Give confidently to registered charities this Giving Tuesday
Source: gov.uk (2025-12-02)

Regulators share tips on giving with confidence to registered charities this festive season

To mark Giving Tuesday (2 December 2025), the Charity Commission for England and Wales, the Fundraising Regulator and City of London Police are encouraging people to give confidently to registered charities, while taking simple steps to ensure their donations reach their intended cause.

The campaign comes at the start of the festive season, traditionally a time of increased giving across the UK. This generosity is especially needed this year, as charities face unprecedented pressures while supporting record numbers of people.

The regulators are encouraging the public to continue to give with confidence this festive season by following simple steps for safer giving:
- Check the charity’s name and registration number on the Charity Register at www.gov.uk/checkcharity (http://www.gov.uk/checkcharity) – most charities with an annual income of £5,000 or more must be registered
- Make sure the charity is genuine before giving any financial information
- Be careful when responding to emails or social media posts, or clicking on links within them
- Contact or find out more online about the charity you’re seeking to donate to, to understand how they are spending their funds
- Look out for the Fundraising Badge – the logo that says ‘registered with Fundraising Regulator’ – and check the Fundraising Regulator’s Directory of organisations which have committed to fundraise in line with the Code of Fundraising Practice
- Never feel under pressure to donate immediately. Ask the collector for more information and, if in doubt, wait and make a donation directly at a time that suits you
- If after making these checks you think that a collection or appeal is not legitimate, visit Stop! Think Fraud website to find where you can report charity fraud, or other suspected types of fraud, here: https://stopthinkfraud.campaign.gov.uk/reporting-fraud/
Trends suggest that charitable giving may be under pressure. Research from the Charities Aid Foundation suggests that individual giving in the UK has declined, with only 50% of people donating in the last year – the lowest level since 2019.

At the same time, recent Charity Commission research (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/charities-supporting-three-times-as-many-people-with-essential-aid-research-finds-as-sector-faces-increased-financial-pressure) found that charities are supporting three times as many people with essential aid compared to five years ago. Nearly half of charity trustees have been forced to make changes due to cost-of-living pressures, including stopping some services and using more reserves than expected.

David Holdsworth, Chief Executive of the Charity Commission, said:

The Christmas season is a time of incredible generosity, when many people dig deep to support the causes they care about, or help others. This year, that generosity matters more than ever.

Charities are providing a vital lifeline to ever more people, while simultaneously navigating their own financial challenges. The charities on our register rely on this generous giving in making our communities stronger and our society better for all.

By giving to registered charities, people can have confidence that their donations will be overseen and accounted for in line with charity law, and will reach the intended cause to make a positive difference this festive season.

Gerald Oppenheim, Chief Executive of the Fundraising Regulator, said:

The British public are exceedingly generous and Giving Tuesday, and then the festive period are when many people choose to donate to a cause close to their hearts.

Charities perform essential work at home and abroad all year round and we want to make sure that members of the public are taking appropriate measures to ensure their hard-earned money reaches the causes they care about.

Most fundraising is legitimate, but fraudsters continue to be creative, By carrying out a few simple checks you can make sure that you are giving to a genuine cause and that your generously donated money reaches its intended destination.

Data from the City of London Police points to the importance of vigilance when donating to charity. Last year, there were 561 charity fraud crime reports and a total loss of £2,160,169.

While this is a small figure compared to the overall funds raised by charities during the period in question, fraudsters occasionally take advantage of public generosity, using methods such as fake appeal websites, email appeals that falsely use the name of genuine charities, or appeals from fake charities.

Chief Superintendent Amanda Wolf from the National Lead Force for fraud, City of London Police, said:

Each Safer Giving Tuesday, and in the wider festive period, we see thousands fundraised for a variety of different causes. Unfortunately this time of giving does not stop criminals using fraudulent tactics online and in person to mislead the public whilst they pose as genuine charities.

We know that generosity when giving to charity goes a long way, let’s make sure those donations ends up where we intend and everyone stays vigilant this festive period when donating. To donate safely online or in person, stop and check to see if the charity is legitimate first. Ensure you make a report if you think a charity or fundraising appeal is fake or acting fraudulently.

Ends

Notes to Editors

About the Charity Commission for England & Wales

The Charity Commission is the independent, non-ministerial government department that registers and regulates charities in England and Wales. Its ambition is to be an expert regulator that is fair, balanced, and independent so that charity can thrive. This ambition will help to create and sustain an environment where charities further build public trust and ultimately fulfil their essential role in enhancing lives and strengthening society. Find out more: About us - The Charity Commission (https://connect.communications.gov.uk/assist/www.gov.uk)

About the Fundraising Regulator

The Fundraising Regulator is the independent regulator of charitable fundraising in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The regulator also has a lead role where charities primarily registered in these three countries fundraise in Scotland. The Fundraising Regulator is funded through a voluntary levy on charities spending £100,000 or more each year on fundraising. Other charities outside the levy can register with the regulator by paying an administrative charge of £50 a year. The regulator also receives income from registering commercial fundraising businesses. The Fundraising Regulator was established following the 2015 Cross-Party Parliamentary Review of Fundraising chaired by Sir Stuart Etherington and assumed responsibility for regulating fundraising from 7 July 2016.

To interact with the Fundraising Regulator through social media, please tweet @FundrRegulator.

For further information, please contact the Fundraising Regulator press team on xxx@xxx.xx (mailto:xxx@xxx.xx)

About the City of London Police

The City of London Police is the national policing lead force for economic crime and fraud, serving a crucial role in the co-ordination of the policing response: identifying, disrupting and prosecuting fraud and economic crime across the country. The City of London Police is also responsible for the national reporting service for cybercrime and fraud, on behalf of policing.

Further information:
- Anyone can check if a charity is registered at www.gov.uk/checkcharity (http://www.gov.uk/checkcharity)
- Further tips on donating with confidence to registered charities are available on GOV.UK (https://www.gov.uk/).
- Those seeking to support local causes with an income of less than £5,000 (which are not required to be on the Charity Register) are encouraged to follow the other recommended steps, including getting in touch with the cause for more information.
- Data from the City of London Police shows there was a total 561 charity fraud reports made between November 2024 and October 2025, with total losses of £2,160,169.
Charity Commission press office contact details

Email: xxx@xxx.xx (mailto:xxx@xxx.xx)

Out of hours press office contact number: xx-xxxx-xxxx