear goals, might be more rewarding, especially if you see yourself as helping in an active sense, participating, rather than just observing.

Many of the older, established charities have been criticised for being too bureaucratic, too top heavy with full-time managers and operatives who are indistinguishable from the government bodies that they should question and monitor. A popular question some years ago was how much in the donated pound did the charity actually give to the cause it supported. It was a good, if sometimes unfair question, and it certainly caused a few ripples. Some of the large, blue-chip charities admitted that only ten pence in the pound went to the actual cause. And although this blunt question can cause a distorted picture, it did make the point that charities have to be accountable to their donors.

The motives for giving money are varied and wide, but, having something that stimulates your charity, is a great incentive to maintain your generosity. It requires a little homework, but that goes for anyone wishing to give money – just be happy that you know where it’s going and who the ultimate beneficiary is. Always check that the charity asking for your money is legitimate. 

How do you choose a particular charity to support; think about something that will maintain your interest over the years and bring you a sense of satisfaction.

< Back to articles