As a country we are relying more and more on charities and not for profit organisations to do work previousl centrally funded by government. The government saves money but the work the people do still cost to provide from utilities/offices/wages to the delivery of the work! it is not a cheaper option we just move the cost elsewhere under the guise of 'individual choice' and governments can say they have reduced costs

Excellent comments on the charity sector, but as a ex-employee of a national medical research charity my heart sinks when I hear of yet another charity being started following the loss of a family member to cancer, or similar life threatening condition. Simply there are far too many charities in the UK vying for our donations and in the cold light of day the diffusion of the money given must logically mean that there is never enough. Consolidation is I feel a thoroughly good idea; but we do need to understand that charities need funds to run administratively, they are employers and have the same costs as any other company.

What an interesting collection of comments and questions.

Yes - you can see the accounts of charities with a turnover of over £10k on the Charity Commission website. By definition, smaller ones wouldn't have "fat cats' running them. Charities are being encouraged to report the salary of the senior manager.

I fully believe that charities should join up - where appropriate. The joining-up of Age Concern and Help the Aged made so much sense.

I understand that the term "voluntary" comes from the voluntary contributions of the trustees, who are not allowed to be paid for their considerable work and who are ultimately responsible for the charity.

Many registered charities are grant-making organisations which support other charities. Some are ancient, with the aim of "providing a loaf of bread and five pennies to each of the widows of the parish at Christmas". A local trust here was set up in 1795 when wasteland around the town was donated by the landowner for the relief of poverty of the townspeople. When we bought our house, we had to pay £2.25 pa to the trust. These small amounts of money plus investments from selling off the land now amount to £60k pa which is divided up between local groups, on application, and has done a great amount of good.

Nowadays, every charity is set up by volunteers sitting round a kitchen table wanting to "do something" to address a local need. Many remain as community groups, not registered charities, run entirely by volunteers. I'm involved with a swimming club, which must have in place a huge number of policies and procedures to show that it is operating safely. Without the club, many children in our town wouldn't have the opportunity to learn to swim.

The charity which employs me and a dozen others, was set up by parents of disabled children and young people. They saw that their children's social care and educational needs were being met, by and large. However, many of the children attend special schools which can be miles from home, so don't see their peers outside school. Others are in mainstream schools and are ostracised and bullied because of the lack of understanding of the disability or behaviour - a great proportion have some degree of autism. We provide friendships and leisure opportunities with the help of young volunteers.

The total number of employed hours is 11,000 pa, which could only be done by an army of volunteers - and who would manage them?

More than a third of our income comes from the local authority, which outsources much work to the voluntary sector, partly in recognition that they can do a better job. Much more comes from grants - the BIG lottery, and smaller ones. Making applications takes hours - an application to the lottery can cost a charity the best part of £3,000 and may not be successful. A small proportion comes from community fundraising and donations.

All the grant-makers and the local authority require reports, to a greater or lesser extent. This means having administrative systems in place to capture and analyse information. Income and expenditure need to be managed properly - administration is work that must be done. Please do not dismiss fundraising as a waste of money - without it, charities couldn't do what they do. Hospices couldn't possibly run just on street collections and coffee mornings.

I hope such adverse publicity and negative feeling towards charities doesn't stop people giving. Charities are feeling the squeeze more than ever and most are doing a wonderful job in raising funds for research, giving aid, setting up and running projects. None of this can be done on a shoestring. If projects are to be researched, implemented and monitored then good management is essential. Staff have to be paid, premises bought or rented, utility bills paid, equipment bought and replaced, etc. McMillan nurses for example are not volunteers, but paid professionals. Overseas aid charities, have by the very definition of their work, huge transport costs. I could go on and on.

No one is forced to give. We can all just say no. I had a phone call from one of my charities recently asking if I could perhaps up my standing order by £2 a month. The request was politiely made and I agreed as I won't miss such a small amount.

Like most people I have 'favourite' charities I support. Some of these because, as some other posters have mentioned, their work has touched my life in some way. I would hate to think someone was denigrating their efforts

My husband died of brain cancer three years ago. If cancer charities were combined there would be even less research into brain cancer than there is now. The family give to Brain research uk because it combines research into lots of different problems to do with the brain, such as dementia, MND, Ataxia, and cancer.
I also support Actionaid and Wateraid because clean water is the most important thing, and Actionaid helps communities to get water however they can.
I give money to Shelter, because after water, a roof over your head is the most important.
I also have a direct debit with Viva! because I think they encourage people to use less of the world's resources.
I do not see how any of the charities can be combined satisfactorily with any other without losing out on the integrity they each have.

So sorry about your son grannyjack.Your information about the Samaritans' acceptable fundraising process is very useful and heartening.

I too hate the freebies and any other ploy that smacks of blackmail via guilt.

The balance between employing a professional workforce to fundraise efficiently and using a disproportionate amount of the money raised is a difficult one. People making donations wish to see the money go directly to the cause they espouse.

I do agree about the problem of many charities targeting the same problem and the danger of diluting and confusing the benefit.

I find it all an emotional minefield - everyone wants to help, but also wants to see the money spent wisely and efficiently. Local charities often feel a better bet; but the big charities need to be there for meeting the cost of major scientific research and global crises.

I support Action Aid, because they develop communities; and also Parkinsons UK because OH is a sufferer.

I had what looked like a personal letter recently purporting to be from a doctor doing research into cancer. I wondered how she knew me - surely my medical records were private? - and then realised it was a generic letter. I found that quite disturbing.

I am also supporting Oxfam less and going to the Shelter and Salvation Army shops instead. I have found over the last year that Oxfam are very assertive, too assertive in fact about Gift Aid, they try to force it upon people without explanation, so I'm giving my unwanted books etc to other charities.

Narrowboatnan, thanks for the tip about the Charity Commission. I had a look but feel that there is not enough detail to understand exactly what is going on.

"Loss is the price we pay for love". Someone said that to me recently, and it was strangely comforting.

Thanks Grannyknot. It is 18 years ago but loss is difficult for so many at this time of year. I have twin GC, boy & a girl aged 5 now. They don't take his place but I feel that we have got back together as a family & the focus has changed.

grannyjack so sorry to read about your son.

That's a good policy of the Samaritans.

I have direct debit payment in place with the Samaritans - my son took his own life. I signed up on the street & was phoned a few days later & asked if I was put under any pressure & if I wanted to continue the payments. I have contributed for a number of years & they have never contacted me to ask me to increase my contribution or sent me unsolicited mail shots.

Regarding cancer charities. On several occasions when friends have died & I have made donations to the local hospice in lieu of funeral flowers I have been inundated later with donation requests from cancer charities. I am not sure whether it is the hospice or funeral director, who received the collated the donations, who passed on my details as it surely can't be a coincidence.

Liz46 - if you go on the Charity Commission web site you should be able to see the last set of accounts that a charity has submitted. You will need the exact name of the charity or, better still, it's registered charity number.

audnay, it was Marie Curie. I have lost three relatives and a friend in the last couple of months and sent money to the charity instead of flowers. Every time I donate I get a letter with a suggested larger amount of money that is required. It is a horrible thing to say but I feel as if they are seeing how much they can guilt trip me into giving

Elegran that's a good idea, which I will do next time I receive unwanted gifts.

durhamjen the article mentions the benefits of merging some of the charities. So perhaps that's one way of improving matters.

A woman came to my door one Saturday afternoon a few weeks ago. She was soliciting donations for one of the breast cancer charities. In refusing her, I explained that there are now so many breast cancer charities, that I am confused and I would need to get how they all relate to the disease straight in my head so I knew where the money was going (research, information dissemination, etc.) before again donating to that particular cause.

I have returned the last few freebies in the stamped addressed envelope provided for orders, with a note telling them why. If enough are returned like that, it will be obvious to them that they are paying postage to send things out AND to return them. Unfortunately, I suspect they pay a bulk rate, so it won't hurt their pockets as much as it would ours.

A staggering article by David Craig. I did not realise the size of the charity sector these days, its obviously a massive business which attracts masses of paid professionals, and I can't but help think that governments are quite content to encourage that.

If people refuse to give their bank details to doorstep callers the charities will soon figure out that it is not a good way to get money.

I had recently been thinking how fed up I am with all the freebies being sent out by the Red Cross. Maybe we (who don't like this) could all email them to complain about it.

This is a very timely topic for me as not only have I often thought there are far too many charities fundraising for the same purpose/research/support but also because I am considering which charity/charities I might include in my Will. I, too, am disappointed with the methods used by the British Red Cross to grab our attention and coerce the public into parting with their money. There is absolutely no justification for spending money on sending out pens, cards and coasters, and the charity's use of a fundraising marketing company whose employees visit households asking people to give their bank details makes my blood boil as it flies in the face of all the advice given to the public by the Police and Neighbourhood Watch not to give any personal information to callers at the door. Grrr!

So if you think the charity sector is bloated, which would you get rid of?

Harrigan can I ask if it was the Marie Curie nurses, as it has happened to me, I have had to letters to say THANK YOU, and I have now had 2 phone calls and another is the AmnestyUK, I was thinking about helping and I more or less got asked to donate, I got a letter today and I ripped it up and but it in the bin. You go in the shopping centre we have 2 charity's on each floor and usually have 1 in Morrison's, every where you go people are asking for money. I don't mind some like the poppys,, I went daft this year, I bought a poppy scarf for me and a friend, I got a brooch for me and a friend, and I got my dad a special like badges with the 100 years centenary and one for my o/h and I bought a couple of coins. I don't mind but now ita letters and phonecalls, raffle tickets sent to buy, gift books to buy from them, I do buy charity cards. My uncle had Motor Neurone Disease and the year he died he was asked to paint a picture for Christmas or make a card, his was chosen as the winner and they were printed up for that year alone, but they don't make enough we as a family wanted to buy loads we got a card each in the end. That's why I buy the charity cards.

Flickety your earlier post was excellent, and very timely as we all get worked up about "fat cat" charities. All the smaller ones are, as you say, blameless.

But the 1000 or so big ones need some serious consideration about their original purposes.

Should have typed where not were and off not of.