New research highlights desire for greater community involvement across the UK

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.

Across South Yorkshire, we see every day what happens when people feel connected to the places they live and the organisations working to make a difference. Strong communities are built when people come together and feel part of something bigger.

This research shows that when people can see the impact being made locally, they’re much more likely to get involved, whether that’s donating, volunteering, supporting neighbours or backing local causes in other ways.

There’s a real appetite across South Yorkshire for stronger community connections, and local charities and grassroots groups play a huge part in making that happen. They create opportunities for people to come together and help their communities thrive.

Place-based giving is about far more than fundraising alone. Some of the most generous people in our region are those who give their time because they genuinely care about where they live and want to make it better for everyone.

Martin Singer, chief executive of South Yorkshire’s Community Foundation