Philanthropists are giving as much, or more, during the recession, according to a survey by Coutts.

The survey found that nearly 90% of clients are planning to maintain or increare donation levels this year.

Mark Evans, head of philanthropy and family business at Coutts said: "There has been an upsurge in the level of philanthropy over the last ten years and so it's great to see that the recession has not stopped everyone giving."

He added: "More major donors do seem to want help from professional advisers in balancing heart and mind when making funding decisions. Equally important is the fact that the charity sector is responding to the diversity of interests and enthusiasms among new donors, exploring ways of involving them and drawing on their skills."

The research also showed the big motivations for giving, with 42% saying they were motivated by a desire to "give back" to the community.

Around 16% of clients said tax benefits as their main reason for donating.

Maya Prabhu, senior philanthropy adviser at Coutts said: “While unstructured and spontaneous giving might to some extent fall victim to the economic downturn, results show that we will see some wealthy individuals giving more to help charities

"This is shown in the 2009’s Sunday Times Rich List where the top 100 philanthropists have donated £216million more to charity than last year, an 8% rise.”