One in five people in the UK have donated to a charity in the past three months, a survey has found.

The data from YouGov found that the fifth of the public who have donated are more likely to be older and female.

It found that 48% of donors are aged 55 and above, compared to 38% of all Britons being in this age group. Meanwhile 54% of donors are female, with 46% male.

In contrast just 9% of donors are aged between 18 and 24, even though they make up 13% of this age group.

Similarly 19% are aged 19 to 25 years old, compared to 25% of the population being in this age group.

Donors are more likely to give money as an ad hoc event (51%). Meanwhile, 43% give as part of a regular donation schedule and one in nine give ad hoc donations as well as having structured contributions.

Additionally, YouGov found that donors’ personal income levels is similar to those of the population as a whole. Half of donors (46%) have between £1 and £499 a month in disposable income, compared to 42% of all Britons.

Health and medicine charities are the most likely to have benefitted from public donations. This sector made up 30% of all donations, compared to 27% for animal charities and 20% for those supporting children and young people.

Last month online fundraising platform Omaze warned that public donations to charities could plummet by £1bn over the next year, due to financial uncertainty amid the Covid-19 crisis and rising unemployment.

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