# Public trust in charities 2026

UK/England and Wales only.  

#### Trust in charities remains resilient

Overall trust has held steady at a high level since 2020, with 57% having high trust, and charities continue to outperform almost all other institutions.

However, there has been a small rise in those with low trust in charities since 2024 (9% in 2024, 11% in 2026). Those with less contact with charities and lower awareness of the Commission are more likely to have low trust. This reinforces the link between visibility, understanding and trust.

#### Trust, engagement and giving form a virtuous (and vicious) cycle

High trust is associated with donating, volunteering and other forms of contact, while lower trust tends to be linked to disengagement.

Those with high trust of charities, but who are not donating are still often supportive in other ways.

#### Money reaching the end cause remains the most important driver of trust

But perceptions that charities ‘make a real difference’ and act as a voice have grown in importance. This reflects a shift from a narrow focus on financial efficiency towards a broader expectation that charities demonstrate purpose, relevance and outcomes.

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## About SCVO

SCVO (Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations) is the national membership organisation for Scotland's voluntary sector.

Our role is to champion the role of voluntary organisations in Scotland and to support them to do work that has a positive impact.

SCVO supports members and the wider voluntary sector with all aspects of setting up and running a voluntary organisation. SCVO represents the needs and concerns of the voluntary sector to the Scottish government in Holyrood and UK government and Westminster. Through our learning and events programme SCVO offers training and development opportunities to the sector.

Members access an extensive membership benefits package including specialist, in-depth, 1-to-1 guidance from our Information Services team and from professional service partners.

Access to exclusive membership networks (including comms, employers, governance and policy) supports members to grow their connections, stay up to date, exchange ideas and views with peers, and learn through tailored learning opportunities.

SCVO members enjoy free access to Funding Scotland Premium to stay on top of funding opportunities to support their organisation’s financial resilience.

Discounts and savings on SCVO products and services (including our HR service, managed IT support, payroll service and events and training) and partner offers provide members with support to allow them to focus on delivering their organisation’s goals. Further SCVO products and services include [extensive digital support](https://scvo.scot/support/digital), a climate action resource [Growing Climate Confidence](https://climateconfident.scot), a voluntary sector publication [Third Force News](https://tfn.scot) and a voluntary sector jobs and recruitment service [Goodmoves](https://goodmoves.org).

For more information on SCVO membership, visit [SCVO membership](https://scvo.scot/membership)